For our customers in Wellington region,  we trust that you experienced minimal damage following yesterday’s earthquake. Sunday morning served as a stark reminder of nature’s power, and we want to update you on the quake, and how it relates to your Bounce Insurance policy.

This recent earthquake was the largest since the Geraldine quake on September 20, 2023 (M5.7), and the most significant for the Wellington region since the Kaikoura earthquake in November 2016. According to the diagram below, the highest Peak Ground Velocity (PGV) recorded was at the Karori GeoNet sensor, with ground movement measured at 12.3 cm per second.

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In this instance, the Bounce policy was not triggered as the ground movement (PGV) did not meet the minimum threshold of 20cm per second. We reached out to our customers via text message shortly after the event to share this information with them.

Fortunately, there have been no reports of damage, which further supports the effectiveness of our policy trigger threshold. Our policy trigger is based on extensive loss modelling and past experience, with a threshold that is high enough where we would expect to see some damage and disruption, but also low enough that it represents a plausible earthquake event.

As a reminder, our payment structure is outlined below.

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Given the size of the quake, I would anticipate a couple of secondary shakes over the next few days so best to be prepared.

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Stay well, stay safe.