An out of court settlement has been reached between Southern Response and 24 of its policy holders who were taking a class action against it.
A Christchurch family is attempting to sue the EQC and their insurer, Southern Response. Photo: RNZ / Diego Opatowski
The Christchurch homeowners said the government-owned quake claims settlement business had engaged in a deliberate strategy to deceive them and delay their claims.
They have now agreed to drop their action in return for their claims being resolved by the agency with facilitation by retired High Court judge Sir Graham Panckhurst.
If an agreement could not be reached then Sir Graham would determine the outcome.
The lawyer who took the class action, Grant Cameron, said he was pleased at the settlement, especially given how long his clients had been waiting to have their quake claims resolved.
Southern Response said it was a much more efficient way to handle their cases than a protracted court case.
One of the 24 earthquake claimants, Bob Burnett, said the long legal battle had been mind-numbing.
Mr Burnett said he would never have imagined back in 2011 that his family would be out of their house for so many years.
"My children, they're now seven and 10, they've had a different life - they should have grown up in the nice, warm, healthy, comfortable house up on the top of the hill that we'd planned for them to live in.
"But instead we've been bouncing around mouldy, substandard rentals."
