Originally Posted by
Jaa
I should also add what a debt NZ and Christchurch owe to Tower, IAG, Suncorp and their reinsurance partners.
Tower was the least exposed to Christchurch of the major insurers and have been the fastest at settling Christchurch related claims. Yet they have run through all their reinsurance, the above mentioned bonus reinsurance and several years of profits to honour the claims. They have also held a large amount of excess capital over and above the Reserve Bank minimums as an extra safety buffer since the quakes (which I guess is now at risk).
Compared to the cowboys at AMI, Tower alone has probably saved NZ taxpayers half a billion dollars or so (and cost shareholders a $1+ a share). The big Aussie companies, billions and billions of dollars.
Not that anyone will care when selecting an insurer for their house, but they should.