Suncorp Group commits $200K to Cyclone Gabrielle Appeal Fund
6 March 2023
Suncorp has committed $200,000 to the Prime Minister’s Cyclone Gabrielle Appeal Fund to support the recovery efforts in communities across the North Island of New Zealand.
Suncorp Group CEO Steve Johnston announced the donation today from Auckland, where he is visiting impacted customers and assessing the situation on the ground with Suncorp New Zealand CEO, Jimmy Higgins.
“Having met with customers who have had their lives turned upside down by the recent weather events, I know what an incredibly challenging and emotional time this is for many people,” Mr Johnston said.
“As a trans-Tasman insurer, Suncorp Group is well equipped to throw our full support behind our customers here in New Zealand. We have people across both New Zealand and Australia dedicated to the recovery and have flown in additional claims specialists and assessors to support the local team,” he said.
“We know the most important role we can play is delivering the best possible claims experience to help our customers recover as quickly as possible. In addition, we are pleased to be able to contribute to the recovery and rebuild efforts in the affected communities through our donation to the Cyclone Gabrielle Appeal Fund.”
Suncorp New Zealand CEO Jimmy Higgins said given the enormity of the disasters it would be a long road to recovery for the impacted communities however Suncorp would be there every step of the way.
“We are highly experienced at supporting customers through large scale natural disaster recovery events, having helped customers and communities get back on their feet following the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes, the 2016 Kaikoura quakes and the 2022 flooding event on the east coast of Australia,” Mr Higgins said.
“We’ve received more than 22, 000 claims across Vero and (our JV with NZAA) AAI Insurance following the flooding and Cyclone disasters and are triaging and processing the claims as quickly as possible, having also secured trades and building co-ordinators to help get our impacted customers back on their feet,” he said.
“In addition to the support we’re providing to our customers, we also recognise that Cyclone Gabrielle has caused significant damage throughout communities across the North Island.
“The community groups and commercial structures in these areas are the backbone for local residents and I hope that any support we can provide to New Zealand’s Cyclone Gabrielle Appeal Fund will help restore their lives and also support the building of greater resilience to such extreme weather.
“Suncorp remains committed to working with all sectors of the community to build more resilient and sustainable communities to ensure insurance protection is both affordable and accessible well into the future.”
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