Earthquake support

There’s no need to immediately reach out if you find anything new. Just make a note of the problem and take photos. The next time we’re in touch, let us know about it and we’ll include all the details in your claim.

If a different part of your home is damaged by another event, please lodge a new claim online.

A home claim assessment determines the outcome of your claim after loss or damage to your home and/or contents.

Once you’ve lodged your claim, we’ll organise for an assessor to contact you to arrange a time to attend your property and inspect the damage or loss.

We’ll let you know the outcome of your claim as soon as we can. If we require additional information, we’ll let you know. If your claim is covered, we can then discuss repairs or settlement depending on the circumstances of your claim.

You can track your claim online to see an estimated time of completion, though this depends on the nature of the repairs or replacements.

Our network of repairers and suppliers will restore your home to the condition it was in prior to the loss or damage for which you’re claiming. After assessing your home, we will create a scope of work.

A Scope of Work is a detailed summary of the work that will be undertaken to repair or rebuild your home.

After you’ve signed your Scope of Work, our builder will confirm the start and estimated completion dates. Your Claims Manager will also keep you up-to-date on the progress.

A scope of work is a detailed summary of the work that will be undertaken to repair or rebuild your home. This includes the repairs that will be made in each room and the materials used. The scope of work will be updated as needed.  

Your assessor, builder or claims manager will explain your scope of work and provide you with a copy for your consideration. Remember, your repairs or rebuild cannot commence until you have signed your scope of work.

If we accept your claim, we’ll cover the reasonable and necessary costs of demolishing and removing damaged parts of your home. This includes fallen trees if they’ve damaged your home. 

You can find your policy limits for removal of debris in the PDS or talk to our dedicated claims team is you have questions.

It depends. Your temporary accommodation benefit covers reasonable and necessary costs if your home is unsafe and can’t be lived in.

It’s important to check your policy documents to understand your temporary accommodation benefit.

These documents, along with your Certificate of Insurance, explain your benefit limit and if any exclusions apply.

During major events, third parties may door knock or letter drop offering to manage your insurance claim. Please be aware that: 

• these services are not provided by us
• we’ll never send an assessor or builder to your home without first notifying you, and
• we won’t demand payment on top of your excess for the work being undertaken.

If you’re approached by a third party, you may be asked to pay for these services using a percentage of your insurance settlement. You should always carefully consider the use of these services as your insurance policy doesn’t cover this cost.

If you decide to engage a third party, you should always ask for their:

• Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) number to check it against ASIC’s database
• Financial Services Guide
• fee for assisting in the lodgement of your claim, and 
• Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) credentials. 

Remember: Never sign a contract/authorisation to act on your behalf (physically or electronically) until you’ve received the information you’ve requested.

Apia will never send an SMS message requesting an excess payment to progress your home claim. If you receive such a message, please delete it immediately.