New Zealand’s Earthquake Commission “settled” all standard Canterbury claims below $NZ15,000 ($13,065) by its October 31 deadline.

National Customer and Claims Manager Gail Kettle says more than 32,000 claims were dealt with.

“Settlement has involved either the receipt of a payment by cheque or direct credit, a decline letter or a phone call advising a customer of their claim status.

“As you can imagine, it has been a massive exercise, so I have no doubt there will have been some glitches, and I would encourage people to contact us directly if they think this is the case.”

A group of more complex small claims, such as those relating to multi-unit buildings, are still to be settled.