Obtaining full earthquake insurance in the medium to long term in New Zealand is still uncertain and clients are feeling the impact of increased premiums, according to global broker Marsh.

Nathan Richmond, Head of Placement Services for Marsh NZ, told insuranceNEWS.com.au that some client renewals at March 31 might have experienced increases for the first time.

“The market has taken a steep change,” he said. “New Zealand’s rate movements are a lot more acute in terms of property insurance.”

Mr Richmond says brokers are “still working to ensure that clients receive quality and clarity on risk”.

One risk receiving a renewed focus from insurers is the capacity for earthquake-prone Wellington, which he says has resulted in a tightening-up of the market and rising premiums.

The decision by church-based insurer Ansvar to pull out of the market further impacted the market, with insurers being inundated with additional requests for cover.

Insurance brokers have had to find approximately $NZ5 billion ($3.97 billion) of extra capacity for Wellington alone, a Marsh NZ report says.

It says many clients were forced to put a maximum loss limit in place for natural disasters or forgo earthquake cover entirely.