Smith Nick: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Smith Nick: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:626;Page:20800] 
7.  
Hon Dr NICK SMITH (National—Nelson) 
 to the  
Minister of Internal Affairs 
: Are owners of leaky buildings getting access to a “speedy” and “cost-effective” resolution of their claims as promised under the Weathertight Homes Resolution Services Act 2002? 
Hon RICK BARKER (Acting Minister of Internal Affairs) 
: Generally yes. The service established under this Act is now allocating an assessor within 1 month of claims being accepted. Assessments are generally completed within 4 months. Following assessment the claimant electing mediation and identification of the parties mediators are ready to proceed immediately. Mediations are being completed within an average of 6 months from the date that the claimant elects mediation. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: How can the Minister describe this service as “cost effective” when on average each settlement is costing $108000 of which not a dollar is spent on repairing the home and the average adjudicated settlement is $68000; and is that not just a classic example of the Government wasting money on bureaucracy rather than repairing the homes? 
Hon RICK BARKER 
: That member obviously knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. The price of justice is in fact to have a fair and an accurate process. The cost of an assessment is about $7000 to $10000 which is free to the person making the application. I would say that that is a very good deal for the people who have the problem. 
Russell Fairbrother 
: Do people with leaky buildings have options to use other means of dispute resolution? 
Hon RICK BARKER 
: Yes. The service is an alternative dispute resolution system to the court system. Assessments are free. Homeowners can opt either for mediation at $200 or for adjudication at $400. I would have thought that to be a very low-cost process as an alternative to the court system. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: Why did the Minister say on TVNZ’s  
Sunday 
 programme that most people are getting solutions from the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service when the record of his own department shows that of the 3260 cases only 325 have been settled 2½ years later; and since when under this Government has 10 percent been “most”? 
Hon RICK BARKER 
: The point the member needs to appreciate is that the service started from zero. There were no staff. A workforce had to be built up and the programme had to start. Of the current claims before the service 569 have been closed or found to be ineligible. The service currently has 215 mediations 23 adjudications and 91 claims under progress. I would have thought that was a very good start. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: What does the Minister say to the thousands of leaky-home owners who are going into their third winter with rotting and unhealthy homes when— 
Hon Chris Carter 
: Who caused the problem? 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: Actually George Hawkins. What’s the story Madam Speaker? 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Who intervened when the question was being put? Would that member please leave the Chamber. 
Hon Chris Carter withdrew from the Chamber. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: What does the Minister say to the thousands of leaky-home owners who are going into their third winter with rotting and unhealthy homes when at the current rate of settlement under this Government’s policy it will take 20 years to resolve the cases; and is it little wonder that leaky-home owners are declaring bankruptcy and leaving New Zealand? 
Hon RICK BARKER 
: The member’s maths is wrong. In my initial answer I told him that the assessments of leaky homes are generally done within 4 months. Following the assessment people can choose to go into mediation and the mediations are being completed in on average 6 months. Currently 444 mediations and adjudications are in process. There is a very good rate of work here and things are moving very rapidly. I can accept that from the beginning there were issues about speed and process but that was because the service was in start-up mode. It is now working much more effectively and much more efficiently. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: Noting that the average number of claims being lodged this year—2½ years after the service was established—is 80 claims per month that on average this year the service has achieved 10 settlements per month and that there is a backlog of over 1700 claims how can the Minister possibly say that that is the quick and speedy resolution promised by the Government 2½ years ago? 
Hon RICK BARKER 
: The advice I have is that the current rate of claims is 71 per month not 80—the member always inflates things. The second thing is that the process does not have absolute control over that. The fact that people enter into a process does not mean that it will go all the way through. It may be found that there is no case or people may find that there are other alternatives. There is a range of reasons for that not occurring. The point I want to make is that on average the mediation process is getting settlements within 6 months. That is a significant improvement and an outstanding result. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: I seek the leave of the House to table the annual reports and Budget estimates that show that the Government is to spend $99.2 million on the bureaucracy of the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service not a penny of which will go on fixing homes. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is objection. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: I further seek the leave of the House to table the latest report of the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service dated 26 May which shows that less than 10 percent of claims made 2½ years after it was established have been settled. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Leave has been sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is. It will not be tabled.