When the rains struck in June there were tenants in the Wanganui house and she was trapped at her farm by a huge slip on SH4.
When she did get to the house there was a crack running along the front of it and slumping below that. She got the gas disconnected because she could see it might rupture.
Her insurer, FMG Insurance, advised her to get a quote to fix the damage. Instead, she talked to an engineer friend who advised her to contact the EQC. She also asked Wanganui District Council to have a look.
She was away on holiday when the council did look. Her house was deemed uninhabitable and red-stickered on July 15. Her tenants moved out soon after.
EQC responded with a report from engineering company Tonkin + Taylor. It estimated the cost of repair to be $184,000. Most of that - $131,000 - was to put in a big retaining wall to stop the land slipping.
Regarding the land, it said it would only pay for the value of the land or the cost to repair it, whichever was cheaper. Instead of calling the value of the land the $115,000 that is the GV for the whole section, EQC valued the small area affected at $12,000. That was cheaper than $131,000 so that's all it intends to pay.
Its letter says Miss Gregory may be able to get the work done more cheaply but that she cannot use the Tonkin + Taylor construction drawings.
FMG is covering her loss of rent from July to March. It had insured Miss Gregory's house but not her land. Since costs related to the house will be covered by EQC she is unlikely to get anything toward building a retaining wall from her insurer.
What upsets her most is how hard she worked to get herself into a good financial situation - six days' work a week for 22 years. Now everything seems so difficult she's inclined to put the house on the market and just walk away.
Anyone in a similar position who wants to work in a group with a lawyer can contact Miss Gregory by emailing jillsweetie@gmail.com, or they can email ngoodier@gmail.com or text 021 059 9656.