eKourier Jan 2021

FEATURE

NAPIER FLOODED... BUGGER!

O n the night of Monday 9th of rain fell within a 24 hour period including a massive 54mm in the first hour. To put this into context, it was four times the total for the average monthly rainfall and was the second heaviest day on record for the Napier area. A seven day State Of Emergency was declared by Civil Defence. Unfortunately, our Napier site was affected with some 216 units and our office area being flooded by water coming into our property from the surrounding roads, which was also preventing our own drainage system from allowing any driveway surface water to drain away. Thankfully, our Teams own homes and the Onekawa site in the neighbouring suburb were not affected so we were able to immediately activate our Emergency Response Plan to minimise any more damage and look after the affected customers as soon as possible. Having a plan ensures an organised approach, quickly assisting the affected customers. Removal- ists were used to assist customers October, the worst rainfall in 57 years occurred, when 242mm

to almost 98% as new customers enquire about needing to empty out their homes to allow drying and repairs. This event again proved the benefit of insurance where a natural disaster like this can occur at any time without warning. With the advent of the new website and the complimentary first months insurance, you can see how a reminder of this event in the 20 Day Care Call to confirm ongoing insurance will become somewhat easier. I would like to thank all the Napier and Hastings Team who worked long days for two weeks to ensure all customers units were resolved along with the super support of the Customer Care Team and THQ. The customer feedback has been extremely positive, both on Facebook and Google Reviews. This reminds us all that regardless of the event, it's how we help our customers experience post event that goes a long way towards our reputation and reinforces ultimately our “Store with People who Care" Branding. Andrew Kirkham NZ Operations Manager

checking their units and separating the affected items that had ground contact, providing complimetary boxes for repacking and also some rubbish bin skips.

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THIS EVENT AGAIN PROVED THE BENEFIT OF INSURANCE

‘ WHERE A NATURAL DISASTER LIKE THIS CAN OCCUR AT ANY TIME WITHOUT WARNING While some customers downsized and the odd person decided this was time to end storing, the majority of customers have remained. Ironically, due to the severity of the event in the greater region, the site occupancy has increased

16 Kennards Kourier Jan 2021