IAG, the largest insurer in New Zealand, has recorded a record number of claims from regions hit by Cyclone Gabrielle. The company, which owns AMI, State, and NZI Insurance, revealed that the North Island’s stormy summer resulted in 41,596 weather claims in the six months to the end of February, compared to just 8293 for the same period last year. The company’s claims included 26,000 from Auckland residents following Cyclone Gabrielle and the Anniversary Weekend floods. Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay also experienced a significant number of cyclone-related claims. A survey carried out by IAG revealed that only just over half of people in the upper North Island and close to a third of those in the lower North Island prepared for either storm, despite received weather warnings.