Gas Unlimited was fined $82,500 for breaching gas safety and measurement regulations. Chris Skelton/Stuff Gregory John Smith, owner of Christchurch firm Gas Unlimited, during one of his appearances in the Christchurch District Court last year. The company had a public liability policy with QBE Insurance Ltd at the time of the explosion. According to a decision by Associate Judge Dale Lester in the High Court in Christchurch, the estimated cost of the claims arising from the explosion “significantly exceeded” the sum the policy covered. QBE asked the court to set a deadline for when those affected by the explosion could file a claim. That would allow the insurer to distribute the available money pro rata among those who had lodged claims, once the claims had been reviewed and accepted.