Groningen lawyers to sue state for ‘immaterial’ earthquake damage

historische-stadswandeling-door-groningen(7)A law firm in Groningen has launched a claim for immaterial damages against gas extraction company NAM and the Dutch state for the psychological problems suffered by people living in the earthquake zone.

‘People are full of doubt. They are living in houses full of cracks which get repaired and then open up again every time there is a new quake,’ lawyer Pieter Huitema told Radio 1.

The law firm has set up a foundation for home owners whose property has gone down in value because of the earthquakes. Some 250 of them claim to have suffered immaterial damage as well.

The case is likely to take years becuase it is hard to assess how much immaterial damage people have suffered. ‘Immaterial damage is difficult to show but that does not mean it does not exist,’ Huitema said.

The government recently agreed to reduce gas extraction in the worst affected areas and to introduce compensation for home owners whose property has been damaged.

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