Insurance claims continue to rise as the extreme weather event in southeast Queensland and New South Wales (NSW) unfolds, with the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) revealing another jump in the number of claims related to the event.
On Thursday, March 3, the ICA revealed that insurers received 60,163 claims related to the Queensland-NSW floods, with property accounting for 83% of total claims and motor vehicle claims making up the remaining percentage.
On Friday, March 4, the number of claims related to the weather event escalated to 67,537, a 12% increase on the previous day’s claims count, with domestic property accounting for 82% of total claims and motor vehicle claims making up the remaining percentage.
Based on previous flood events, the ICA estimated the cost of claims to reach over $1 billion, subject to detailed claims assessment as loss adjustors move in over the coming weeks and the number of claims rises.
With Australia being hit by severe weather events left and right, ICA CEO Andrew Hall said the representative body of the Australian general insurance industry supports National Recovery and Resilience Agency (NRRA) head Shane Stone’s calls for reviewing land-use planning arrangements.
“Claims handling reforms have significantly improved the customer experience, and eligible customers in urgent need can now more quickly receive an advance cash payment of up to $5,000,” Hall said. “This event has just reinforced the need for a national conversation about what we build and where we build it, and to that end, I welcome comments by NRRA head Shane Stone and look forward to taking up this issue with State and Federal Governments in coming months.”
The ICA has also been calling for all Australian governments to double Federal funding to $200 million yearly until reaching $2 billion over the next five years to make the country more resilient to extreme weather.
