Cyclone Alfred, North Qld floods result in $1.5bn insurance claims

Insured losses have soared to $1.5bn from almost 130,000 claims after Queensland was battered by two major weather events this year.

Insured losses in Queensland have soared to $1.5bn from almost 130,000 claims after the Sunshine State was battered by two major weather events this year, Australia’s insurance peak body has revealed.

In new data released by the Insurance Council of Australia, insurers have received more than $1.2bn in claims for the damage from Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred and $251m in claims for the North Queensland flooding event in February.

A majority of claims for both extreme weather events were for house damage, with 104,389 claims and 8725 claims lodged for Tropical Cyclone Alfred and the North Queensland floods respectively.

Almost 4000 motor claims were lodged, and more than 8000 claims were lodged for the damage caused by Tropical Cyclone Alfred.

In April alone, an additional 20,000 claims were lodged for the damage caused by Tropical Cyclone Alfred, equalling $267m.

While the severity of each claim varied, the average claim from the North Queensland floods was $23,000 compared to the average for Tropical Cyclone Alfred at a lower $10,000.

Gold Coast residents Renata and Joel Brunton were among Tropical Cyclone Alfred’s victims.

In comparison, a significant event for severe weather across Queensland and New South Wales was declared by the Insurance Council of Australia in April last year, which saw $332m incurred from 21,200 claims lodged across both states.

For the 2022 floods in Queensland and New South Wales, almost $6.4bn was incurred from 246,000 claims lodged.

Insurance Council of Australia chief executive Andrew Hall said the rising claims numbers and closure rates are a sure sign that recovery in extreme weather-impacted communities was progressing well.

“To help impacted customers, insurers are heading to Hervey Bay next week to meet with

customers impacted by Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred, giving them the opportunity to discuss their claim one-on-one,” Mr Hall said.

“We encourage anyone yet to make a claim relating to extreme weather damage to get in touch with their insurer.”

More than a third (37 per cent) of claims across the two weather events had already been settled, amounting to $146m.

For the recent flooding event in Western and Central Queensland, fewer than 350 claims had been received by insurers.

The Insurance Council of Australia reassured that insurers were continuing local support across impacted communities across the state.

Originally published as Cyclone Alfred, North Qld floods result in $1.5bn insurance claims