Severe flooding across North Queensland has led to extensive damage, with Ingham recording over 1,200mm of rainfall within three days.
Local residents describe it as the worst flood event since 1967, with widespread inundation of homes and businesses, according to the National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA).
Federal Minister for Emergency Management Jenny McAllister, visiting affected areas, acknowledged the long-term impact of such disasters.
“Recovery isn’t something that starts tomorrow and then ends after a week. For many communities after a big event, it takes a lot to get that community back on its feet financially, psychologically, [and] physically,” she said.
NIBA reported that insurance brokers in the region have raised concerns about the availability of flood cover for businesses.
Kieran Volpe, an Ingham-based broker, noted that many commercial policyholders lack flood insurance, which could present challenges when lodging claims.
“Flood cover is just not widely available for businesses here, so it remains to be seen what that means for them come claim time,” he said.
He added that his firm, North Queensland Insurance Brokers, had been discussing ways to support clients, including potentially airlifting staff to assist with claims processing due to road closures.
The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has declared the floods a “significant event,” allowing insurers to begin assessing the damage and assisting policyholders.
ICA chief executive Andrew Hall stated that insurers were preparing to handle the claims influx.
An insurance hub has been established at Townsville Stadium, running from Feb. 5 to 15. Representatives from major insurers – including Suncorp, RACQ, IAG, Hollard, Allianz, and Youi – will be available to provide guidance and process claims.
“Relief hubs provide an opportunity for impacted locals to understand more about the claims process, as well as meet with a representative of their insurer to discuss their claim or the Insurance Council for general information about the claims process,” Hall said.
More than 1,400 claims have been lodged so far, with numbers expected to rise as floodwaters recede. The ICA has indicated that if claims complexity or volume increases significantly, the event could be escalated to a catastrophe declaration, enabling further industry support.
IAG, which includes brands such as NRMA Insurance, CGU, WFI, and ROLLiN’, confirmed the deployment of its claims teams to the Townsville Sports Stadium.
NRMA Insurance executive general manager of claims Luke Gallagher urged residents to prioritise safety.
“We urge everyone to follow the directions and advice of the emergency authorities and to help ensure their family, friends, and neighbours are safe,” he said. “Our 24/7 Major Event Response Team ensures we’re well prepared for extreme weather events, and we’ll continue moving into the affected communities as soon as it is safe to access those areas.”
Suncorp has also dispatched its Customer Support Team to Townsville to assist with emergency payments, accommodation arrangements, and claims processing. As of Feb. 4, the insurer had received 526 claims, including 402 for residential properties, 114 for motor vehicles, and 10 for commercial properties.
Suncorp chief executive consumer insurance Lisa Harrison noted that additional claims assessors and builders were ready to be deployed as conditions allowed.
“The safety of everyone in the impacted communities is always our top priority. Many roads, homes, and businesses remain flooded, and we are closely monitoring the unfolding situation using cutting edge technology at our Disaster Management Centre in Brisbane to help coordinate our response,” she said.
NTI, a specialist transport and logistics insurer, has begun receiving claims from trucking and marine businesses affected by the flooding.
NTI chief claims officer Alan Hasted advised businesses to lodge claims as soon as it was safe to do so.
“While our focus is always the safety of people first, we know many customers will be concerned about recouping losses and resuming business operations as quickly as possible,” he said. “We are encouraging anyone impacted to lodge a claim when appropriate. We’re also reminding our customers that trauma counselling is available for that additional support.”
The insurer is also providing trauma counselling services for impacted clients and has urged transport operators to monitor road closures, review emergency plans, and secure equipment where feasible.
