Households counting on a dry El Niño summer could be caught short, the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has warned, and the time to fix their cover may be running out.
In a statement, the ICA said 2026 is already on track to be Australia’s wettest El Niño year on record. October brought widespread storm activity across parts of Queensland and the Northern Territory. El Niño has historically been linked to drier conditions in eastern Australia.
The event is still building. In its 27 October update, the Bureau of Meteorology said El Niño continues to strengthen. The weekly relative Niño3.4 index reached a record +2.88°C, the highest in its weekly dataset, which dates back to 2008. The Indian Ocean Dipole has also been above the positive threshold for seven consecutive weeks.
The ICA’s sharpest warning concerns timing. It said households should make sure they are covered now, before extreme weather threats rise, because some insurers may place a temporary embargo on new policies, or on increases to cover, if extreme weather is imminent.
It also urged households to use online building and contents calculators, so their sum insured covers the estimated cost to repair, rebuild or replace the home, its contents and any outbuildings. It recommended reviewing building, contents and landlord policies for exclusions and limits.
“Recent years have taught us that extreme weather doesn’t always follow the forecast or the season, and communities that haven’t seen a major event in a long time can be caught off guard when one arrives,” ICA deputy CEO Kylie Macfarlane said.
“Rebuilding is much harder than preparing. A few hours spent cleaning gutters, checking your policy and making sure your sum insured is up to date can make a real difference if disaster strikes.”
The season has already tested parts of the north. In October, a storm in Central Australia brought widespread damage to Alice Springs. IAG has warned that hail and bushfire risk are colliding this spring.
For brokers, the embargo point sets a deadline. Sum-insured increases and new cover for home, contents and landlord clients need to be in place before a storm or cyclone warning makes them unavailable. Renewal reviews over the next few weeks are the window to catch underinsurance.
