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Insurance Council of Australia has received more than 19,500 claims following storm

April 22, 2015   by Canadian Underwriter


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The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has received more than 19,500 claims, with losses estimated at AUD$129 million as of 7 a.m. on Wednesday, following a storm that affected parts of New South Wales (NSW).

Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology recorded rainfall accumulations of 120 millimetres over a 24-hour period. Photo: David Service.

The ICA said in a press release on Wednesday morning that it had declared a catastrophe for the affected parts of New South Wales, particularly the Central Coast, Hunter, Greater Sydney Metropolitan and Illawarra regions.

“These storms have caused damage across large parts of NSW. Though most claims so far have been for low-level property damage, mainly from water and wind damage to homes and damage to cars, insurers are also receiving claims for severe damage to houses and roofs,” ICA CEO Rob Whelan said in the release, adding that claims are also being received for stormwater inundation. “I expect these numbers will rise quickly as home owners and businesses assess the damage to their properties and lodge claims with their insurer or through their insurance broker.”

The storm began early Tuesday morning local time, with strong winds, heavy rainfall and thunderstorms causing three fatalities, as well as damage to homes, thousands of power outages and transport disruption, Risk Management Solutions, Inc. said in a statement on Tuesday. The NSW State Emergency Service responded to more than 5,500 emergency calls and strong winds downed trees and power lines, causing over 215,000 power outages in Sydney, the Central Coast and the Hunter region, which could take several days to restore, RMS said.

The storm caused more than 215,000 power outages in Sydney. Photo: Steven Gorman.

According to Australia’s Bureau of Meterology, rainfall accumulations of 120 millimetres (mm) were recorded over a period of 24 hours across the affected areas, with rainfall accumulations reaching 312 mm in the worst affected town of Dungog, over the same time period. The bureau also reported that eastern portions of NSW were impacted by wind gusts of up to 135 kilometres per hour.

Whelan said that all claims from the storm will be prioritized. “Insurers are focused on handling claims and undertaking assessments as soon as possible,” he said.

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