Insurance losses from Australia storms pass AUD$1.55 billion

The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) reported on Tuesday that insurance losses from claims following a series of severe storms that hit the eastern part of the continent in April and May have passed AUD$1.55 billion.

As of June 1, ICA member companies have received 119,935 claims following storms that struck widespread areas of New South Wales (in particular, the Central Coast, Hunter, Greater Sydney Metropolitan and Illawarra regions) over several days in April. The ICA said in a release that insurance losses to date total $801.7 million in losses: $629.6 million for domestic claims and $172.1 million for commercial. All figures are in Australian dollars.

Insurers are also handling 15,239 claims following the hailstorm that struck Sydney on April 25, with losses of $389.8 million. A large portion of these claims ($302.4 million) are for commercial policies, mainly for damage to industrial properties, the release said.

Related: Recent storms Australia’s fifth declared cat of 2015

Finally, the storms that rolled across South East Queensland and Northern New South Wales between April 30 and May 4 caused $360.2 million in losses (about $289.8 million for domestic claims and $70.2 million for commercial claims), with 27,825 claims received.

“Insurers and insurance brokers continue to handle fresh claims from household and commercial policyholders,” the ICA added.

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

Since last November, insurance claims for ICA-declared catastrophes have totalled more than $3.45 billion, including the following:

• Tropical Cyclone Marcia (Feb.) – 36,483 claims and more than $518 million in losses (commercial $190.3 million, domestic $327.7 million);

• South Australian bushfires (Jan.) – 996 claims and $36.6 million in losses (commercial $12 million, domestic $24.6 million); and

• Brisbane hailstorm (Nov. 2014) – 121, 195 claims and more than $1.35 billion in losses (commercial $513.3, domestic $837.5 million).