NSW floods becomes Australia’s most expensive natural disaster, ICA chief express worries

The New South Wales floods, which swept over Australia causing massive damage to the properties of Australians in the region had become Australia’s most expensive natural disaster.

On Wednesday, The Guardian reported that the insurers are estimating around $5.5 billion in claims which have been lodged since the flood crisis which began in February. Phyllis Miller, the mayor of Forbes claimed, “Some people with existing policies have received letters saying they will not be renewed, while others say the insurers refused to cover them, to begin with.” 

The Chief executive of the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA), Andrew Hall asserted that “by and large insurers are sticking by the customers.” However, Hall told ABC on Tuesday that many of the towns that are impacted by the floods have become "uninsurable". He said, “A town that goes through so many floods is simply unaffordable when it comes to a traditional insurance product,” adding, “Now is the time to say to the government we need a flood levee or we need to do something about those particular homes so this doesn’t happen again.” 

Meanwhile, the region which was grappled with the floods throughout the year is now witnessing relief as showers are beginning to clear across the region. However, the flood recovery efforts in the state’s central and west Riverina regions have only just begun. Commenting on the spike in insurance claims, Hall told ABC, “We have to think about other types of insurance products that people can access that will require partnership with the state and federal governments.”

Emergency personnel called it the biggest event

During her conversation with ABC, the State Emergency Service commissioner Carlene York called the floods, “The biggest event the emergency service has confronted.” York believes the impact of the flood is expected to be ongoing for months. York told ABC, "If we don't have any more rain it will be flooding well past Christmas."

York talked about the international assistance that the country received from New Zealand, Singapore and US. She claimed that the international resources from New Zealand and Singapore helped greatly during the recovery process, however, the emergency services will deploy more resources from Canada and USA, “down the track”. She added, “We are watching what the forecast is doing to see whether or not we need those resources."

Know more about the 2022 Eastern Austalia Floods

The 2022 eastern Australia flash floods were one of the worst floods the country dealt with in recent years. The series of floods that started in February engulfed the regions of South East Queensland, Wide Bay-Burnett, and the coastal regions of New South Wales. 

Brisbane Times reported, that 22 people have lost their lives directly from the floods across southeast Queensland and Northern New South Wales. Thousand of schools were shut down in the region. Speaking about the NSW floods and the recovery process that followed, NSW premier Dominic Perrottet said, “What we're committed to is not making the same mistakes of the past."