The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has broadened its Cat 255 declaration to cover every postcode in Queensland and New South Wales for severe storm and hail activity between Nov. 20 and Nov. 27, 2025. The event, formally designated “Qld and NSW Severe Storms and Hail,” has generated more than 44,600 claims across personal and commercial lines, with insurers expecting further notifications as damage is identified over coming days.
Early data from several carriers shows motor and home portfolios bearing the bulk of initial losses. RACQ Insurance has reported 3,603 claims as of the morning of Nov. 25, including 2,006 motor and 1,597 home claims, with concentrations in Logan, Moreton Bay, and Brisbane’s eastern suburbs. IAG has received more than 8,500 claims across brands including NRMA Insurance, RACQ Insurance, CGU, WFI, and ROLLiN’. Allianz has recorded 1,642 claims over a similar period.
The expanded Insurance Catastrophe declaration reflects that the same weather system has affected multiple communities over an eight‑day period, rather than isolated locations or single storm cells. ICA CEO Andrew Hall commented: “The extension of our Insurance Catastrophe declaration points to the severity of this ongoing extreme weather that continues to impact widespread regions across both Queensland and New South Wales.”
Hall said the pattern of storms meant some customers are dealing with overlapping loss events. “We acknowledge that some policyholders face a compounding impact, as their regions have been hit multiple times by different storms during this period, with damage ranging from hail dents on motor vehicles to roofs torn off by strong winds,” he said. Under the catastrophe designation, insurers activate surge procedures for claims handling, coordinate through the ICA, and liaise with governments and emergency services.
Insurers have established field teams in Bribie Island, Logan, and Brisbane, with deployments to additional parts of Moreton Bay scheduled from Dec. 1. The teams are handling claim lodgement, initial inspections, and make‑safe work. The ICA and member insurers are tracking claims density and severity and may add temporary recovery hubs or mobile units in other locations. Policyholders who have not contacted their insurer are being asked to lodge claims, even where damage assessments are incomplete. “Insurers are prioritising claims arising from this event, and I encourage anyone who is yet to make a claim to reach out to their insurer,” Hall said. For commercial accounts, brokers and intermediaries are assisting with documentation, business interruption issues, and specialist assessments.
As claims increase, insurers are also cautioning policyholders about “disaster chasers” operating in storm‑affected suburbs and town centres. These operators are reported to approach residents and small businesses in person, often without invitation, and may pressure them to sign contracts on the spot, seek upfront payments, or imply they are linked to insurers. Some also claim to have identified additional damage or suggest that engaging their services is necessary for an insurance claim to proceed.
The ICA has restated that insurers do not send assessors or repairers to a property without prior contact with the policyholder once a claim has been lodged. It also notes that repairers appointed by insurers do not request direct payment from customers for work covered under the policy. Policyholders are being advised to ask for identification and builder licence details from anyone proposing repair work and to confirm any claimed insurer connection directly with their insurer before signing documents.
“We encourage anyone who’s been impacted by recent storms to lodge a claim with their insurer even if they don’t know the full extent of the damage. It’s also important to remain on alert for disaster chasers, particularly with more storms predicted for the remainder of the week. The ICA has stood up an industry-wide taskforce to help manage claims from this event with insurers beginning to process claims,” Hall said.
Customers who have entered contracts with unauthorised operators retain statutory consumer rights, including a 10‑day cooling‑off period in many circumstances. Insurers say they can assist policyholders who are seeking to end such arrangements.
