Property reports for flood insurance available

By Nicola Ceccato

Jan 25, 2024

Property reports for insurance claims can now be publicly accessed.

Insurer responses to flooding claims continue to be a point of contention, with insurance premiums skyrocketing through the roof in the past 18 months.

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Insurers have deemed homes around the region that have been inundated by floods as high-risk areas and, as such, have increased premiums — but this also includes homes that were less affected by floods but are still within the floodplain area.

To assist with clearing up any misunderstanding about what is deemed as a high-risk flood area and what isn’t, it is now publicly available for residents of Greater Shepparton, Mitchell, Strathbogie, Moira and Benalla Rural City local governmewnt areas to get a property report of their home’s possible flood impact.

The property report can be found on the Goulburn Broken Community Flood Intelligence Portal and includes an indication of the depth of flooding on the property and the water to floor level in flood events and different river gauge levels.

The Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority encourages residents to create a property report to provide to their insurers when they’ve been given a premium increase.

In August last year, a federal inquiry into insurers’ responses to the 2022 major floods across Australia was commenced regarding claims, insurance contracts, insurance affordability and other matters relating to their response.

Tensions are still ongoing between residents of flooded communities and insurance companies.

During a visit to Shepparton on January 18, Victorian Water Minister Harriet Shing addressed the topic of government assistance with insurance and said even though it’s in the hands of insurers, both the state and federal governments are working to see what they can do, especially within the inquiry.

“We need to understand how insurance companies are going to be able to participate in alleviating cost relief rather than providing a measure of subsidy for those companies across the insurance sector,” Ms Shing said.

“I’m looking forward to seeing the Commonwealth really work on this issue and to provide a measure of national guidance on the impact of this on people such as those living in Rochester, who are in financial distress, as a result of, in many cases, the increases to household and contents insurance.”

To get your property report, visit: https://my.floodreport.com.au/gbcma/