Perils raises October flood loss estimate to $840m

Disaster data firm Perils has raised its loss estimate for the October floods in NSW, Victoria and Tasmania to $840 million.

The figure is up from last month’s initial estimate of $791 million.

Perils Asia Pacific manager Darryl Pidcock said unlike the record flooding of more than $5 billion in Queensland and New South Wales in the first months of 2022, the event hit outside the densely populated coastal areas. This meant that the overall cost was relatively contained.

“The floods in October mainly affected rural areas in the interior, so losses for the insurance industry were significantly lower,” he said. “For the affected communities, it has been yet another blow. So we hope our work…can contribute to a better understanding of flood vulnerabilities.”

From October 12 to 28, a series of low pressure systems brought heavy rain to the interior of southeastern Australia. These were linked to moisture-laden northern tropical air masses from unusually warm ocean waters.

This led to intense storms and rainfall over the southern Murray-Darling Basin and Tasmania that fell on already saturated ground and resulted in extensive riverine flooding in the interior regions of the three southeastern states, battering historical records in some regions.

The latest available disaster claims figures from the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) show 19,000 claims worth $569 million, 28% of which have been closed.

The February flood cost $5.72billion from 280,000 claims, making it Australia’s costliest disaster

The wet conditions experienced in many parts of Australia over the past two years have been driven by La Nina, which is bringing above average rainfall to much of northern and eastern Australia.

An updated estimate will be published by Perils in April.