Two of the nation's leading general insurance groups have boots on the ground in Townsville as they look to support customers affected by extreme rainfall and flooding in North and Far North Queensland, with more than 600 claims already received.

Suncorp Group (ASX: SUN), which runs the brands Suncorp Insurance, AAMI, Shannons and Apia, had received 526 claims related to the severe weather event as of 4pm yesterday. This includes 402 homes claims, 114 motor claims and 10 commercial property claims.  

Meanwhile, Insurance Australia Group (ASX: IAG) whose brands include NRMA Insurance, CGU, WFI and ROLLiN’, had received 108 claims as of yesterday.

Claims personnel from both groups are present at the Townsville Sports Stadium to provide support for customers.

Suncorp reports the Townsville suburbs Garbutt, Burdell, and Kirwan have the most claims, while impacts in Ingham and Cardwell are being closely monitored using daily satellite flood mapping to understand the extent of current and potential flood inundation. 

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Suncorp, which has a builder repair network supported by local qualified tradespeople, notes there are more than 200 emergency repairs already underway to prevent further damage, and additional resources are on standby to be deployed when safe.  

Suncorp’s chief executive consumer insurance Lisa Harrison says support from the North Queensland-based claims team, assessors and builders will be crucial. 

"The impact of severe flooding can be devastating, which is why our team must be on the ground when it’s safe to do so, making sure we are available to support our customers and community,” Harrison says. 

“The safety of everyone in the impacted communities is always our top priority. Many roads, homes and businesses remain flooded, and we are closely monitoring the unfolding situation using cutting edge technology at our Disaster Management Centre in Brisbane to help coordinate our response. 

“We are proactively communicating with impacted customers through phone calls, SMS and radio and our dedicated Lodgement Response Team is ready to ramp up support on the phones if needed."

She adds that once the water recedes and residents can safely return to their homes, the group will start making proactive calls to customers that may require additional support. 

"North Queenslanders are known for their resilience, and Suncorp will be here helping when they need us most," she says.

These sentiments and pledges of support were echoed by IAG, which has assessing teams and partner builders on the ground to support affected customers.

NRMA Insurance executive general manager claims Luke Gallagher says safety must continue to be the number one priority.

"Extreme weather events pose a risk to lives and safety, and can have tragic consequences, so it’s critical that safety remains everyone’s top priority," Gallagher says.

"We urge everyone to follow the directions and advice of the emergency authorities and to help ensure their family, friends and neighbours are safe.

"Our 24/7 Major Event Response Team ensures we’re well prepared for extreme weather events and we’ll continue moving into the affected communities as soon as it is safe to access those areas."

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