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Flood cover: act now before it’s too late

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Catastrophic floods have again inundated large parts of NSW and Queensland, barely 12 months after devastating storms pounded the two states for several days last year.

The disaster may just be the final blow for many towns and communities which now find themselves having to go through the ordeal of getting their lives and businesses back on track. And they have yet to even fully recover financially from the floods of last year.

This most recent flood catastrophe has already surpassed the 2011 Brisbane flooding disaster in terms of claims damage. Insurance Council of Australia estimates put the claims from the current disaster at about $2.5 billion. The 2011 catastrophe, on a normalised loss basis – defined as a way of calculation to give a present-day perspective of historical events – is around $2.075 billion.

So why are we raising the latest east coast floods to your attention again? The answer is simple. You can’t afford to ignore flood cover anymore.

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again. Recent events have proved that the risk is very real across large swathes of the country. Flood cover might be expensive, but it needs to be considered.

Following the 2011 Brisbane floods, reforms were pushed through that led to the universal adoption of a standard definition of flood. Now most standard home insurance policies provide for flood cover unless customers choose to opt out.

But it’s different altogether for commercial policies, and also for some home policies in postcodes where flood is less of a possibility and more of a certainty. But just because flood cover is not offered by default, it doesn’t mean the risk isn’t there or is one that you should ignore.

Here’s why we want to go through again with you about including flood cover in your insurance policies if you haven’t already done so.

We understand the cost of flood cover can be very prohibitive. But have you considered whether you have the financial resources to recover in the event of a flood? We hope it never happens but weather-related disasters are increasingly the norm in Australia and flood ranks as among the top perils.

Options are available even if a policy excludes flood cover. It can be worked out according to your budget. We’re your risk adviser and we want to make sure you are ready before the next flood disaster hits.

We can help talk you through the options. Don’t think ‘it won’t happen to me’ because at some point it may well. Call us now so we can help.

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General Advice Warning: This advice is general and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider whether the advice is appropriate for you and your personal circumstances. Before you make any decision about whether to acquire a certain product, you should obtain and read the relevant product disclosure statement.

All information above has been provided by the author.

Adroit Insurance & Risk, ABN 75 078972 700, AFSL 244 348

This article originally appeared on Adroit Insurance & Risk Blog and has been published here with permission.