Insurance unaffordable for flooded homes almost two years on from disaster

Insurance unaffordable for north Queensland homes flooded almost two years ago In short: Home owners are struggling to obtain or afford insurance in north Queensland which is still recovering from devastating floods in early 2025. Policy holders in the town of Ingham say their insurance was not renewed after the event or had substantial premium increases. What's next? The Insurance Council of Australia says the floods generated $327 million in insured losses, and some claims were still being negotiated. Michelle Yates still hasn't finished rebuilding her kitchen or replacing water-damaged floors in her farmhouse near Ingham nearly two years after devastating floods struck north Queensland. A 15-month payout negotiation with her insurer and ongoing trades shortages have slowed the recovery. Another wet season is looming over the region and bringing a new challenge with it. "We have no insurance," Ms Yates said. "Sure Insurance cancelled our policy altogether because we were flooded." Non-renewals It is one of several instances where Sure Insurance sent a non-renewal notice to policy holders who were flooded during the 2025 event. The 2026 notices, viewed by the ABC, stated that Sure Insurance had changed its underwriting guidelines and would not offer insurance if a property made a flood claim in the past five years or had a risk of damage in a one-in-20-year flood. A spokesperson for Sure Insurance said it provided cover to one-in-four insured Ingham properties and that underwriting guidelines were reviewed regularly. "To determine our ability to provide ongoing cover at a price that is fair," they said. Ms Yates, who owns her home, says she's still looking for an affordable alternative. "We've looked into insurance and one company want $28,000 for the year and I don't know how that is possible,"she said. Without insurance home owners like Ms Yates would endure the entire cost of rebuilding or repairs in the event of damage to her property. Ingham-based insurance broker Kieran Volpe said some providers were not offering cover to high-risk properties while others "priced themselves out". "We are seeing, quite commonly, quotes coming in at $10,000, $15,000 or even $20,000 in those high-risk flood areas," Mr Volpe said. "People just can't afford it, so people are going without." Premium hikes Matthew Porter bought a home in Ingham after the 2025 floods knowing it had suffered superficial flood damage in the lower, unoccupied level during the event. When his Allianz Insurance policy was due to be renewed this year the premium increased by 72 per cent. "We thought that was quite expensive and there would be something cheaper," Mr Porter said. "To our shock it was at the cheaper end." He said he opted to stay with the policy but found the increase "ridiculous". A spokesperson for Allianz said the frequency and severity of weather events in Ingham had increased in recent years and so had the cost of claims. "Premiums must reflect the genuine cost of insuring a property against these risks to ensure we can continue to pay claims when customers need us most," they said. Insurance available The Insurance Council of Australia said anyone who had received a non-renewal notice from their insurer or a significant premium hike should ask for an explanation, shop around or speak to a broker. "Insurance remains available in Ingham, but in areas exposed to repeated, severe flooding premiums will reflect that risk," a spokesperson said. "The most effective way to bring them down is to reduce the underlying risk, that requires greater investment in flood defences, house raising and more resilient homes." The spokesperson said the council remained involved in individual claims discussions from the 2025 floods and that trades shortages and steep cost increases had delayed recovery. Unaffordable majority The Hinchinbrook Shire Council has released new data from a community survey on insurance that heard from 305 respondents. The survey found most households within the shire maintained some form of insurance, but that underinsurance was an issue locally. The council said 77 per cent of respondents were struggling to afford the premiums. "We are concerned about the high cost of premiums," Mayor Ramon Jayo said. "It is something that we are asking governments to look at closely. "There obviously has been market failure."