<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>339699</docID> <postdate>2025-03-06 07:14:46</postdate> <headline>Windstorm a ‘wake-up call’ on costly insurance premiums</headline> <body><p><img class="size-full wp-image-339700" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/20250305193195809200-original-resized.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="600" /></p> <caption>The disaster resilience of homes is under the spotlight as cyclones barrel further south. (Jono Searle/AAP PHOTOS)</caption> <p><span class="kicker-line">By <strong>Poppy Johnston</strong> in Canberra</span></p> <p><strong>Cyclones are drifting south and adding to insurance costs by threatening homes not built to withstand extreme winds, heavy downpours and storm surges.</strong></p> <p>The potential damage to properties in the firing line of Tropical Cyclone Alfred should serve as a wake-up call for policymakers on insurance affordability, climate risk experts say.</p> <p>One in five Australians polled by The Australia Institute are uninsured or underinsured, with the average middle-income family at risk of losing three-quarters of their wealth if their home was destroyed without coverage, fresh research from the think tank has found.</p> <p>Alfred is expected to make landfall late on Thursday or early on Friday between the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast.</p> <p>Heavy rain, flash flooding, fierce winds and storm surges are expected for the region facing its first direct cyclone impact in 50 years.</p> <p>Modelling by Climate Risk Group had already identified southeast Queensland and northern NSW as areas at growing risk from cyclones migrating south due to warming sea temperatures.</p> <p>Chief executive of the group, Karl Mallon, said it was increasingly likely that a cyclone more intense than Alfred would head towards the coast.</p> <p>"It is only to be expected that insurance premiums will rise in areas where the risk of damage from cyclones increases," he said.</p> <p>Dr Mallon said homes in Alfred's path were not built to withstand such high-intensity storms and the cyclone should serve as a "wake-up call" for governments that triggers building code upgrades and adaptation investment.</p> <p>Keeping buildings standing during cyclones and other extreme weather events would lower insurance risk, University of Melbourne architecture and construction expert Chris Jensen said.</p> <p>Shutters to protect windows, structural bracing and secured roof sheeting were all features of a cyclone-resilient building, though too many properties were not well-equipped.</p> <p>Regulations were failing to keep up, Dr Jensen said, with flood and cyclone zones captured by building codes but reliant on historical data rather than projections accounting for climate change.</p> <p>Building code tweaks would ensure homes built back after a flood, fire or cyclone would be constructed to a higher standard, he explained, and less likely to suffer the same fate.</p> <p>Federal independent MP Zali Steggall has called on both major parties to commit to a national climate risk and adaption plan in the next term of parliament.</p> <p>"With an election set to be called any day, addressing climate risk, one of the biggest threats to our economy and impacting the safety of our communities, is barely rating a mention by the traditional parties," she said.</p> <p>"This is a disgrace."</p> <p>Ms Steggall cited institute's research showing livelihoods were at risk from worsening extreme weather and poor insurance affordability.</p> <p>'Middle Australia' were found to be particularly exposed if uninsured, given so much of their wealth is tied up in the family home.</p> <p>Polls indicate a likely outcome of the coming federal election is a minority government.</p> <p>https://citynews.com.au/2025/ship-shape-sea-captain-bunkers-down-as-cyclone-looms/</p> </body>