Posted on

Suncorp review found West Queensland tops state?s worst weather affected areas

Suncorp review found West Queensland tops state’s worst weather affected areas











Suncorp Insurance


Brisbane, Queensland (PRWEB) October 19, 2012

Western Queensland has topped Suncorp Insurance’s annual review of Queensland’s top ten worst weather-affected suburbs. The figures highlight the hardest hit regions by average cost of personal insurance claims from July 2011 to June 2012. Mitchell, Roma and St George top the list and Suncorp Insurance Corporate Affairs Manager, Marcus Taylor, said the figures were a reminder that the warmer weather can also bring sudden storms and heavy rains.

“Each year storm season causes a lot of headaches for Queensland residents, and the past 12 months has been no different,” Mr Taylor said.

“Unfortunately, there have been no real surprises in our top ten with Mitchell, Roma and St George rounding out our top three.”

“With some claims in Western Queensland costing on average over $ 110,000, it just shows the frightening level of damage that can be caused by a severe storm or flooding.

“These figures also highlight the importance of appropriate preparation and mitigation.”

The top ten worst storm damaged suburbs in Queensland from July 2011 to June 2012 were:

Location Average Claim Cost

1. Mitchell $ 110,478.70

2. Roma $ 96,054.28

3. St George $ 77,971.80

4. Hughenden $ 44,313.17

5. Vincent $ 31,690.52

6. Pomona $ 27,180.56

7. Warana $ 21,329.10

8. Tewantin $ 20,740.86

9. Buddina $ 19,355.98

10. Charleville $ 17,508.62

While Suncorp Insurance has been protecting the Queensland way of life for over 90 years, and has stood by Queenslanders during some of their darkest moments including Cyclone Larry (2006),The Gap Storms (2008) and the devastating Queensland Floods and Tropical Cyclone Yasi (2010-11), Mr Taylor says today’s figures again draw attention to the importance of mitigation.

“For some time now we have been in discussions with all levels of government to increase Queensland’s mitigation measures,” Mr Taylor said.

“With appropriate mitigation, a number of regions would not be making their third or fourth consecutive appearance on this list.”

“History shows that mitigation measures can make a significant difference – not only in preventing a lot of destruction and heartache, but they can also assist in ensuring insurance premiums remain affordable for everyone.”

Mr Taylor also recommends that families prepare for the upcoming storm season.

“There are some things that can’t be replaced by insurance, and so we’d like to remind all Queenslanders to be prepared and get their house in order.

“A little bit of preparation can go a long way in protecting not only your home and possessions, but also your family.”

Preparation tips for storm season

1) Check gutters and downpipes. Backed up gutters can send water flowing into your home during heavy rains.

2) Check the roof for damaged or loose tiles, or raised corners of corrugated sheets. A roof in good repair is more likely to withstand high winds and keep out water.

3) Trim overgrown tree branches. Check with your local council if you’re unsure about which trees / branches you can cut. Do not attempt to trim trees near power lines.

4) Remove or secure loose items around the garden which could be blown about in high winds.

5) Keep a battery operated torch and AM radio handy in case of loss of electricity, as well as a first aid kit, spare water and canned food. Use the radio for power restoration updates and possible evacuation notices.

6) Consider putting together a small package of keepsakes and things you would hate to lose, in case you need to leave quickly.

7) Make sure your home and contents insurance and paperwork is up to date.

–ENDS

About Suncorp

Products and services including banking, superannuation and insurance (including life insurance, home and car insurance) are provided by separate companies in the Suncorp Group. Suncorp Bank (Suncorp-Metway Ltd ABN 66 010 831 722 ) is only liable for the banking products or services it provides and not the products and services of other companies in the Suncorp Group.























Vocus©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.









Posted on

Best and Worst Locations for Home Insurance Revealed

Best and Worst Locations for Home Insurance Revealed










(PRWEB) November 11, 2005

New research from http://www.confused.com, the UK’s leading home insurance quote engine, has revealed that Wokingham is the UK’s most expensive area for buildings insurance, with average premiums topping £292, some £194 more than insurance for a similar property in Caithness. Similarly, Greater London is the UK’s worst area for home contents insurance at an average price of £233, over £164 more than for a similar property in Shetland.

While many parts of Scotland benefit from home insurance premiums at three times less the cost of cover than for properties in Southern England, the average cost of buildings insurance across the UK stands at £151.27, while home contents insurance comes in at an average price of £98.94.

Confused.com’s findings show huge differences in average premiums across the whole of the country. They also reveal that the UK average prices are typically £98.77 and £44.57 more expensive for home and contents insurance respectively, than Confused.com’s average cheapest price results, proving that shopping around can bring back major savings for people with homes looking for home insurance.

Commenting on the home insurance index Kate Armstrong, Managing Director of Confused.com said: “Insurance companies use postcodes because they can match homes with the history of past claims enabling them to give an instant quote. Because of this every area will have a different average premium, and from year to year your insurance premiums may change. The trick is not to find the average price but the cheapest price, and this is where Confused.com can help. While the average price of building insurance in Wokingham may be £292, the cheapest rate we found was £209, while the most expensive was £357, proving that shopping around is always the wisest move.

“If you are looking for home and contents insurance you can buy these separately or combined. Occasionally you can get a better deal by buying insurance policies individually from different providers although, increasingly, combined insurance represents a better deal; only 4% of the 140 areas researched would have made a saving by buying contents and buildings insurance separately.”

Confused.com is the UK’s fastest comprehensive home insurance comparison site, instantly searching and comparing home insurance prices from almost 70% of insurers, bringing back a full list of prices in under five minutes. Since its launch in August 2005, the average annual amount that drivers save using Confused.com to find cheap insurance quotes is £120, equivalent to a one third saving on typical premiums.

###























Vocus©Copyright 1997-

, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.