Partnership with governments is key to improving disaster resilience, Insurance Council of Australia CEO Andrew Hall said today after visiting a flood-hit community.

He made the comments after a trip to Lismore – one of the worst-hit towns in the 2022 floods – and as the industry wrestles with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s threat to break up big insurers if the Coalition wins this year’s federal election.

Mr Dutton wants insurers to reduce premiums, and has threatened to force them to divest if consumers are being “ripped off”.

“Federal and state governments have invested billions of dollars into the [Lismore] region since 2022, and there are examples of innovative progress, such as the relocated homes to higher ground and hundreds of buybacks of dangerous homes,” Mr Hall wrote on LinkedIn this morning.

“But there are still many other issues to work through and I am grateful for the local residents who shared their recovery stories with me, showed me their personal efforts to flood-proof their homes and their ongoing concerns about maintaining cover due to where their homes remain located.

“This is a very hard public policy to solve, and we will only get there through a partnership with government.”

ICA is revisiting Lismore in NSW this week to see how the area is recovering from the February/March 2022 catastrophe – Australia’s costliest insured event, with claims losses of $6.4 billion.

Mr Hall met with residents and held talks with businesses – alongside Business NSW and the NSW Reconstruction Authority – about mitigation measures put in place to improve resilience.

“Through the roundtable and personal engagement with those affected by the 2022 floods, it is clear that Lismore is trying new and innovative ways to improve community resilience, with a number of homeowners and businesses in the region proactively investing in mitigation measures to reduce the impact of future floods,” he said. “However, Lismore remains one of the most flood-exposed communities in the country, and the reality is that much more investment in hard infrastructure is needed to better protect this unique city.”

He says the community has expressed a “desire to see the flood mitigation studies, to start delivering the hard infrastructure”.

Business NSW regional director Jane Laverty says the group has been working with ICA since the floods to “navigate impacts and review options for alternative insurance, as well as a collective push for mitigation investment that would shift the cost of premiums to more affordable and accessible.

“The impact of inaction is clear: uninsurable businesses lead to closures, job losses and a weakened economy. Business NSW encourages all government bodies and industry stakeholders to work together, act decisively and ensure a sustainable future for our business community.”