More than 22,000 claims have been lodged for Ex-Cyclone Alfred damage as insurers proceed with recovery work where floodwater has receded in southeast Queensland and north NSW.

The Insurance Council of Australia provided the latest claims tally this afternoon – a jump from about 9000 yesterday – as CEO Andrew Hall said it is time to “push past the politicking” and address the nation’s insurance challenges.

Mr Hall, who spent the past two days in Brisbane, says the industry wants to work with governments to reduce premium pressure.

He spoke out after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and other politicians said they expect the industry to “do right” by customers and repeated accusations that insurers are to blame for making cover unaffordable.

“I want to push past this politicking around insurers and insurance companies,” Mr Hall told Sky News. “I know we are an easy target here. I know our staff are working very hard to serve the thousands of customers we do have, but moving forward, we’ve got to do something about the fact that insurance products are heavily taxed and that people who don’t live in flood zones are currently paying more in their insurance premiums because we’re constantly getting battered by these large-scale flood events on the east coast of Australia.”

Mr Hall added in a LinkedIn post: “There’s a way forward. The most effective way to ease pressure on premiums is to reduce the risks that drive them up. That means government investment in resilience – stronger homes, flood protection infrastructure and smarter planning that protects communities before disaster strikes.”

He again urged the federal government to consider ICA’s proposal for a $30.15 billion flood defence fund.

ICA says the surge in Alfred-related claims was expected and in line with this stage of the recovery, as people return home, assess damage and start the clean-up process.

Suncorp says it has received about 7800 claims across Queensland and NSW. About 7200 are home claims, including more than 2100 for food spoilage. Most fell within the cyclone reinsurance pool’s coverage period. 

The pool’s 48-hour cut-off for coverage was reached at 6am yesterday. 

Suncorp CEO Steve Johnston says the insurer is helping customers lodge claims and providing immediate assistance, including emergency repairs.

“We encourage impacted customers to lodge their claims online as soon as possible,” he said. “In addition, our dedicated customer support teams, mobile response hubs and assessors are being deployed into affected areas as soon as it becomes safe.”

Allianz says it has received 2756 claims, comprising 2584 for property, 109 for motor and 63 for commercial.

Queensland-based RACQ Insurance says 5625 claims had been lodged by noon today. They are made up of 5314 home and 311 motor claims.

“We have a strong network of assessors, suppliers and builders across all of the impacted regions who have been mobilised to manage the repairs,” a spokesperson told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

KPMG insurance partner Scott Guse says it is “very early days” as floodwater has only just started to subside.

“I would expect a large influx of claims in the next week or so, but it’s not going to be anywhere near the same magnitude as the 2022 [floods],” he told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

He does not expect Alfred to have a significant impact on the industry’s earnings, because of the cyclone pool and insurers’ adequate allowances.

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