Floodplain Management Australia says insurers should be more open to sharing flood data to enable better assessment of risks.

President Ian Dinham told insuranceNEWS.com.au some councils have copyright concerns about releasing their information to insurers, but insurers have also gathered data that could be useful to others.

“It works both ways, and we are looking at how we can overcome these issues.

“Rather than hoarding information, we hope insurers can share it, without reducing their competitive advantage.”

The issue was discussed at the latest flood insurance working group in Sydney last month, attended by major insurers and the Insurance Council of Australia.

The working group has already driven the creation of flood insurance fact sheets, with additional guidance on overland flooding currently being considered.

Mr Dinham has also welcomed the announcement of almost $5 million in NSW floodplain risk management grants, which will fund 15 projects to assess risk and reduce flood impact.

“We may not be able to stop the occurrence of flood altogether, but we can be more educated, more prepared and more resilient,” he said. “We are seeing a shift in the way this country views floods; the repair of damages after the fact is simply no longer good enough.

“Flooding causes more than $500 million in damage each year country-wide, and climate change forecasts predict an increase in storm severity with more rainfall, causing more frequent flooding.”

Floodplain Management Australia’s 56th conference is on May 17-20 at Nowra in NSW.