The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) says flood-related complaints are expected to rise as insurers send out refusal notices.

General Insurance Ombudsman John Price says it’s too early to tell how many complaints there will be but early indications are that it will be a significant number.

“We expect we will see it play out over the next two or three months,” he told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

FOS will use the Insurance Council of Australia’s hydrology reports wherever possible as a guide when assessing these complaints.

But Mr Price says that as with most disasters there will be a number of local issues to take into account – such as whether the claim has been correctly classified as flood or not.

FOS will send out notices of preliminary assessment once a complaint has been received, along with checklists inviting applicants to provide additional information.

“The reality is that with the scale of this disaster, it will be difficult to have onsite visits for every dispute,” Mr Price said.

A Queensland Legal Aid spokesman told insuranceNEWS.com.au there has been a steady increase in the number of cases being filed since the release of the hydrologists’ reports.

She says the free legal advice service now has more than 170 cases on file for the Brisbane and Ipswich regions.

The increase has also coincided with insurance companies releasing their refusal notices to customers.

Media reports last week highlighted the legal groups’ push for more people to file complaints against their insurers.

But the spokesman says Queensland Legal Aid is merely informing people of their rights to make use of their insurance companies’ internal dispute resolution processes.

“People who have had their flood insurance claim refused are entitled to lodge a complaint,” she told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

“Legal aid is trying to assist as many people as possible who have questions in relation to flood and cyclone-related insurance issues.”

In Victoria, the Consumer Action Law Centre marked Consumer Rights Day on March 15 by highlighting the current “unfair and confusing” wording of many insurance contracts.

The group called for consumers to participate in a Melbourne CBD event and to bring along an umbrella “to represent something like really offers protection, unlike most insurance contracts”.