Consumer advocacy group the Financial Rights Legal Centre says the operating hours of its Insurance Law Service may have to be reduced because of a lack of funding.

The centre says the service has experienced a surge in calls from people impacted by bushfires, storms, floods and hail in the 18-month period to April this year.

At the same time, the centre has had to lay off a few staff because of stretched resources.

“We just can’t cover the lost staff because it’s not just about answering phones,” CEO Karen Cox told insuranceNEWS.com.au. “You have to do follow-up work as well.”

While there has not been a cut in government funding, Ms Cox says “there is no government funding that’s specifically about responding to extreme weather events”.

She says the centre has been able to cope so far is because it has been able to supplement its funding pool from various sources, including community penalty payments collected by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission as part of its enforcement work.

“All of that money is due to run out,” Ms Cox told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

She says the centre’s plan to cut back on the operating hours of the Insurance Law Service will need approval from the Attorney-General’s Department.

In the funding agreement with the government, the service is required to open Monday-Friday from 9:30am to 4:30pm.

The community legal centre is largely government funded and independently managed by a voluntary committee.

In the 2019/20 financial year, it reported about $2.96 million in income, including $2.41 million in the form of grants.

Apart from providing financial counselling, the centre also conducts research and collects data to campaign for changes to the law and industry practices.