Queensland residents, business owners and farmers suffered damage from huge hailstones as storms raged across the state last week – but the insurance bill will be relatively low.

The Bureau of Meteorology says South Burnett and other areas in the state’s southeast bore the brunt of three severe storms, two of them super-cells. Two tornadoes were also seen.

Roofs were torn from homes and crops were destroyed as winds reached 144kph and hailstones the size of tennis balls fell, according to local reports.

But a spokesman for the Insurance Council of Australia told insuranceNEWS.com.au a catastrophe will not be declared.

“There are fewer than 1000 claims, including home and motor,” the spokesman said. “The storms were bad, but the areas worst hit are very sparsely populated.”