A lawyer acting for Queensland flood victims whose claims have been denied has described the case against their insurers as “rock solid”.

Slater & Gordon Practice Group Leader Peter Long has accused insurers of incorrectly classifying a genuine storm event as flood after record rainfall pelted southwest Queensland in March.

About 200 homes in the rural town of Roma were affected by the flooding, with eight properties in Bollon and a further 25 homes and buildings in St George affected.

Some insurers have since declined claims by pointing to flood exclusion clauses in their insurance policies.

Mr Long spoke to insuranceNEWS.com.au on Friday after meeting affected residents throughout the week. He says many have “rock solid” claims.

“The common definition of flood is water on land that is usually dry, having escaped from a watercourse,” he said. “In this case the water never got to a watercourse to escape from.”

Mr Long says heavy morning rainfall represented a storm event, which is generally covered by insurers. He claims several watercourses broke their banks some hours later, creating a flood.

“There were two events,” he said. “That’s the message and that’s the conversation we will be having with the insurers to see if the matter can be put to rest.”

Mr Long has met with more than 60 clients, and six have so far signed up to pursue the matter. “There will be more,” he said.

Allianz Australia and QBE-operated Elders Insurance are among those insurers to deny claims.

Elders Insurance said in a statement that it had appointed independent hydrologists to determine whether flood or stormwater run-off caused the damage.

Allianz Australia spokesman Nicholas Scofield says affected customers should first try insurers’ internal dispute resolution processes. However, Mr Long says some residents have already tried that option and failed.

Both Elders and Allianz say independent dispute resolution options such as the Financial Ombudsman Service are available to customers who disagree with their decisions.

Mr Scofield says consumers “retain their right to pursue legal action if they are still unsatisfied with the ombudsman’s determination”.