The Resilient Building Council (RBC) has released its “world-first” bushfire preparation mobile app to help homeowners assess and implement mitigation tactics against risks.   

The $3 million app, which was funded by the Federal Government’s Disaster Risk Reduction Package, provides homeowners with free access to risk inspections, developing a detailed star rating system ranking the home’s bushfire resiliency and customisable action plan for improvements.   

The RBC says the rating system uses data from the Bushfire House Loss Probability Model, historical property data, and bushfire information to determine its calculation.   

The developer says in its test trials, recommendations from the app resulted in a 67% average reduction in the likelihood of home ignition from bushfires.   

“Bushfires exploit the weakest link in homes, whether they are old or new,” RBC Lead Project Engineer Ian Bennetts said.   

“There are often many low-cost actions that will improve the home’s resilience immediately, such as draught sealing and moving surf boards and caravans away from the home.”   

“People can get started today. The more homes upgraded in a community, the less risk of house-to-house fire spread, which can lead to the loss of whole townships.”   

The app comes following recommendations from the National Natural Disaster Arrangements Royal Commission, with Federal Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt praising the RBC’s work.   

“As more people use the app and take action – large or small – communities around Australia will be better prepared,” Mr Watt said.   

“We commend the Resilient Building Council for their innovative and collaborative solutions to help build national resilience and we are encouraged by discussions through the Hazards Insurance Partnership about insurers supporting this initiative with their customers.”   

The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) also welcomed the initiative, with CEO Andrew Hall crediting the app as a valuable tool for improving insurance affordability and homeowner protection.   

“This app is an important tool for homeowners in recognising and reducing bushfire risk,” Mr Hall said. 

“It seeks to make it easier for insurers to recognise and make reductions in insurance premiums based on retrofitting to high-risk households, informed by the App’s recommendations.” 

The RBC says its next focus will look at further developing its Resilience Ratings program to help provide on-site expert assessments for systems relating to natural hazard and energy ratings through a venture funded by the NSW and Federal governments.