Queensland will receive $20 million in new funding from the Federal Government’s mitigation-focused Disaster Ready Fund (DRF) to improve the resilience of properties in cyclone-prone areas, it was announced over the weekend. 

It is the first DRF funding announcement from the Albanese Government, which created the program committing to invest up to $200 million per year over the next five years to help communities protect themselves against the impacts of natural hazards across Australia. 

The $1 billion DRF replaces the Emergency Response Fund, which ends on June 30. 

Queensland-based insurers, Suncorp and RACQ Insurance have welcomed the additional funding while the state government says the $20 million boost means it will now be able to extend its Household Resilience Program by up to three years. 

The program, launched in 2018, has already assisted more than 4300 vulnerable households to strengthen homes built before 1984 to better withstand extreme weather. 

The state government says the program has also helped to lower insurance premiums with the most recent data reported from homeowners showing approved works achieved an average reduction of 10.3%. 

It expects the new funding will enable resilience works for up to 1100 more homes in north and central Queensland for improvements like roof strengthening, installing cyclone shutters or screens. 

Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the new funding “will help more people to put protections in place to limit the damage when storm season rolls around”. 

“Disaster response and recovery is important but if we can make homes more resilient and resistant to the kind of wild weather which has become more frequent in these parts in recent years, Queenslanders will be much better off,” he said. 

Federal Minister for Emergency Management Murray Watt says insurance affordability “is a key issue… because families are really feeling the pinch of cost-of-living pressures”. 

He says this is especially in cyclone-prone regions where premiums can be as high as 50% more than they are in Brisbane. 

Suncorp Group CEO Steve Johnston says the funding boost is a “win” for cyclone-prone homeowners, communities and regional economies. 

“This will mean even more Queenslanders in cyclone-prone areas will be able to make their homes stronger and safer,” he said. 

“By making homes more resilient to natural disasters like cyclones and severe storms, it also puts downward pressure on insurance premiums.” 

RACQ CEO David Carter says it is great to see the Federal Government recognise the importance of resilience programs. 

“When a major cyclone hits, less damage is sustained, fewer families are displaced, and communities recover quicker,” he said. 

“At the same time, resilience programs such as this help keep insurance affordable and accessible as it reduces the risk of individual properties.” 

He urged the state government to follow suit in demonstrating its resilience commitment in its upcoming budget. 

“There’s been plenty of headwinds facing the insurance industry – mounting damage bills from more frequent disasters, inflation, growing building costs – but if you lower the risk of disaster damage, you’re tackling the heart of the problem that exists in places like north Queensland,” he said.