Cyclone Alfred could cause insured losses of more than $2 billion, S&P Global Ratings has estimated, as insurers and brokers prepare for one of the biggest storms of the past few years.

The category 2 storm has slowed while moving west towards the Queensland and northern NSW coast, the Bureau of Meteorology said in an update this morning. This could result in heavy rain lingering for longer. 

It had sustained winds near the centre of 95km/h, with wind gusts to 130km/h. It was estimated to be 245km east of Brisbane and 225km east-northeast of Gold Coast and moving west at 10km/h.

“Alfred has been oscillating offshore of the southeast Queensland coast. Alfred’s approach to the southeast Queensland coast has slowed,” the bureau said.

“Alfred is currently category 2 and is expected to remain of similar intensity until the centre starts to interact with the coast and Islands. The centre of Alfred is expected to cross the coast very early Saturday morning, most likely between Noosa and Coolangatta.”

Brokers and insurers have been helping clients prepare for the cyclone, which is poised to hit some areas affected by floods last month and communities that only recently recovered from the 2022 record floods.

Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers told Sky News he has spoken with the CEOs of major insurers “to make sure they had the processes they need to process a lot of claims. They’ve been doing a lot of work around the clock.”

Clear Insurance CEO and MD Lisa Carter says her team has been calling business clients for the past few days to help them prepare. The brokerage has also started lodging some claims.

“We want to be on the front foot to get assessors appointed, because they’re all going to be very busy and we don’t want our clients to be too far down the list of claims,” Ms Carter said. 

“So we’ve been proactive, and we’re already lodging claims for coastal clients already impacted by the sea swell, and the insurers have been really helpful and very responsive already.”  

She says the claims lodged relate to slight damage but it is “obvious that there’s going to be inundation and damage. We know that it’s going to be far worse.

“We know the clients who will be definitely affected and we’ve been giving them advice about their cover limits and what sort of cover would apply to different types of losses, and then their policy excesses, and what risk mitigation tips or steps they can take, like sandbagging.

“So we've already been speaking with those clients and helping them.”

Ms Carter says some clients in the hospitality sector have questions around business interruption cover and loss of profits.

“We are giving our hospitality clients advice ... so they can make better-informed decisions [on temporary closures]. It’s important to help them through  the decision-making process around whether there would be cover available to them.”

She says clients have been advised to take videos and photos of their premises in case they need to make a claim. “The videos and photos provide ... a better record of their properties prior to any damage occurring.”

Tony Bemrose Insurance Brokers MD Sean Bemrose, based in Brisbane, says his team has also been busy helping commercial clients. 

“Our senior claims manager has distributed underwriter claims contact information to all staff and we have a checklist of advice for staff to give to our clients if they call us and need advice,” he told insuranceNEWS.com.au. 

“Most of our clients understand what their insurance cover is. We also give them advice, depending on the circumstance, that what might be considered floods might be storm events rather than floods,” Mr Bemrose said.

“Most of the policies we sell, the vast majority include flood cover.”

The Council of Queensland Insurance Brokers says most of its southeast Queensland members' offices  are working remotely and providing support to clients to make sure they are as prepared as possible for the cyclone.

S&P says its $2 billion estimate is based on similar events in the past.

“A cyclone hitting a major city like Brisbane can result in elevated property damage and insurance claims and may include significant business interruption,” credit analyst Craig Bennett said. “Most rated insurers have already enacted emergency disaster management plans.”

Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said yesterday modelling showed almost 20,000 properties across the city could be affected by storm surge or flooding.