Extreme weather events in Australia in 2025 cost almost A$3.5bn ($2.42bn) in insured losses from 264,000 claims according to new data released by Insurance Council of Australia (ICA).
In a statement on 23 January 2026, ICA said the severe hailstorms over five weeks in October and November 2025 accounted for more than A$1.4bn of the total losses. Last year also saw five events declared significant or catastrophic by the ICA.
These significant or catastrophic events in 2025 included the North Queensland Floods in February, Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred in March, Mid North Coast floods in May, and two Severe Storm events in October and November.
While the costliest event for 2025 was Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred, which saw 132,000 claims lodged and more than A$1.5bn in insured losses, the hailstorms of October and November left similar damage bills.
The Severe Spring Storms, which impacted South-East Queensland and Northern NSW from the end of October through to early November, resulted in A$601m in insured losses across 35,500 claims.
In late November, more severe storms and hail impacted the two states, resulting in 70,200 claims and A$814m in insured losses. Together, losses from the two events totalled A$1.4bn.
Insurers expect further claims to come in from smaller local events that have not been included in the data released by the ICA. This would mean that the eventual cost of extreme weather in 2025 will grow.
In comparison, insured losses from extreme weather events totalled A$581m in 2024 and A$2.35bn in 2023, demonstrating the unpredictable nature of extreme weather year on year. The first few weeks of 2026 saw significant extreme weather activity, from bushfires in Victoria to monsoonal weather in North Queensland.