INSURING YOUR HOME
Preparing for storm season
Australians know how unpredictable and destructive storms can be. But with a bit of preparation you can reduce the risk of damage to your home.
What to do before a storm
1. Prepare your home
There are simple ways to get the inside and outside of your home ready for storm season. Four areas you can look at are your:
- roof
- gutters
- garden and trees, and
- windows.
A few pre-storm checks of your house and its surroundings can significantly reduce your risk of injury or property damage:
- Ensure your gutters and downpipes are clear of obstructions.
- Check your roof annually for damage, including rust and broken or missing tiles.
- Trim any tree branches that are close enough to your house to cause damage if they snap.
- Secure any loose items in your outdoor areas, like toys and furniture, that could be pushed around by strong winds.
- Park vehicles under cover, if possible.
- Keep pets indoors.
2. Create an emergency kit
If you lose power or you need to leave your home quickly, there are a few essential items you’ll want to have with you:
- Torch, with spare batteries.
- First aid kit.
- Essential medication.
- Important documents.
- Portable phone charger.
- In-car phone charger.
3. Stay updated with real-time weather alerts
There are several apps you can download to your smartphone to get real-time weather alerts and stay prepared for when things make a turn for the worse. When you download and register for the GIO app, you can sign up for real-time hail and extreme weather alerts to help you stay aware of the weather conditions. And if anything does happen, you can lodge, track, and review claims directly via the app too.
4. Check your home and contents insurance
Unfortunately, no amount of preparation can guarantee your home won’t sustain any serious damage during a storm. That’s where home insurance can help provide peace of mind. Review your home and contents insurance if you have a policy, to ensure that your coverage is right for you.
Compare Home and Contents Insurance options
Remember to check that your sum insured is adequate. This is the amount your home and contents are insured for, which should reflect how much they would cost to rebuild, repair or replace. GIO customers can review their policy and update their home sum insured via GIO Online Services.
What to do during a storm
Stay indoors and keep away from glass
During a heavy storm, the safety of you and your family should be your number one priority. Ensure that all family members are indoors, and away from glass doors or windows and always follow instructions of Emergency Services. While it’s unlikely that plumbing or appliances can lead to an electrical shock during storms, avoiding things like showering can reduce your risk even further.
If you’re outdoors and can’t make it inside, avoid tall trees and powerlines. If you’re driving, pull over where safe to do so.
What to do after a storm
Check the damage to your home
Once you’ve checked that your family are okay and you have taken care of any required first aid, you should check whether your home has suffered any damage – as long as it's safe to do so. If you have home insurance and will need to make a claim, take photos and videos of the damage.
Make a home insurance claim
Storms are considered an insured event^ for GIO Home and Contents Insurance, so you can make a claim for damage to your building, your contents, or both, depending on your type of cover. Simply make a claim online or in the GIO App, where you can quickly and easily upload any supporting photos or documents. If your claim is accepted, cover will be provided up to your sum insured and within any policy limits. For details on coverage, please read the PDS.
Read more:
- Reducing your risk during flood season
- Reducing your risk during bushfire season
- How to deal with a gas leak
^ We do not insure you for bushfire, storm, storm surge, flood or tsunami in the first 72 hours of your policy. Very limited exceptions apply. Actions or movements of the sea and storm surge are not covered (unless the storm surge damage occurs at the same time as damage caused by storm). Other exclusions apply.
Insurance issued by AAI Limited ABN 48 005 297 807 trading as GIO. Read the Product Disclosure Statement before buying this insurance. The Target Market Determination is also available. This advice has been prepared without taking into account your particular objectives, financial situations or needs, so you should consider whether it is appropriate for you before acting on it.
