According to the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA), insurers have received 1,386 claims arising from the severe bushfires affecting Victoria since January 7, 2026, with 30 per cent of all property claims currently being total losses.
The ICA declared the bushfires a major incident on January 12, and over the past few days they have burned dozens of sites across Australia, mainly in the state of Victoria but also in parts of New South Wales.
There were 30 fires burning across the state over the weekend, 10 of which were classified as of special concern. As of January 11, 350,000 hectares of land had burned across the state and approximately 300 properties were destroyed.
Nearly 1,400 claims include property, commercial, auto and business interruption losses, and insurance companies are already processing the claims.
Several insurance companies and ICA representatives have set up offices at Castlemaine Recovery Center to assist affected residents with the claims process.
ICA said the insurer is closely monitoring access in other communities and plans to deploy additional resources across the state as soon as it is safe to do so.
The ICA is encouraging customers affected by the bushfires to contact their insurance company to start the claims process, even if the full extent of the damage is not yet known.
ICA deputy chief executive Kylie Macfarlane said: “These bushfires remain an active emergency for parts of Victoria, so community safety remains the priority.
“The road to recovery for affected communities will be long and insurers are ready to support communities through this process.
“While claims continue to be made, I would encourage all affected policyholders to contact their insurance company to make a claim, even if they are not yet home and do not yet know the full extent of the damage.”