NSW: Damage bill set to exceed 1994 bushfire disaster

AAP General News (Australia)
12-29-2001
NSW: Damage bill set to exceed 1994 bushfire disaster

The damage bill from the New South Wales bushfires is set to surpass the 1994 disaster
by the end of the weekend if the horror weather forecast eventuates.

More than 1,000 claims have already been lodged with insurance companies and the damage
bill is estimated to be at $50 million

The co-ordinator of the Insurance Disaster Response Organisation, CHRIS HENRI, says
the damage bill could soon exceed the 1994 bushfire disaster, when 3,500 claims cost $56
million.

Mr HENRI says insurance companies began assessing bushfire damage claims almost immediately.

The current crisis is unlikely to impact on insurance premiums generally, unlike the
1989 Newcastle earthquake or Sydney hailstorm in 1999, where the damage bill exceeded
$1 billion in each case.

AAP RTV sal/dl

KEYWORD: BUSHFIRES NSW INSURE (SYDNEY)

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