Around one third (31%) of Australians have experienced wild weather damage to their property or vehicle since 2021, according to new research published by NRMA Insurance Company.
The report, titled "Five Years of Wild Weather". is the 20th edition of NRMA Insurance Wild Weather Tracker, and was published in April 2026. It found nearly 300,000 insurance claims related to severe weather damage were lodged in the past five years. This translates to around one claim every nine minutes.
The seven-page report revealed that of all home insurance claims received between 2021 and 2026, 57% were weather-related, with storms the leading cause of damage, followed by hail and flood events.
These prompted 46% of Australians to report they now feel more concerned about weather damaging their home than compared with five years ago.
NRMA Insurance Executive Manager of Property Fulfilment Scott Lindsay said more Australians are living with wild weather as part of their day-to-day lives, with 45% reporting it influences their lifestyle more now than it did in 2021.
“We’re seeing a growing commitment to getting prepared, more people are planning to take steps to protect their homes and putting emergency plans in place,” Mr Lindsay said.
The research also found that when assessing a property for purchase, 41% of Australians now also consider its potential vulnerability to wild weather. In the short term, 38% say they are more likely to take preparedness steps following the events of the past five years.
NRMA Insurance Head of Natural Perils and Meteorologist Peter Chan said that in a warming climate, extreme weather events are expected to become more frequent and intense across many regions of Australia.
“In Australia, we are exposed to just about every possible hazard, from fires and floods to severe thunderstorms, coastal inundation and tropical cyclones,” he said.
The growing risk carries a significant financial cost. In 2025, the Insurance Council of Australia reported that extreme weather events caused almost A$3.5bn ($2.52bn) in insured losses nationwide.
“Reducing the impact of severe weather on our built environment will require government, business, communities and individuals to work together to increase national preparedness, resilience and mitigation,” Mr Chan said.