0.25 CIP Points
Why Significant Events aren’t always Catastrophes – and why it matters
Communities facing bushfires or floods recently were unlikely to be interested in debating whether it was a significant event or catastrophe. But for insurers, brokers and claims professionals, these declarations are far more than labels and not interchangeable. They are...
28 Jan 2026
4 mins read
Communities facing bushfires or floods recently were unlikely to be interested in debating whether it was a significant event or catastrophe.
But for insurers, brokers and claims professionals, these declarations are far more than labels and not interchangeable.
They are operational signals that determine how quickly claims are prioritised, how vulnerable customers are identified and how resources are mobilised on the ground.
This distinction was front of mind on Friday 16 January, the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) upgraded its declaration for the Victorian bushfires from a Significant Event to a Catastrophe.
By then, insurers had already received more than 2,300 claims across 18 local government areas triggering industry-wide coordination, taskforces and specialist deployment.
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