More than 160,000 claims have been made since a series of storms wreaked havoc from the Illawarra to Queensland in April and May, insurers say

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

The series of severe storms that wreaked havoc along Australia’s east coast in April and May have left a $1.55bn damage bill.

The Insurance Council of Australia said on Tuesday that most of the claims related to the widespread storms that struck Sydney, the Central Coast, Hunter and Illawarra regions in April.

So far, 119,935 claims have been lodged in relation to $801.7m worth of damage.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Storms battered the east coast for several days in April.

Another 14,239 claims relate to the Anzac Day hailstorms in Sydney, where losses are estimated to have been $389.8m.

Storms that hit south-east Queensland and northern NSW in late April and early May also caused $360.2m worth of damage, with 27,825 claims received.

Since November 2014, more than $3.45bn worth of claims had been handled by insurers for catastrophes including Cyclone Marcia, the Brisbane hailstorms and South Australian bushfires, the ICA said.