SP AusNet will pay the largest share to the claimants followed by the state government and its pole contractor, UAM. Andrew Watson, the national head of class actions at Maurice Blackburn – which brought the class action – said the firm would assess how much each person would receive ‘‘fairly and reasonably as expeditiously as we can’’. ‘‘We understand the suffering of those who have waited for compensation for so long,’’ he said. ‘‘But the sheer volume means it will take time and we think it will be somewhere between 12 to 18 months after settlement approval before we are finally able to distribute all the (amounts).’’ Lead claimant Carol Matthews, who lost her son and her family home in the fire, approved the amount on behalf of all of the claimants: "Nothing will take away the pain of losing my son and today's settlement won't change what has happened.

‘‘But there is an element of relief and a sense of comfort that this settlement will ease the financial struggles that so many people are still facing on a day to day basis.’’ Ms Matthews said it was ‘‘unthinkable’’ that the company's primary concern was not for the 119 who died in the fire and the survivors in the class action, but ‘‘to try and reduce their liability regarding a fire that was preventable’’. The 16-month trial had exposed ‘‘many of the failings that occurred on that day’’ that other investigations could not. "In particular, the absence of timely warnings and the failure of SP Ausnet to recognise the importance of having a rigorous and comprehensive maintenance regime regarding its key assets, its power lines," she said. She hoped the case would encourage SP AusNet, UAM, the CFA and DSE to "review and renew their standards of operation".

"We must do everything we can to stop another avoidable disaster from destroying so many lives." Premier Denis Napthine said the government’s contribution to the settlement would not affect the budget or any services to Victoria, with the cost to be covered by government insurance. “I would certainly hope that this assists the victims, I think anybody who lost a loved one in these fires, it is very difficult even when the settlement is reached. Anybody who lost a loved one in a tragedy like Black Saturday, they will hurt forever,’’ he said. Dr Napthine said the government had acted in the best interest of both fire victims and their families and Victorians in the case, adding he was unaware of how much the court case cost taxpayers.

Of the more than 10,000 claimants, about 1700 had made personal injury claims, nearly 4000 had claimed for property loss where they were uninsured or underinsured, and about 5000 had made insurance claims. Mr Watson said that after lawyers' fees were paid, personal injury claimants would receive about 70 per cent of their assessed losses, while property claimants would receive about a third of their losses from the settlement. He said research had showed that on average claimants were insured for about 50 per cent of their losses: ‘‘Taking insurance and other payments into account, we think those who have suffered property loss will on average receive about 66 cents in the dollar after distributions." About 7 per cent of the settlement sum [$35 million] would pay the claimants' solicitors' costs, and 5 per cent [$25 million] would go to their barristers, experts and other legal expenses. Andrew Berry, whose Kinglake home was destroyed by the fires, thought the settlement was a “good result” but it was crucial the money was allocated to "people who lost family members, people who lost everything … if that means a little less for us, then that’s okay.”

Mr Berry survived the fires with his wife and three children. They have since left "the charcoal mountain" to move to Safety Beach. “It was hard to walk away from there, but life is challenging sometimes; you do the best you can,” he said. He sought compensation for the loss of his house and its contents and costs for a planned new home in Kinglake. Another claimant, Lyn Gunter, said compensation was only a “side benefit” of the class action. Ms Gunter, whose Flowerdale home was damaged in the fire, said: "The focus is to get victims to speak out and for AusNet to be held accountable ... there is still a settlement, so for us that is a show of accountability.”