A Gold Coast suburb has made the unwanted list of storm damage hotspots in Queensland.
Suncorp Insurance has crunched the numbers on more than 126,000 home insurance claims in the state over the last five years, with the Gold Coast, Brisbane, the Fraser Coast and Far North Queensland all emerging as major severe storm hotspots at different times, with impacts dominated by a combination of storm, flood, hail, cyclone and wind damage.
The Gold Coast’s Runaway Bay claimed the unwanted title of Queensland’s number one hotspot in the 2025 financial year, a year when the region was hit by severe thunderstorms.
In the year to 2026, Manly West became the state’s leading hotspot after Cyclone Alfred and a massive hail storm that impacted large parts of the south east and northern New South Wales.
Bracken Ridge recorded Queensland’s highest number of home extreme weather claims in 2022 with the devastating February and March flood event across the south east and northern New South Wales.
In 2023, the hotspot moved north to Maryborough following a series of severe summer storms while in 2024, Gympie took top spot after a severe thunderstorm and hail event in December 2023.
Suncorp Executive General Manager Home Insurance Anna Cartwright said the analysis highlighted how quickly Queensland’s severe weather risk profile could change.
“Five years of claims data tells us one thing very clearly: no Queensland community should assume it’s immune to severe storm impacts,” Ms Cartwright said.
“Over the past five years we’ve seen major flooding inundate Southeast Queensland, severe storms impact communities across the Fraser Coast and Far North Queensland, and most recently Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred bring damaging winds and heavy rainfall that wreaked havoc across Southeast Queensland.
“Some communities appear in our claims data time and again, while others can go from barely featuring one year to becoming a major hotspot the next.
“The lesson isn’t to focus on which suburb topped the list last year. It’s that every Queensland household should prepare for severe storms before it arrives.”
Suncorp Severe Weather Forecaster Justin Noonan said Queenslanders should start preparing for storm season now.
“While large-scale climate patterns suggest Spring is expected to be less active than normal, Queenslanders can still expect severe thunderstorms with damaging winds, large hailstones and heavy rainfall.” Mr Noonan said.
“Seasonal outlooks can tell us about broad weather patterns, but they can’t tell us exactly where the next severe thunderstorm will strike. A quieter season doesn’t mean a risk-free season.
“The claims data shows severe storms can impact many different parts of Queensland, which is why preparation remains important regardless of whether your suburb has appeared on a hotspot list before.”
