A little bit of forward-planning when you’re designing your home can make a real difference when it comes to your home’s resilience to extreme weather.
Here are some tips to consider.
Building products can deteriorate over time due to corrosion, rot, and attack from insects – with timber being particularly prone to this kind of damage. Deterioration of key parts of the tie-down chain can severely reduce a building’s resistance to wind loads – so appropriate maintenance is essential to keep a house safe during a storm.
Consider the structural integrity of products such as materials and fixings that adhere to higher wind classifications such as stronger hinges and bolts, that are less likely to blow open during a cyclone.
Just as your car needs regular maintenance, so does your house. By maintaining your home regularly, you can ensure that it’s in the best structural position possible.
General maintenance activities include:
When building or renovating, consider using a room in the centre of your house that is window-less and will be less susceptible to flying debris.
Strengthen the walls and ceiling of one or two rooms located in the centre of your home, to create a strong compartment that can be used for shelter during a cyclone, if you are unable to evacuate. Note that this situation would only be required if you can’t evacuate.
For more information, see the Queensland Reconstruction Authority’s (QRA) Cyclone Resilient Building Guidance.
Source: https://weatherthestorm.com.au/#/maintenance
The information is intended to be of a general nature only. Subject to any rights you may have under any law, we do not accept any legal responsibility for any loss or damage, including loss of business or profits or any other indirect loss, incurred as a result of reliance upon it – please make your own enquiries.
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From the simple to the complex, see which upgrades can help better protect your home.
Natural hazard resilience has long been a focus for Suncorp, with many other initiatives both existing and in progress. Suncorp Insurance’s Cyclone Resilience Benefit was introduced in 2016 and is available for eligible Home Insurance customers in North Queensland. Customers who undertake eligible upgrades to their home’s cyclone readiness may get a reduction on their Suncorp Home Insurance premium4.
An Australian first for Home Insurance. It’s our commitment to help create more resilient homes. It means that if your home is substantially damaged, we’ll rebuild it stronger with recommended resilience options up to $10,000, in addition to your sum insured, all designed to help withstand severe weather5.
Helping build a more resilient Queensland together.
Insurance is issued by AAI Limited ABN 48 005 297 807 (AAI) trading as Suncorp Insurance. Please read the relevant Product Disclosure Statement before buying any insurance products. The Target Market Determination is also available. The information is intended to be of a general nature only. Subject to any rights you may have under any law, we do not accept any legal responsibility for any loss or damage, including loss of business or profits or any other indirect loss, incurred as a result of reliance upon it – please make your own enquiries.
4. A premium reduction may be available to eligible Suncorp Home or Landlord Insurance customers, with properties above tropic of Capricorn, within 100km from the coast and with certain risk mitigation measures. Eligibility criteria, terms and conditions apply. Find out more.
5. Cover applies to claims with building damage over $50,000 or 10% of sum insured, whichever is highest. Resilience improvements are tiered according to level of cover up to $10,000. Limits, conditions and exclusions apply. Please read the relevant Product Disclosure Statement before you make any decision regarding this product.
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