Before Storm Season: How to Record Your Queensland Home So a Claim Starts From the Facts

Queensland's storm season runs from October to April, and the south-east's highest risk of severe thunderstorms comes early, from October to December. When a storm does damage, the photos you take afterwards record what it did. What they can't show is how the house looked the day before, and that is often the question a claim turns on.

This guide covers why the "before" matters, when to record your home, what to record outside and in, how phone photos compare with a 3D record, and what to do after a storm, before anything is cleaned up. It's written for owners, landlords and tenants in South East Queensland and the Fraser Coast. It is general information, not legal or insurance advice: your policy wording is what counts.

Why the "before" decides a storm claim

Most home policies cover sudden storm damage and exclude wear and tear, gradual deterioration and damage that was already there. So when a roof leaks or a ceiling cracks after a storm, the question is often whether the storm caused it, or found it.

Two decisions from the Australian Financial Complaints Authority show how that plays out. In one, a cyclone roof claim was declined because photos showed the roof was already "aged and corroded", and AFCA wasn't satisfied the cyclone was the main cause (Insurance News). In another, the insurer said a home's cracking was pre-existing. AFCA found the insurer hadn't explained why some of the cracking appeared only after the storm, and sided with the homeowner (Insurance News).

In both, the argument was about the house before the storm. A dated record made before the season puts that on file before anyone needs it.

When to record: before the season, not after the first storm

The Bureau of Meteorology says October to April is the peak period for storms, cyclones and floods in Queensland, with the highest risk of severe thunderstorms in southern Queensland from October to December. This season also comes with a strong El Niño and record warm global temperatures, and Queensland averages three to four tropical cyclones a season (BoM).

So the useful window is now, before December. Record again after any major change: a new roof, an extension, new cladding or a big repair. Otherwise the record shows a house that no longer exists.

Recording is one part of getting ready. Get Ready Queensland's three steps are to know your risk, make a plan, and pack a kit for at least three days. Insurers at its launch added three more: check your policy is current, walk around the property, and fix maintenance issues before the next storm (Queensland Government).

What to record, outside and in

Record the things a storm damages, and the things an assessor will look at to decide what the storm did.

Outside, from the ground

• The roofline. Ridges, valleys, flashings and any roof sheets or tiles you can see from the ground, plus solar panels.
• Gutters, downpipes, eaves and fascias. Rust, sagging and old stains are exactly what gets argued about later.
• External walls and cladding. Cracks in render or brickwork, and gaps around windows and doors.
• Decks, pergolas, carports and sheds. Their fixings, their roofs and what's stored under them.
• Fences and retaining walls. Lean, cracks and drainage, especially on sloping blocks and canal lots.
• Trees close to the house. Where they stand and how close their branches come to the roof.

Inside

• Ceilings and cornices in every room. Hairline cracks and old water stains, which are the first things questioned after a storm.
• Walls, window reveals and door frames. Especially on the weather side of the house.
• Floors near doors and windows. Any existing swelling or marks.
• Built-ins and fixed appliances. Kitchens, wardrobes, air-conditioning units and hot water systems.

For contents, keep a simple list of anything valuable, with receipts or serial numbers where you have them. A walkthrough shows rooms as they were. It isn't an itemised contents list.

Phone photos or a 3D record

Phone photos are free, quick and far better than nothing. Their weakness is that each one is a frame. It shows what you pointed at, not what was beside it, and it's hard to tell later exactly where in the house it was taken or how big a crack really was.

A 3D record captures the house room by room, joined into one walkthrough. Each room sits in context with the rooms around it, the record is dated, and distances can be measured from it later. You open it in any browser and can share it with your insurer, your builder or your family. If a storm does come through, a second capture afterwards can be compared with the first, room by room.

What a 3D record can't do matters just as much:

• It shows what was visible on the day. It can't see inside walls, under roof sheets or into a roof space nobody can safely reach.
• Outside is recorded from the ground. Roof surfaces show only as far as they can be seen from below.
• It isn't a building report or a structural assessment, and it doesn't replace your insurer's assessor.

We've written more about how room-by-room records hold up in our guide to recording a house before nearby building work.

After a storm: before anything is cleaned up

Safety comes first. Assume any fallen powerline is live: stay well clear and call 000, or Energex on 13 19 62 in South East Queensland and Ergon Energy on 13 16 70 elsewhere (Get Ready Queensland). For non-life-threatening storm help, such as a damaged roof or a tree on the house, call the SES on 132 500 (QFES). Don't climb onto a damaged roof.

Then, before the clean-up, the Insurance Council's advice is to photograph and video the damage to the property and your belongings, list each damaged item with as much detail as you can, and keep anything that could be repaired or salvaged. An assessor will come once the claim is lodged, but in a big event that can take days or weeks (Insurance Council of Australia).

If you had a record made before the season, a second capture now gives you the same rooms from the same viewpoints, so the change is easy to see. Flood damage needs the same approach, recorded before strip-out. Our Gympie and Mary Valley guide covers that in detail.

Renters and landlords

For tenants, serious storm damage and a serious roof leak count as emergency repairs. Contact the emergency contact named in your tenancy agreement as soon as you can, then follow up in writing (RTA). Your own photos of the damage, taken before anything is moved, help everyone.

For landlords, a pre-season record of a rental does two jobs. It shows the property's condition before the storms, and it sits alongside the entry condition report as a fuller picture of the property at the start of a tenancy.

Storm season record: FAQs