Insurance Council of Australia CEO Andrew Hall says he wants Disaster Ready Fund reform and progress on a short-term scheme to help tackle affordability issues in home insurance.

Speaking during a Q&A at Insurance News’ Outlook 2026 conference, held last week, Mr Hall said the federal government is “under a lot of pressure”, which he expects to be reflected in the May budget.

“I think the government is managing through what is probably one of the most challenging environments we have been in since March of 2020, when covid started spreading,” he said.

“The government will have no choice but to actually slash spending in this budget. But that’s going to be done against the backdrop of the geopolitical environment.”

He flagged potential issues with fuel supplies adding that “the next few weeks are going to really matter”.

However, he says financial services minister Daniel Mulino “understands the challenge” around insurance availability and affordability.

Mr Hall hopes Dr Mulino is given the go-ahead to develop a scheme in conjunction with the industry, to ease the pressure for high risk homeowners.

“We’ve done a lot of work behind the scenes on what schemes can look like, and we’ve costed them. At some point we need to come together with government and work with them on it, and so they need to set up the parameters and framework to do that.”

Mr Hall says overseas schemes have been studied and Australia can learn from others’ mistakes.

He says that, while some subsidisation can take place, the risk signal should not be entirely erased.

“I don’t think we're about equalising someone who is in a high-risk flood zone with someone who isn’t. 

“I think they still do need to pay more and reflect the risk that’s against their property. It’s just that it can’t be five times the amount someone else is paying, because then they drop everything. So we’ve got to find the right balance.”

He says mitigation work is also vital, and the government needs to reform the Disaster Ready Fund.

“$200 million a year was a very good initiative they announced in 2022. Unfortunately, it hasn’t built a levee, it hasn’t dredged a river. It’s got to get spent on hard infrastructure, and I think the government realises that.”

In his speech at the event, Mr Hall said the ICA is “pleading” with the government to start investing in mitigation before the cost of risk “becomes prohibitive”.

He said current levels of investment are “nowhere near enough” and that state initiatives like TasInsure are not the answer because they don’t address underlying risks, but redistribute them.

He says the $30 billion flood defence fund proposed by ICA would be an investment for Australia’s most vulnerable communities.

“These Australians deserve a government response that includes real investment in resilience for their homes and communities – not just future-focused planning rules that don’t help them.”

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