Bushfire support

Preparing for bushfires in Australia

Australia is a beautiful place to live but it doesn’t come without its dangers. Extreme weather and bushfires are unfortunately among them. Although bushfires are often out of our control, one thing you can do to keep yourself and your loved ones safe is have a plan and be prepared.

When bushfires happen, your family’s safety comes first. Contact 000 in any emergency.

At Allianz, we’ve been helping Australians get back on their feet after adverse events for over 100 years. We offer cover for a range of insured events such as bushfires and cyclones. Please note, a 72 hour exclusion period may apply. For full details about what is and isn’t covered, check your Product Disclosure Statement (PDS), Policy Schedule or Certificate of Insurance.

  • Clear leaves from gutters, roofs, and downpipes; mow your lawn; and trim low-lying branches around your home if safe to do so, or engage a professional if necessary
  • Fit steel wire mesh screens to windows, doors, and vents
  • Seal gaps in external cladding on the roof and walls
  • Close off open areas under decks and floors
  • Make sure the pressure relief valves of LPG cylinders installed in your home face outwards
  • Tidy your back yard and move flammable material such as piles of wood, paper, boxes, crates, and garden furniture away from your home
  • Make sure garden hoses are long enough to reach the perimeter of your property
  • If you plant trees and shrubs around your home, choose those that have a lower oil content – they’re less likely to catch fire
  • If you have a swimming pool or water tank, consider using a portable pump that will help you fight the fire
  • Obey directives and regulations on the use of barbecues and open fires during Total Fire Ban days
  • Draw up a home emergency plan that includes where you and your family will go if you must evacuate your home and how you’ll contact each other if separated
  • Keep a list of emergency telephone numbers within easy reach – local or state emergency service, police, ambulance, hospital, gas, and electricity – plus details of local relief centres and evacuation routes
  • Put together an “emergency pack” containing tinned food, a tin-opener, water, a first-aid kit, blankets, warm clothing, spare batteries, matches and gloves
  • Equip yourself with a battery-powered portable radio and torch so you can stay updated on power restoration and evacuation alerts if the power is cut
  • Gather sentimental, important and valuable items, documents, and photos you can take with you if you need to evacuate
  • Consider keeping valuables items and documents in a fire-resistant safe or metal cabinet

  • Avoid going into the bush if there is smoke or fire in the vicinity
  • Patrol the outside of your property
  • Make sure you have ladders, shovels, and metal buckets to allow you to extinguish embers and spot fires
  • Bring your garden hose inside so fire won’t melt it and move any firefighting equipment to a place where it will not get burnt
  • Close windows, doors, and shutters
  • Block the downpipes on your house with a sock filled with sand or soil and fill the roof gutters with water
  • Block gaps beneath doors, using wet blankets or towels
  • Collect water in buckets or the bath
  • Draw up a home emergency plan that includes where you and your family will go if you must evacuate your home and how you’ll contact each other if separated
  • Keep a list of emergency telephone numbers within easy reach – local or state emergency services, police, ambulance, hospital, gas and electricity – plus details of local relief centres and evacuation routes
  • Put together an “emergency pack” containing tinned food, a tin-opener, water, a first-aid kit, blankets, warm clothing, spare batteries, matches, and gloves
  • Equip yourself with a battery-powered portable radio and torch so you can stay updated on power restoration and evacuation alerts if the power is cut
  • Gather sentimental, important, and valuable items, documents, and photos you can take with you if you need to evacuate
  • Consider keeping valuables items and documents in a fire-resistant safe or metal cabinet

Our priority is your safety. Keep yourself and your family out of harm’s way until the danger is over. Then, when it’s safe to do so, contact us. Our claims team will be ready to help with enquiries and lodging claims to make sure you get quick, expert assistance and support. You don’t need your policy documents. We can locate these details for you.

If your property or motor vehicles are damaged because of cyclones*, flooding*, storms*, or bushfires*, it’s best to lodge a claim online to minimise delays. A consultant will contact you as soon as possible. Otherwise, call us on 13 10 13, or contact your broker.

* We don’t provide cover for any loss of or damage to your property caused by cyclone, flood, grassfires and bushfires during the first 72 hours after you first purchase a policy or increase your cover under an existing policy. For full details of conditions and exclusions please refer to the relevant PDS.

Allianz acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we live and work across Australia. We pay our respect to First Nations Elders past and present.



Any advice here does not take into account your individual objectives, financial situation or needs. Terms, conditions, limits, and exclusions apply. Before making a decision about this insurance, consider the relevant Product Disclosure Statement (PDS)/Policy Wording and Supplementary PDS (if applicable). Where applicable, the PDS/Policy Wording, Supplementary PDS and Target Market Determination (TMD) for this insurance are available on this website. We do not provide any form of advice if you call us to enquire about or purchase a product.

Allianz Australia Insurance Limited ABN 15 000 122 850 AFS Licence No. 234708 is the insurer of any general insurance products offered, and Allianz Australia Life Insurance Limited ABN 27 076 033 782 AFS Licence No. 296559 is the insurer of any life insurance products offered. Each entity is responsible for any statements and representations made about its products, on this website.