Some Australians are now suffering because their homes have been destroyed by floods. They had no flood insurance because the premiums for the insurance were too high. The premiums were high because the insurance companies made a reasonable assessment of the risk of building on a flood plain. Those who chose to build in those areas should have known from the cost of the insurance that it was a risky business to build in those areas. They made their choice and should take the consequences. The government has no obligation to help them rebuild

david f,

The government is responsible because the government has control over development and would have given consent to people to build in those areas that have been affected by the recent high monsoonal like rainy weather.

Also, we need to recognise that the catastrophic floods - like the catastrophic bushfires of the year before - have their roots in anthropogenic global warming and government has been at the forefront in denying and failing to address the adverse climate change generated by global warming.

We the people, are now paying the price because our economic and political systems are being governed by people who refuse to acknowledge AGW and its subsequent adverse climate changes that the scientific community has been warning about for the past 60 years.

But then, We the people, did put these fools in power to govern for us so yes we should accept some responsibility.

It's the various authorities within Govts that create legislations for us to abide & follow.
These authorities also let Insurance companies operate willy nilly without guidelines based on integrity.
If Goct allows people to build in flood prone area then Govt has to take responsibility for flooding ! I have long said that flood prone areas need to have run-off channelling & homes need to be built higher above ground than normal. The best outcome would be to turn flood prone areas into canal developments but that would need the one commodity Govt authorities lack, common sense !
Surely, by now there's enough historical data at hand that identifies flood prone water course & settling along them should have been well worked out by now !

RACV. Do. Not. Cover. People. In. Hazardous. Areas.

Governments. Could. Assist. Victims. If. They. Relocate. To. Safer. Areas.

Same. Applies. To bushfire. Zones.

"The government has no obligation to help them rebuild"

I suspect that won't mean that we won't get into a bidding war given its an election year. We see the ABC gearing up the sob-stories and at some point someone will work out there's votes available and will start demanding everyone's sugar-daddy (aka government) cough up.

After all, the way money has been thrown during the virus, fiscal rectitude will be the least of anyone's concerns.

I have a friend who bought into an established community 5 years ago. The house is at least 40 years old so built long before any government regulations were in place and at a time when government didn't consider it was its function to get involved in such decisions. Three years ago their flood insurance went to $25K pa and they decided to cancel it. They've been congratulating themselves on saving $75K. But not so much now that the place went under. They are very much in favour of the government bailing them out, so to speak.

"Some Australians" built on known floodplains. Premiums are very expensive for people who build on floodplains. However, things could have been different if we had competent, knowledgeable governments who were not cowards allowing themselves to be dictated to by minorities like the ratbag Greens who, despite being held in contempt by 90% of the Australian public, have been allowed to block the construction of dams which would have mitigated flooding and provided the country with water that could have rendered inevitable droughts harmless.

Over 200 years, and people still haven't accepted the characteristics of the land they occupy.