Christmas hailstorm costs $550 million plus

The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) reports claims in excess of $550 million for damage to vehicles, homes and businesses following the Christmas Day storms that struck metropolitan Melbourne.
Data shows that 77,174 claims were lodged by January 13. The ICA declared the storms a catastrophe on December 29, 2011.
Mr Rob Whelan, CEO of the Insurance Council, said that  56 per cent of claims were for damage to motor vehicles, with the rest consisting of residential and commercial property and business interruption claims.
Whelan said the Christmas Day storms in Melbourne brought the total number of natural disasters in 2011 to a total of eight with losses amounting to $4.9 billion, more than double that of 2010.