Australia's bushfire insurance claims hit $96m

About 900 bushfire claims have been lodged with insurers so far, with losses of more than 100 million AU dollars (about 96 million U.S. dollars), the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) said on Tuesday. More claims are expected to be lodged this week, the representative body of Australia's general insurance industry said. ICA spokesperson Campbell Fuller said insurance assessors had started to review claims and assess the damage, but many affected areas were still not accessible due to the ongoing fire risk. "This is a horrific thing for many, many families and business to go through," Fuller told the Australian Associated Press (AAP). On Monday, a team of disaster specialists was sent to the Springwood recovery center by the ICA to help bushfire policyholders with questions about their insurance claims. "The ICA's team at the Springwood recovery center is there to answer questions about the claims process, and help policyholders make contact with their insurer," ICA chief executive Rob Whelan said in a statement. "The ICA is also liaising closely with local and state government agencies, emergency services and community groups to help identify issues and resolve them as swiftly as possible."