From Cyclone Alfred which hit South East Queensland in March 2025 to the record flooding on the New South Wales coast that forced thousands from their homes two months later, Australia’s changing climate is unleashing more frequent and severe weather disasters.1
“Millions of Australian homes now face escalating risks from climate change,” warns Climate Change Authority (CCA) Chair Matt Kean.1
But are our homes built to withstand that risk?
Leading cyclone expert Dr David Henderson, Chief Research Engineer at James Cook University’s Cyclone Testing Station, is among those who believe our current building codes don’t go far enough.1, 2
Cyclone Alfred taught us “how seriously unprepared we were”, according to David, while also exposing failings in weatherproofing systems, cladding, window glazing and balcony pavers.
“If the winds had been 20km/h more, we would have had tens of thousands of houses and other buildings with major structural damage and roof damage, so it was really close to being a major catastrophe,” says David.
“Our current building codes and standards in Australia only represent bare minimums – that means homes built ‘to code’ aren’t necessarily built to withstand increasingly extreme weather events.”
So what can you do at an individual level to help prepare your property for the extreme weather hazards of the future?
From simple maintenance to moderate safety upgrades, we’ve put together some expert recommendations, as well as tips on how to renovate or rebuild your home to optimise resilience against stormy weather.
Prepare your property with general maintenance
There are small but important steps that can be incorporated into your regular maintenance routine to help strengthen what’s known as your home’s tie-down chain – the system of links that connects your roof to your walls and foundations. For a relatively low cost, the following steps can improve your home’s resilience to destructive storms and cyclones:3
Check for rust, termites, rot and moisture, all of which can weaken your home’s structure if not addressed
Replace corroded roof fasteners to secure cladding and sheeting
Tighten screws and bolts
Reapply protective coatings to metal and timber surfaces
Replace rotting verandah posts3
“Verandah posts near garden beds or inadequate drainage are prone to rot and corrosion, and often face high wind loads,” explains David. “If yours are rotting or rusting, replace them – paint won’t fix the problem.
“Also pay attention to loose pavers, especially if you live in a building complex. These became a concern during Alfred, even at relatively low windspeeds.
“On one building, lifted balcony pavers broke the glass balustrades and ended up on the street, several floors below.”
If you suspect there may be a weak link in your home’s tie-down chain, always contact a builder or professional engineer, advises David.
Moderate safety upgrades to prepare your home
Not all upgrades need to cost the earth – some basic changes can make a significant difference to outcomes when wild weather hits. Think of these as smart add-ons that can help keep your home sealed up, reduce the potential for costly water damage, and may stop the wind from finding a way in.
Install storm shutters or debris screens
Fitting covers over windows and doors can provide a layer of protection against flying debris and help stop water getting in.4
“When windows or doors fail, the pressure inside the home can more than double the uplift forces on the roof,” explains David. “Keeping the building envelope intact is critical for resilience.”
Prepare DIY plywood covers
If you live in a cyclone-prone area and can’t stretch your budget to include storm shutters, consider having 14mm thick plywood panels cut so they’re ready to fit over windows when a warning is issued. They are not as tough as rated products but can still offer some protection against water and flying debris.4, 5
Reinforce garage doors
Garage doors can be one of the weakest spots in a big storm. Bracing kits – steel sections fixed to the walls – may stop the doors from bowing or slipping out of their tracks.4, 5
“Older garage doors can blow in under high wind loads, but reinforcement is a relatively simple fix,” says David.
Fit drop bolts to doors
Entrance doors are usually held shut by just a small latch. Installing drop bolts at the top and bottom strengthens them against strong winds.4, 5
Upgrade window seals
Adding good quality seals around your window frames can prevent water from entering and damaging your floors.6
Rebuilding for resilience
Whether you’re rebuilding after a weather disaster or planning a major renovation, you may wish to improve your home’s durability against stormy weather. Big-ticket changes such as reinforcing your roof or raising floor levels can be costly, but could offer significant long-term savings in the event of a flood or cyclone, and help return you to your home sooner, notes David.
“The principle is ‘pay now to save later’,” he says.
Cyclone resilience measures
Here are some building design updates that can help strengthen your home’s resilience to cyclonic winds, starting with your roof – one of the most vulnerable points during cyclones:6
Cyclone-ready roof – Choose an evenly slanted hip roof profile with strong tie-downs and cyclone-rated materials; simple designs seal better against heavy, wind-driven rain.6
Stronger doors – Fit solid-core doors with reinforced frames and multi-point locks to stop them blowing in and letting wind or rain inside.6
Impact-resistant windows – Install laminated glass or cyclone-rated shutters or screens to resist debris and reduce dangerous pressure changes.6
Cross-bracing for subfloors – Add cross-bracing to stumps on high-set homes to stabilise the subfloor structure against strong winds.7
Flood resilience measures
Fixing up a home after a flood can be stressful and expensive, but designing with the following key principles in mind might limit the damage next time:8
Wetproofing – Use water-resistant materials that are easier to clean and dry, such as sealed tiles and fibre cement sheeting, in areas likely to get wet. For example, polished concrete absorbs very little water and dries quickly.8
Elevation – Raise your home or lift key services – such as switchboards, hot water, air conditioners – above predicted flood levels.9
Absorption – Add permeable surfaces, such as lawns, gardens and gravel to soak up water and reduce runoff, easing pressure on stormwater systems.10
Smart landscaping – Shape garden beds and paths to direct water away from your home, and plant deep-rooted species to stabilise soil.10
For more specific advice based on your property type, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) provides comprehensive guides to retrofitting or building for a more flood resilient home.
How to prepare your home for hailstorms
There are currently no national building standards for hail resilience – yet items such as shattered solar panels, dented air-conditioning units and cracked roof tiles drive huge hail damage insurance claims every year, says David.
“The Sydney hailstorm of 1999, for example, was one of the biggest natural hazard payouts in Australia’s history,” he says.
With climate change expected to increase the frequency of hailstorms over the south-east coast of Australia, it may be worth considering some options to help reduce future hail damage to your home:11
Choose impact-resistant roof materials
Install hail-resistant window protection such as shutters11
If you’ve made the significant investment of installing solar panels on your roof, you may also wish to check your insurance to find out if solar panels are covered, in the event that they’re damaged in the next big hailstorm.
Some home insurance providers, including Youi, do offer solar panel insurance coverage as part of their building and contents insurance.12
For example, your solar panels may be covered if damaged by a hailstorm or by a falling tree branch, which comes under the insured event of ‘impact’.12 Remember to review your insurance coverage to check that it reflects the replacement cost of your solar power system to help reduce the risk of underinsurance in the event of unexpected damage.
See the Home PDS for more information, including how building fixtures are treated under insurance coverage.12
How can building authorities improve resilience?
The National Construction Code (NCC), managed by the Australian Building Codes Board, sets the minimum standard for how homes are designed and built across the country. However, David notes that each state and territory has to sign off on the code and may tweak it for local conditions, so rules can vary depending on where you live.
“The code is designed around life safety – making sure the building protects you during a natural event,” he explains. “But in this day and age, we’d like to see it go beyond this minimum standard.”
In the next five years, over three million Australian properties are projected to be exposed to some level of riverine flooding, says a recent CCA report.13
It’s this type of sobering scenario that has the CCA calling for a “coordinated, comprehensive and well-resourced national adaptation agenda across all levels of government, businesses and communities.”13
“Authorities will need to review and tighten building codes,” says Matt Kean. “Parts of coastal Queensland and WA not now covered by cyclone construction standards may need to be.”
David agrees that building more resilient homes is a shared responsibility.
“Owners, builders, designers and regulators all need to better understand resilience,” he says.
Adds Matt: “Every dollar invested in reducing climate risks (to homes) can save up to $11 in recovery costs.”
Why a one-size-fits-all building code approach isn’t enough
Australia faces a range of extreme weather threats – cyclones in the north, hail in the southeast, and floods across multiple regions. A single minimum standard can’t cover them all, says David.
“Compare it to car safety ratings,” he says. “Yes, every car has to meet basic standards. But some models also include additional safety features. We should have the same for homes – a tiered system where people can choose to build stronger if they want.
“That means designing not just to save lives in the moment, but also to make homes liveable afterwards – so families can move back in within weeks, not 18 months after major repairs due to water damage, collapsed ceilings or mould.”
For more expert tips to help you plan for severe weather, visit our you.prepared emergency content hub.
The content in this article has been prepared based on current government and emergency services guidelines and expert advice provided at the time of publishing. This information is subject to change. Please be sure to check for the latest information and always consider your personal circumstances regarding home safety preparedness and response.
Where you have increased your Youi insurance cover or reduced your excess within 72 hours (or other period noted on your policy schedule) of a flood, storm, hail or bushfire occurring, cover will be limited to the amount that was effective prior to the change. Loss, damage or legal liability caused by, resulting or arising from flood, storm, hail or bushfire during the first 72 hours (or other period noted on your policy schedule) of your policy first being purchased is excluded unless certain conditions are met. Refer to the relevant Product Disclosure Statement for full T&Cs.
1 Source: Climate Change Authority – Media Release - Home safe: National leadership in adapting to a changing climate, June 2025
2 Source: Natural Hazards Research Australia – Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred a ‘practice run’, May 2025
3 Source: Cyclone Testing Station – Weather the storm, Level 1
4 Source: Australian Government – Your storm and cyclone resilient home
5 Source: Cyclone Testing Station – Weather the storm, Level 2
6 Source: Australian Government – Reduce the rain driven by wind entering your house, December 2024
7 Source: Qld Government – Cyclone Resilient Building Guidance for Queensland Homes, 2019
8 Source: QLD Government – Flood Resilient Building Guidance for Queensland Homes
9 Source: Australian Government – Raise sensitive items to prepare for floods, December 2024
10 Source: Australian Government – Design landscapes to protect your house from flooding, December 2024
11 Source: Australian Government – Adapting to climate change
12 See the Home insurance PDS for full details.
13 Source: Climate Change Authority – Home safe: National leadership in adapting to a changing climate, June 2025
