Victoria bushfire losses push past A$550mn

A sharp rise in the value of insured losses from the Great Ocean
Road bushfires has pushed the insurance bill from last
December's four declared catastrophes beyond A$550mn
($414.5mn), according to The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA).
This is the second update this year from the ICA, which had
previously pegged the summer bushfire losses at A$515mn.
CEO Rob Whelan explained that insurers could only begin
rebuilding in affected areas once they were cleared of debris,
including asbestos mater