Insurance payouts from recent natural disasters have topped $1 billion in Queensland alone, with countless claims yet to be processed or in dispute.
However, the industry is under pressure to clarify confusing definitions in policies and improve communication with customers.
The situation is similar in Victoria, where many families are still displaced and without resolution to their claim.
Many of the disputes centre around whether or not the damage was caused by storms.
"I walked into a house full of mud. Everything had to be thrown out," a resident of Charlton, Victoria told SBS.
Steve Harper and his wife are still living in a caravan, amid a row with their insurance company over the cause of the damage to their home.
"The issue is why they can't get their shit together and and agree it was storm water. I was standing in it," Mr Harper says.
A hydrologist who evaluated the damage for Mr Harper's insurance company disagrees.
Mr Harper's next port of call is the independent insurance Ombudsman, John Price.
Mr Price agrees that the recent conduct of some insurers is unacceptable.
"You've still got to determine whether the cover is provided in the terms of the particularly as we can," he told SBS.
Meanwhile, people in Mr Harper's position have been urged to try and keep their patience.
"You can do what feels good in the moment which might be unloading on the person that you're speaking to, or you can do what's going to get you where you're trying to go," says concilliation manager Aimie Cousins.
