More support for NSW residents impacted by June-July floods

Additional assistance has been made available for NSW residents impacted by the June-July floods, according to announcements made last week.

Last Friday, the NSW Government announced that residents in 17 local government areas (LGAs) affected by the June-July floods can now apply for rental support payments and Back Home grants.

The Rental Support Scheme is designed to cover the cost of temporary accommodation for residents who are unable to live in their flood-affected home.

The scheme is available for residents impacted by storms and floods in February and March 2022, and/or the storms and floods in June and July 2022.

Rental payments of up to 16 weeks are covered by the support scheme, with the amount being based on the number of people in the household.

The Back Home grants provide one-off payments of up to $20,000 for owner-occupiers, or $15,000 for landlords and $5,000 for renters, to cover the cost for restoring the property or replacing essential household items.

This may include replacing damaged appliances, reconnecting utilities or making repairs around the home.

For more information on rental support payments and the Back Home grants, visit the Service NSW website here.

The Federal Government also announced last week that disaster payments and assistance are extended to an additional five LGAs affected by severe storms and flooding.

The additional LGAs of Kempsey, Narromine, Oberon, Port Macquarie-Hastings and Strathfield now brings the total number of LGAs eligible for disaster payments up to 42.

Residents who have suffered significant loss as a result of the floods, including serious injury or a severely damaged or destroyed home, can apply for a one-off, non-means tested Disaster Recovery Payment. The payments amount to $1000 for each adult and $400 for each child.

Employees or sole traders experiencing a loss of income as a result of the floods can also apply for the Disaster Recovery Allowance, which provides fortnightly payments for a maximum of 13 weeks.

Affected residents are also entitled to disaster assistance, which includes:

• Individual assistance for immediate essential needs (e.g. food, clothing, temporary housing), essential household contents replacement and repair, and structural repairs or replacement
• Storm and flood clean-up assistance for households, businesses, primary producers and local councils
• Concessional interest rate loans for small businesses, not-for-profit organisations and primary producers.

For more information on the Disaster Recovery Payment or Disaster Recovery Allowance, click here.