Beyond the policy: Community at the forefront of flood response for Rebecca Gilbert
When you hear the title Insurance Broker, you would be forgiven for picturing someone processing claims behind a computer desk.
But Rebecca, Divisional Manager for Insurance across Nutrien’s Far North was the calming voice behind the phone and reassuring face on the back doorstep that showed up when her community needed her.
“We’re a resilient area. We experienced floods in 2019 which were deemed a catastrophe but the ones that hit in February were just different in terms of the scale of devastation. It was just heartbreaking,” Rebecca said.
“They hit mainly the small community of Ingham, wiping out homes and businesses.
“We had 90 flooded homes and businesses across Ingham, Townsville and Burdekin so from day one the team and I hit the ground running and started contacting clients.
“We started lodging claims straight away and getting emergency payments from their insurance companies but even most of the local supermarkets were closed so we found ways to get them food and basic supplies.”
When disaster strikes it’s the statistics that people are often drawn to, the number of houses destroyed or lives lost.
But behind every statistic, pile of rubble and clean-up, there is a human and it’s those people and stories that had Rebecca returning to Ingham each day to help her clients get back on their feet.
“Damaged buildings and farms we can work together to replace, that’s why we have insurance. It’s the advocacy where I think as brokers we do our best work, understanding people are in a really frightening headspace and ensuring we are there to help them,” she said.
“There was these little wins along the way that definitely kept us going. Like this one man, his phone had floated away and he had no way of contacting his family. I had a spare phone because I’d recently upgraded and I managed to get that delivered to him.
“Another couple were in an area which hadn’t flooded in 70 years and initially had their claim declined. I remember going to visit them in their caravan and saying we’re going to help you, we’re going to contest this.
“We arranged to get a second opinion and we got it all overturned and I’ll never forget this lady who was on the ground just crying with gratitude. It was pretty life changing for her.
“As soon as the roads opened it was great to be able to reach our customers and even if we could only get to one place before the waters would rise or the rain would hit again, it was really important to us to be on the ground with them.”
Rebecca and her team also found a way to reach the wider community when the local Ingham Nutrien branch hosted a recovery barbecue to bring together local farmers to share their experiences and check in on each other.
“That barbecue was a great opportunity to talk to people that aren’t necessarily our insurance clients but needed advice,” she said.
“The most important thing for us is advocacy and that doesn’t just mean advocating for your clients but for the community and the people in which we live and work.”
Born and bred in Townsville along with her husband Michael, the Chief Financial Officer of the North Queensland Cowboys, Rebecca said connection to the community has been vital throughout her career.
Rebecca even works alongside her sister Selena at Nutrien, an Account Manager in Townsville who also shares the same passion for their local community.
“Selena and I were a bit of a dual force during the floods because she is just as passionate about her local community,” Rebecca said.
“We work really closely together and having that backing when you’re advocating for customers, it gives them that assurance that we are going to work as hard as we can for them.
“We were sitting in a cafe in Ingham not long ago and someone actually recognised us and said thankyou for all the work you did during that time and that was a really special moment.
“While there's a population of 200,000 people here, it just feels like a big country town and I know the farmers here in FNQ, all the Nutrien staff and it’s the people and the connections that drive me.”
Introducing the New Digital Hub App. For Farming on the Go
From payments and flexible financing to long and short-term weather and market insights, there's something for everyone on the Nutrien Digital Hub app.