Being prepared for a natural disaster

It’s important to prepare for natural disasters, even if you don’t think you’re at risk.

Know your risks

It’s important to know what natural disasters could affect where you live. Think about:

  • your local climate conditions
  • weather warnings in your area
  • past natural disasters near you
  • the land terrain around your home.

Learn more about your weather risks on the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) website.

Create your emergency plan

An emergency plan can help you be prepared if you’re affected by a natural disaster.

There are resources that can help you prepare. Some of these links will take you away from myGov.

Get your information ready

There are things you can do to get ready, in case you need to claim an Australian Government disaster payment.

To claim a payment for a declared natural disaster with Services Australia, you’ll need to have a myGov account to set up and use your Centrelink online account.

If you don’t have a myGov account, you’ll need to create one. After you’ve created one, you can link Centrelink.

You may need to prove who you are when claiming a natural disaster payment. You can prove your identity with certain documents or by using your Digital ID. Find out about creating a Digital ID.


Page last updated: 15 December 2025