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A family from Melbourne's west feared they would become homeless after they were told to move back into their uninhabitable, mice-infested house by their insurer.

Homeowners Kane and Rebecca Bridger said RACV denied their claim for flood damage, despite being originally accepted six months earlier.

Their much-loved home in Sunbury, in Melbourne's north-west, was left riddled in mould following water damage from a storm about a year ago.

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The family received an email from the RACV confirming their claim was accepted, as work to repair the damage began.

However their claim "for any damage to the property" was suddenly denied in May.

"It just really shocked and really confused (us) to be honest," Rebecca said.

"As far as we were aware it was all going ahead."

The decision was based on an engineer's report which included identifying several maintenance-related issues and building defects.

But an engineer's report commissioned by the RACV just six months earlier said there were no maintenance issues found to be contributing to the damage.

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The house no longer has a functioning bathroom, and is unlivable, according to Kane.

"I was furious, they obviously didn't know what ready to move back into is," he said.

"Even if we did move back in, how did they expect us to go to the toilet?"

The house remains vacant and has become overrun with mice.

Many of their belongings have also been ruined.

"It's just sad because this used to be our home and now there is nothing here that feels like home," their daughter Nikkita said.

"We walked in today and it's just like we just wanted to cry.

"It's just been really stressful on everyone."

After a complaint was lodged with the regulator, RACV had a change of heart and extended the family's temporary accommodation.

They have also agreed to fix the mould damage and pay for the contents but the dispute drags on.

An RACV spokesperson provided Today with the following statement on the Bridger family's situation.

"We have acknowledged our member's concerns regarding the findings of the engineer's report and have apologised for the delays experienced in finalising their claim," the spokesperson said.

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Almost one million people have already voted in the Voice to parliament referendum, prompting questions as to whether Australia will know the result of the national question on the night of October 14.

The Australian Electoral Commission [AEC] confirmed that about 950,000 pre-poll votes had been cast in the first three days of early voting.

That's a similar level to the early pre-poll levels of the 2022 federal election, but it's too early to tell whether the same rush to the early voting centres continues through this week and next.

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Regardless, the AEC said, the "vast majority" of pre-poll votes would be counted on the night of the referendum, as most early voters still voted within their electorate, and it would be unlikely to delay the count.

No early votes are counted before the polls close on October 14.

While early ballots will mostly be available on the night, postal votes are another matter.

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The AEC has had about 1.74 million postal vote applications so far – well down on the pandemic-era 2022 federal election, which had about 2.7 million applications at the same stage.

Some postal votes will be counted on the night of the referendum, but others may not have found their way to a counting centre by then, potentially delaying the result, particularly in the context of a close context.

As with a federal election, the ballot count is repeated when it is complete, to ensure the accuracy of the result.

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This is not what's called a "recount", which occurs when the end result is so narrow as to warrant further confirmation, or allegations of misconduct in the count are found to be valid – a situation which is, the AEC notes, the exception and not the rule.

"Like in a federal election, if the overall result is close it may require up to 13 days after polling night for a result to be known," the AEC says on its website.

"This is the timeframe allowed under referendum legislation for postal votes to come back to the AEC for inclusion in the count."

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