Compare contents insurance

Contents insurance can cover the belongings in your home if they’re damaged or stolen. It can help pay the repair and replacement costs of a range of possessions, including your:

• Clothing
• Furniture
• Electrical appliances.

Some events that you’re covered for may include natural disasters, malicious damage and theft.

Depending on your situation, you might consider one of the following types of insurance to cover contents:

• Contents only insurance covers the items inside your home, whether you are renting or an owner-occupier.
• Landlord insurance can also cover contents, depending on your policy. This option can financially protect furniture and some fixtures in your investment home.
• Combined home and contents insurance is for homeowners who want their home building and everything inside it covered from insured events. A combined policy offers the benefits of a home insurance policy and contents insurance in one type of cover.

Your need for contents insurance is something you must decide for yourself, as there’s no Australian law making it mandatory cover. However, having contents insurance could provide you peace of mind, knowing your possessions can be covered if they’re damaged or destroyed by an insured event.

One single best contents insurance policy doesn’t exist, as it’s a product that can vary depending on the insurance provider and your circumstances. Some things you might consider when looking for a contents insurance policy may include:

• Standard inclusions. These can vary depending on your insurer. For example, some might include flood cover as standard, while others may require you to purchase it as an optional extra.
• Policy limits. Would standard policy limits be adequate for all your possessions? Or do you need extra cover beyond the standard policy limits for some of your more valuable items?
• Optional extras. Adding optional extras to your policy could be a great way to tailor your policy to your needs. Just keep in mind that these typically attract additional premiums.

Read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Target Market Determination (TMD) to ensure the insurance product suits your situation.

What’s covered by contents insurance may vary depending on your insurance provider. The following table is a guide to what’s generally included and excluded by a contents insurance policy.

The full details of cover limits and exclusions will be listed in the relevant PDS.

Some optional cover that might be available in contents insurance products include:

• Accidental damage cover: Can be added to your policy to help protect your home’s contents from accidental loss, breakages and damages, such as broken glass, spilled wine or dropping your TV.
• Portable contents cover: Provides financial protection for everyday items you take out of the house with you regularly (like mobile phones, laptops and jewellery). Portable items are generally covered across Australia and New Zealand.
• Motor burnout cover: Insures appliances (like fridges and washing machines) when their electric motors are damaged by power surges and electrical currents.
• Specified contents cover: Allows you to increase the cover limit for specific items, such as works of art, jewellery and collectibles. This could be handy if your standard coverage limits wouldn’t cover the cost of replacing these expensive items.
• Flood cover: Can replace or repair your belongings if they’re damaged or lost due to flooding. This isn’t always included in standard cover, so you may need to add this extra if it’s cover you want.
• Commercial storage cover: If you’re moving, upsizing or downsizing your home, contents insurance could cover losses that may occur to your belongings in storage.

If you’ve got power tools stored in your shed or garage, these can be covered by contents insurance. However, if you use these power tools for a home business instead of personal use, you may need another type of cover to insure them (e.g. a business insurance policy).

Contents insurance could cover sports equipment you keep at home, but some equipment like bicycles may require extra cover (e.g. portable contents cover).

While sports equipment may be covered for the events listed in your policy (such as fires and storms), it might not be covered if it’s damaged while in use.

Contents insurance doesn’t cover your home building or other structures at your insured address, like fences, sheds and garages. You’ll need home insurance cover (which can also be combined with a contents policy) to safeguard these structures. If you have an apartment, this is usually covered by strata insurance through your building’s body corporate.

Aside from what’s covered by home insurance, common contents insurance exclusions are typically:

• Leaving your home unoccupied for an extended period (e.g. 60 consecutive days)
• War, terrorism, civil commotion and rebellious uprisings
• Deliberate or wilful damage
• Illegal activity
• Tree lopping
• General wear and tear
• Existing damages and poor workmanship
• Damage from animals and insects.

The cost of your contents insurance is usually based on several factors, such as:

• Your level of cover and sum insured amount
• Your insured address
• Any previous claims history
• The type of home (e.g. apartment, freestanding house, townhouse)
• Security features you have in your home (e.g. alarm, security screens)
• Any optional extras you want to include.

There are some things you can do that may reduce the price of your policy, including:

• Increasing your excess. If your insurer offers this option, you can choose a higher excess to lower your premiums. Before increasing your excess, consider if you can afford to pay a higher excess amount if you need to make an insurance claim.
• Purchase insurance online. Many insurance companies offer an online discount for the first year if you purchase a new policy through their website.
• Paying premiums annually. Paying your premiums once a year could save you in the long run, as monthly instalments often attract extra costs.
• Bundle your policies. You may get discounted premiums on some of your policies if you take out more than one product with the same insurer (e.g. contents and car insurance).

You’ll need to contact your insurer to update your details if you move, as your location can influence your insurance premiums. For example, if you move to a suburb that has a higher rate of break-ins or is in a bushfire zone, your premiums may change to reflect the risk.