Written by Kenneth Young
Reviewed by Adrian Taylor
Last updated 15/02/24
Your senior years can bring many changes to your living situation – perhaps you’re downsizing now all the kids are grown or moving into a retirement village for a sense of community. Whatever your circumstances, it’s a smart idea to consider insurance to protect your home, so we’ve compiled this guide to home insurance for seniors:
Compare the Market’s home insurance expert, Adrian Taylor, has these helpful tips for senior Australians looking to get the most out of their home and contents insurance.
Consider getting a home security system if you don’t already have one. This is likely to deter thieves and may also get you a discount from your insurer depending on the type of system installed.
You should disclose to your insurer your circumstances if you’re newly retired. If you hold or are eligible for a seniors’ card, some insurers may offer a discount for your home and contents insurance premium.
If you’re going to leave your home unattended for long periods of time (perhaps to take that long-awaited retirement trip), remember to check your relevant Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) as you may be required to let your insurer know if your home will be empty for a period of time.
While there’s no insurance product specifically for seniors, older Australians have a range of insurance options to choose from to protect their homes against things like burglaries, bushfires, storm damage and more. These include:
Your golden years are meant to be a time for comfort and relaxation, not for paying unexpected costs. By covering your house and belongings with home and contents insurance, you can enjoy your retirement with peace of mind.
To see which home and contents insurance policies work for you from our range of available brands, read through the PDS and the Target Market Determination (TMD) to see if the policy is applicable to you.
You may find that coverage for home and contents cover varies between policies and insurance providers, so it’s important to compare your options to make sure you’re aiming for minimum premiums and maximum protection.
However, home and contents insurance generally covers (but is not limited to):
Depending on your policy, you may also have a choice of optional extras to add to your cover, including:
You should carefully read over the PDS for the full details of your level of cover and any exclusions before purchasing any optional cover for your policy.
The cost of a home insurance policy depends on several factors, including the type of coverage, the insurance provider you select, your house’s age, its location and building materials. It will also consider factors specific to you, such as your claims history and your retirement status.
However, policies can vary significantly in price based on risk assessment. Just because you’re regarded as senior, does not necessarily mean you’ll pay more – or less – for your home and contents insurance.
One thing you might want to keep in mind is that paying your premium annually as opposed to monthly may lower your insurance costs, depending on your insurer. Your sum insured (i.e. the maximum amount you’ll be paid out for your home or belongings if they were completely destroyed by an insured event) can also have a significant impact on your home insurance premium.
Providers may offer different types of policy discounts, like an online discount when you purchase a policy online.
If you live in a retirement home, the building may already be covered through strata insurance, which is the responsibility of the village operators to arrange and maintain; in which case, contents insurance would be the ideal solution to protecting your possessions within your retirement home.
However, not all senior living places will provide this to their residents, so you may still need your own policy for your retirement home. It’s best to check with management for more information about what type of cover is required.
As the Executive General Manager of General Insurance at Compare the Market, Adrian Taylor works to make protecting a homeowner’s most significant financial assets an easier and more efficient process. Adrian empowers people with choice and believes it’s important to have adequate cover in the event of the unexpected, like fire, flood, storm or vandalism.
Adrian has over 13 years’ experience in the financial services industry. He helps review general insurance content on Compare the Market to ensure it accurately breaks down complex insurance topics.
