Are you underinsured?
What is underinsured?
In simplest terms, underinsurance means that the cover you’ve purchased doesn’t adequately cover the costs to repair, rebuild or replace the car, home and/or contents if it was lost in an insured event. This could mean you would have to pay additional costs should you suffer loss or damages.
That’s why it is so important to take the time and make sure you have adequate insurance, and knowing what’s covered means you know where you stand in the event of a loss.
Factors that could contribute to underinsurance:
- A gradual increase in the number of possessions you own
You are like to gradually acquire new items such as electronic devices, jewellery, clothing, furniture, and appliances. - Upgrading your assets without updating your policy
Over time you could have replaced or upgraded belongings that are newer, better quality and more expensive. This may also include renovations to your house or upgrading your car media system. - Set-and-forget
When you keep the same insurance policy over a period of time you may neglect to reassess your needs at renewal.
Is your policy up for renewal?
Now may be a good time to:
- Make an inventory of all your belongings – Create a checklist of all your household items including both old and new. This will allow you to work out an estimate on how much it would cost to replace existing contents.
- Estimate how much cover you may need – Use our Home Contents and Home Building insurance calculators to help you estimate the replacements cost needed. Your insurance policy should adequately cover the cost of rebuilding your home, as well as the value of the items inside your home.
- Review your policy – Inform your insurer if you’ve made additions to the home or new purchases which may change the overall value of your home and contents.
- Adjusting your premium – Keeping your premiums low shouldn’t always be your priority. Properly estimate how much it may cost to replace your home and your contents to make sure you’re not underinsured.
When purchasing or renewing your insurance it’s important to think about all the things that you have and make an informed choice to ensure that you have the right cover for your individual circumstance.
If you think that you might be underinsured or you’re thinking about renewing your policy head to our insurance page or call 138 001.
MyState Bank Limited (MyState Bank) ABN 89 067 729 195 AFSL 240896 acts under its own AFSL and under an agreement with the Insurance product issuer, Insurance Australia Limited ABN 11 000 016 722 (IAL) trading as CGU Insurance. Any advice is general only and does not take into account your personal circumstances. Consider the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) available in branch and from https://mystate.com.au/legal/ to see if the product is right for you.
