Budget Direct home and contents insurance

As a general rule, home (or otherwise known as building) insurance covers any part of your house that is permanently fixed and not intended to move, such as your walls and roof, or kitchen benchtops. Contents insurance covers all the items within your house that are not permanent fixtures (things you could move between houses), such as furniture, electronics and appliances.

Budget Direct offers combined home and contents insurance, but you can also take out individual home-only insurance, or contents-only insurance.
We’ve gathered a list of what is and isn’t covered under Budget Direct home and contents insurance.

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Source: Budget Direct website and product disclosure statement.

For property investors, if what’s included in the optional landlord cover does not suit your circumstances, Budget Direct also offers landlord insurance, which is separate from their home and contents insurance policy.

According to Budget Direct, its home and contents insurance does not cover the following:

• Caravan, car trailer, mobile home, tent, railway or tram carriage, aircraft, watercraft or shipping container type homes, or its accessories and equipment.
• Hotel, motel, boarding house, hostel or dormitory.
• Aircrafts that are not drones.
• Motorised vehicles, go-karts, golf carts, golf buggies, mini-bikes, trail or quad bikes, or water craft, including any of its accessories and equipment.
• Non-motorised watercraft longer than 3.5 metres in length.
• Shipping containers.
• Animals, birds, fish or reptiles.
• Artificial grass or turf.
• Damages from action of sea (such as high tide or tidal wave).
• Damages from contamination or pollution.
• Asbestos.
• Defects, structural faults or design faults.
• Garden beds, hedges, lawns, plants, shrubs and trees (but contents insurance covers for potted plants).
• Grass, rocks, soil or gravel.
• Loose surfaces of any driveway, garden bed, pathway or tennis court.
• Retaining walls.
• Structures established or used for business or farming purposes, including sheds, tanks, agricultural fencing, and stables or shelters.
• Gold or silver nuggets and ingots, or uncut and unset gems
• Stock used in any business, trade or profession, including a home office.
• Tickets (travel or event) or coupons
• Tools of trade and musical instruments when in use.
• Unlicensed or unregistered firearms.
• Loss or damages from hacking or cyberattacks.
• Loss of data (including access denial, recovery, reinstallation or replacement of data).

Keep in mind that cover for floods and accidental damages are not automatically included in Budget Direct home and contents insurance, and are instead optional cover you must select to include.

For more information regarding what is and is not covered under a Budget Direct home and contents insurance, view the product disclosure statement for detail.

Budget Direct has a discount for combined home and contents insurance, as well as an online discount that can be applied to the combined insurance discount or used for home only or contents only insurance. The discount is only for the first year and does not apply to renewal offers.

For more information on available discounts and its terms and conditions, see the Budget Direct product page.

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If you have a recent and accurate estimate for the value of your home and contents, then it’s often a good idea to insure up to that particular sum to get your exact money’s worth.

If you don’t have an accurate idea of this value, then you could look for a complete replacement home insurance policy to give yourself peace of mind. But bear in mind that while you’re less likely to be underinsured, the premiums for a total replacement may be more expensive than for a sum-insured one.

Learn more: How much should I insure my home for?

Many factors can influence the cost of your home and contents premiums, but it typically comes down to the perceived risk of damage or destruction to your home and belongings (contents). It’s likely that the higher the risk is perceived by your insurer, the higher your premiums will be.

When calculating your home and contents insurance premiums, Budget Direct accounts for the following:

• All relevant government charges, taxes and levies
• Any optional covers you choose (such as flood cover)
• Any previous claims
• People who live in your home
• The amount of your excess
• The location and characteristics of your home
• The security features you have
• Your nominated sum insured

Learn more: How much is home and contents insurance?

You can lodge a claim with Budget Direct either online or over the phone.

Budget Direct advises to have the following information ready before you begin your claim:

• Details of the incident (including what happened, the time and date, and the place it occurred)
• Any photos you have of the damage or loss
• A police report, if you have one (in cases of theft or malicious damage)

Budget Direct also recommends having the following information on hand:

• Any damage reports (for example, a report from a computer technician)
• Evidence of ownership (such as receipts, invoices or photos)