Year-on-year premium changes – home and contents insurance
The cost of your home insurance policy, aka your premium, depends on a variety of factors beyond the amount of cover you want, such as your claims history and where you live.
Premiums for home & contents insurance – like other forms of insurance – reflect the levels of risk the insurer will take on for insuring that property. In recent years there has been a slight increase in the severity and frequency of natural disasters, as well as smaller weather events like powerful storms. This has caused a higher number of claims being made, leading to a slight increase in the cost of insurance policies in most of the states and regions Canstar considers in our ratings.
The following graphics show the changes in premiums for contents insurance, home insurance, as well as home & contents insurance:
Did you know that you can compare home and contents insurance on our website? See below for a snapshot of the current policies available on our database, with links direct to the providers’ website.
Note that these graphics exclude year-on-year premium changes in North Queensland. Keep reading to see a breakdown of the premiums and how they’ve changed in each state.
North Queensland
Generally, factors that increase the risk of damage to your house will increase the premiums you have to pay. This is why premiums in North Queensland are so much higher than elsewhere in Australia. North Queensland is extremely cyclone prone, and recent natural disasters such as Tropical Cyclone Debbie have caused massive losses to insurers’ profit margins in the region.
| Table 1: North Queensland average annual premiums | ||
|---|---|---|
| Insurance Type | Minimum Average Premium ($) | Maximum Average Premium ($) |
| Home | $1,565.98 | $3,397.93 |
| Contents | $584.44 | $2,309.84 |
| Home & Contents | $1,827.86 | $5,270.13 |
Source: Canstar.com.au. Average annual premiums are based on products included in Canstar’s Home and Contents Insurance Star Ratings and Awards, 2017. Premiums are based on home insurance of $450,000 and contents insurance of $125,000, with a $500 excess.
The table above shows the minimum and maximum premiums on the market in North Queensland. Depending on where you look, you can end up paying less than the rather-high market average of $3,634.
However, the maximum average price for a home & contents insurance policy in the tropical region is a whopping $5,270! You can also see that the lowest average annual premium in North Queensland is $1,828 for home & contents insurance – more than $3,000 less than the costliest policy!
It’s important the policy provides appropriate coverage for your needs, but it’s apparent that you can potentially save a lot by doing a bit of digging.
Compare Home & Contents Insurance for North Queensland
Queensland
Home & contents insurance premiums in the Sunshine State are still higher than the majority of other states. South East Queensland experienced significant home insurance premium increases in the wake of the 2011 floods, and it seems that they have remained at a relatively high level since.
Since 2016, it appears there has been little change in home & contents insurance premiums:
- Annual contents insurance premiums have risen by just $7 on average (1%)
- Home insurance premiums have risen by a mere 3% ($32)
- Home & contents insurance premiums experienced a year-on-year rise of $25 on average (2%)
| Table 2: Queensland average annual premiums | ||
|---|---|---|
| Insurance Type | Minimum Average Premium ($) | Maximum Average Premium ($) |
| Home | $655.07 | $1,627.67 |
| Contents | $229.23 | $1,126.83 |
| Home & Contents | $751.66 | $2,675.00 |
Source: Canstar.com.au. Average annual premiums are based on products included in Canstar’s Home and Contents Insurance Star Ratings and Awards, 2017. Premiums are based on home insurance of $450,000 and contents insurance of $125,000, with a $500 excess.
The above table shows that the minimum and maximum premiums you can expect to pay are on average roughly half of those in North Queensland.
Compare Home & Contents Insurance Policies for Queensland
New South Wales
New South Wales is one of the few states that has seen year-on-year decreases in the premiums residents can expect to pay for home & contents insurance. The graphics above show that:
- Average annual contents insurance premiums have fallen by 16% ($95)
- Home insurance premiums have likewise fallen by 15% ($146) on average
- Home & contents premiums has seen a similar 16% decrease ($229) on average
These are by far the biggest decreases in average premiums.
A major contributor to this rapid fall in premiums would have been the intended removal of the Emergency Services Levy from insurance policies as of 1 July this year. This has however been deferred but leading up to its introduction insurers were progressively removing this from insurance premiums. This respite on home insurance while welcomed was short lived with insurers reinstating or soon to reinstate the collection of the levy.
| Table 3: New South Wales average annual premiums | ||
|---|---|---|
| Insurance Type | Minimum Average Premium ($) | Maximum Average Premium ($) |
| Home | $554.22 | $1,214.08 |
| Contents | $243.05 | $1,298.73 |
| Home & Contents | $741.21 | $2,116.58 |
Source: Canstar.com.au. Average annual premiums are based on products included in Canstar’s Home and Contents Insurance Star Ratings and Award, 2017. Premiums are based on home insurance of $450,000 and contents insurance of $125,000, with a $500 excess.
This should give you an idea of the kind of prices you could be paying for your home & contents insurance policy. For help finding a home & contents insurance policy in NSW, compare your options with Canstar:
Compare Home & Contents Insurance Policies for New South Wales
South Australia
As opposed to New South Wales, which saw a sizeable drop in the cost of its home & contents policies, South Australia has unfortunately seen an increase of nearly the same size. Since 2016 in South Australia, average annual premiums have:
- Increased by 5% ($20) for contents insurance
- Increased by 13% ($79) for home insurance
- Increased by 8% ($75) for home & contents insurance
| Table 4: South Australia average annual premiums | ||
|---|---|---|
| Insurance Type | Minimum Average Premium ($) | Maximum Average Premium ($) |
| Home | $389.38 | $2,197.33 |
| Contents | $240.89 | $962.06 |
| Home & Contents | $632.09 | $2,408.90 |
Source: Canstar.com.au. Average annual premiums are based on products included in Canstar’s Home and Contents Insurance Star Ratings and Awards, 2017. Premiums are based on home insurance of $450,000 and contents insurance of $125,000, with a $500 excess.
By looking at the table above, it is apparent premiums available on the South Australian market can reach levels among the lowest for the seven states and regions considered in this year’s research. For help finding a South Australian Policy that has both low premiums and a good range of features, check out what’s available with Canstar:
Compare Home & Contents Insurance Policies for South Australia
Tasmania
Tasmania historically has had affordable home & contents insurance policies available, due to the abundance of space and lack of overcrowding in the property market. This is the case again in 2017, although the graphics show a somewhat significant increase in premiums over the last 12 months:
- Average annual contents insurance premiums rose by 6% ($20)
- Average annual home insurance premiums rose by 13% ($77)
- Average annual home & contents insurance premiums rose by 8% ($73)
| Table 5: Tasmania average annual premiums | ||
|---|---|---|
| Insurance Type | Minimum Average Premium ($) | Maximum Average Premium ($) |
| Home | $343.81 | $1,020.78 |
| Contents | $213.18 | $965.47 |
| Home & Contents | $501.29 | $1,986.25 |
Source: Canstar.com.au. Average annual premiums are based on products included in Canstar’s Home and Contents Insurance Star Ratings and Awards, 2017. Premiums are based on home insurance of $450,000 and contents insurance of $125,000, with a $500 excess.
You can see how comparatively cheap home & contents insurance policies are in Tasmania; you can pay a minimum average of around $500 based on the assumptions made above. To find a policy that offers a great combination of features at the right price, check out what home insurance policies are available in Tasmania with Canstar:
Compare Home & Contents Insurance Policies for Tasmania
Victoria
Victorian home & contents insurance premiums are less expensive on average than Queensland and New South Wales, likely due to the fact that houses in this region are separated from the knock-on effects of the various natural disasters that have befallen these regions in recent years.
There has been a moderate increase in the average annual cost of insurance policies in Victoria:
- Contents insurance policies rose by an average of $20 (5%)
- Home insurance policies rose by an average of $52 (8%)
- Home & contents insurance policies rose by an average of $55 (6%)
| Table 6: Victoria average annual premiums | ||
|---|---|---|
| Insurance Type | Minimum Average Premium ($) | Maximum Average Premium ($) |
| Home | $482.77 | $1,032.84 |
| Contents | $242.22 | $1,186.89 |
| Home & Contents | $671.71 | $1,907.89 |
Source: Canstar.com.au. Average annual premiums are based on products included in Canstar’s Home and Contents Insurance Star Ratings and Awards, 2017. Premiums are based on home insurance of $450,000 and contents insurance of $125,000, with a $500 excess.
Based on this premiums data, Victorian home insurance policies are neither the least nor the most expensive available.
Compare Home & Contents Insurance Policies for Victoria
Western Australia
The last of the seven states considered in this year’s research is Western Australia. Premiums here are lower than those of North Queensland, South East Queensland and New South Wales, and prices have remained relatively flat year-on-year. According to Canstar’s data:
- The average annual premium for contents insurance increased by 3% ($13)
- The average premium for home insurance rose by 4% ($25)
- The average premium for home & contents insurance rose by just 2% ($22)
| Table 7: Western Australia average annual premiums | ||
|---|---|---|
| Insurance Type | Minimum Average Premium ($) | Maximum Average Premium ($) |
| Home | $439.65 | $1,111.96 |
| Contents | $203.50 | $1,142.00 |
| Home & Contents | $604.42 | $1,900.44 |
Source: Canstar.com.au. Average annual premiums are based on products included in Canstar’s Home and Contents Insurance Star Ratings and Awards, 2017. Premiums are based on home insurance of $450,000 and contents insurance of $125,000, with a $500 excess.
The average premiums show West Australia is slightly more expensive than the likes of South Australia and Tasmania, but the minimum and maximum figures tell a different story. At $203, the insurance policy with the lowest average premiums in Western Australia is also the lowest in all of Australia in 2017, based on Canstar’s research.
However, when searching for a suitable home & contents policy, price isn’t the only factor to consider. At Canstar we consider both price and features when rating products; cover that we recognise as providing outstanding value typically offers a combination of attractive features and competitive premiums. You can compare home & contents insurance policies on the Canstar website.
Compare Home & Contents Insurance Policies for Western Australia
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