2026 Insurer of the Year Award

Released: 29 January, 2026

Congratulations to the Award winner

Budget Direct
2026 Insurer of the Year Award

Budget Direct has been named Canstar’s 2026 Insurer of the Year. This is the fifth year in a row the provider has secured the top ranking. Since the award’s inception, Budget Direct is the only insurer to have claimed the title. 

The Insurer of the Year Award recognises the provider that achieves the highest cumulative performance across the Car Insurance and Home & Contents Insurance Star Ratings, with an additional Satisfaction component that has been expanded in 2026 to include the insurance claims process experience. 

Budget Direct performed consistently well in both Car and Home & Contents Insurance. It continues to provide outstanding value to consumers with competitive pricing and a high level of cover. Budget Direct achieved market-leading performance for Car Insurance in multiple states and a strong performance in Home & Contents Package profiles, where it regularly offers discounts for customers with multiple policies.

How we determine the winner 

Strong performance Across Car, Home, and Contents policies

To win the Insurer of the Year award, an insurer must offer Car, Home and Contents insurance to all Australians in all states. Insurers must also perform strongly from a policy features and pricing perspective across Car, Home, and Contents insurance, reflecting the way households typically require multiple types of cover to protect their assets.

Value for money

Rather than focusing on the cheapest premium alone, Canstar’s expert Research Team takes a balanced approach, assessing the overall value of each policy. We know that a ‘cheap’ policy may provide limited protection when you need it most, while a ‘premium’ policy may offer features that are irrelevant to everyday households.

• We assess each insurer based on their performance within our established Outstanding Value Awards. This involves a granular look at hundreds of different consumer profiles (e.g., different ages, locations, and vehicle types) to see which provider offers the best combination of price and features across the board.
• We weigh the cost of the policy against the features provided (such as excess options, accidental damage cover, and hire car availability). The Insurer of the Year must demonstrate they aren’t just winning on price–they’re also providing a product that offers robust cover for your assets.
• A provider cannot win this award by being the cheapest in one suburb or for one age group. They must demonstrate competitive pricing and robust coverage across a wide cross-section of the Australian population.

While the Insurer of the Year award recognises a provider’s excellence across a vast range of consumer profiles and product types, it is important to remember that insurance pricing is highly individualised. Insurers calculate premiums based on your specific circumstances, including your exact location, claims history, and the specific assets you are covering.

Consequently, while a provider may offer outstanding value for the majority of Australians, they may not always be the right fit for every individual. We encourage consumers to use this award as a starting point for their research, while always considering their own unique needs and obtaining personalised quotes.

The voice of the consumer (Customer Satisfaction)

We know the experience of customers is an important factor for many people when choosing an insurance provider. That’s why we integrated the feedback of 7,509 Australians in this year’s award to ensure the customer voice is reflected in our results. To ensure statistical rigour, we use a standardised 10-point scale to measure various aspects of the customer relationship. This structured approach allows our researchers to convert subjective sentiment, such as satisfaction with customer service or value for money, into data points we can stand behind that can be accurately compared across the market.

• Beyond the policy: We measure the customer experience: customer service, ease of communication, and value for money as perceived by the policyholder.
• The claims experience: For those surveyed who had recently made a claim, we asked them to rate their experience with the process, regardless of the final claim result. We ask about the entire claims journey, as we know satisfaction is built across multiple points of contact. We ask consumers to rate their experience from the initial lodgement and ease of communication through to the final resolution and, if their claim is successful, speed of processing. This allows us to capture consumer perceptions of how an insurer manages the journey during what is often a stressful period.

Who is eligible to win this Award

To ensure the award remains a reliable guide for long-term protection, we enforce strict eligibility criteria:

• Market longevity: Providers must have been in the Australian market for at least 12 months. This requirement ensures that we are assessing providers with an established track record of service and data consistency.
• Underwriting: We only consider insurers that underwrite their own products or are wholly owned subsidiaries of a general insurer. This ensures the buck stops with the brand being awarded.

What the Award is – and isn’t

To maintain transparency with our audience, it is important to dive into the detail of how our awards work and are designed to be used:

• Cumulative performance: The Insurer of the Year is determined by a provider’s total weighted performance across Car, Home, and Contents insurance. While the winner represents the strongest combination of value and satisfaction across the entire market, this does not guarantee that they excel in every individual feature or category we consider.
• Not a personal recommendation: This award is a top-down view of a provider’s performance. Because insurance premiums are highly individualised (based on your specific address, driving history, and claims record), the Insurer of the Year may not always be the cheapest or best option for every individual person.
• Focus on consistency: Our methodology rewards providers that perform well across a broad range of consumer personas. While a niche insurer might be more relevant for a high-performance vehicle or a heritage-listed home, this award recognises the best (according to our methodology) ‘all-rounder’ from the underlying assessments that Canstar undertakes over the preceding 12 months.
• Objective and research-led: To maintain the integrity of our awards, Canstar ensures a strict separation between our research process and our commercial activities.
  • Data-driven outcomes: The award winner is determined solely by the results of our ratings methodology and consumer survey data. An insurer’s commercial relationship with Canstar—or lack thereof—has no impact on their results or eligibility.
  • Earned, not bought: It is not possible for a provider to pay to influence the outcome of the Insurer of the Year award or any of Canstar’s awards. Our rankings are the result of rigorous analysis by our qualified research team, ensuring the award remains a reflection of market value and customer satisfaction.
  • Transparent methodology: We encourage consumers to read our full methodology to understand exactly what is and isn’t included in our assessment, as well as the specific weighting given to various factors. This ensures you fully understand how the award is calculated before using it as a basis for any financial decision.
  • The Individual factor: While this award identifies top-performing providers across a vast range of profiles, insurance pricing is highly individualised. We recommend using this award as a starting point for your research while always obtaining a personalised quote.

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About Canstar

Canstar also has insights and information about financial products and services generally. You can find out about topics such as: interest rates, buy now pay later (BNPL), business products and tax. You may also be interested in discovering more about calculators and resources, such as our rate checker and free credit score tool, to help you with your financial decision-making.

About: Josh Sale, Group Manager, Research & Ratings

Bachelor of Commerce, Economics/Finance dual major, Griffith University. Master of Data Science, Strategy and Leadership, RMIT (ongoing studies)

Joshua Sale is responsible for developing the methodology and delivering Canstar’s flagship Star Ratings, as part of Canstar’s Research team. With tertiary qualifications in economics and finance, he enjoys helping Australians find more suitable financial products by transforming complex calculations into a consumer-friendly Star Rating that explains the values and benefits of different financial products.

As one of Canstar’s company spokespeople, Joshua has participated in print, radio and broadcast interviews with the likes of the Australian Financial Review, news.com.au and Money magazine, along with other leading media outlets, discussing topics such as home loan equity, banking incentive schemes, digital wallets and wider finance trends.

Joshua is known for his ability to simplify complex products and technical information, crunching the data into meaningful insights for consumers about finance. He has analysed several consumer markets across banking, insurance and wealth, and is keenly interested in various topics, ranging from how Australians interact with their superannuation funds, to the dynamic nature of the health insurance market, and collecting and redeeming credit card reward points.

Joshua believes that knowledge is the first step towards empowerment. Even while studying, he facilitated peer-assisted study sessions for economics, and represented his University’s Business School in an academic committee.

You can follow Josh on LinkedIn, and Canstar on X and Facebook.