Western Australia Comprehensive Car Insurance
If you live in Western Australia, or any other state for that matter, you can compare car insurance with CANSTAR. CANSTAR researchers rate WA comprehensive car insurance each year to help consumers take the guesswork out of picking a policy. Five stars are awarded to the car insurance policies that are judged to offer outstanding value to consumers.
The latest report in May 2016 rated 52 policies available in WA from 47 providers. You can view these car insurance ratings based on your age and gender by hitting the compare button below.
What does car insurance cost in Western Australia?
Car Insurance for New Cars in WA
According to CANSTAR research in May 2016, the average comprehensive car insurance premiums in Western Australia for a new car (registered in 2014 or more recently) are:
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|
|---|---|
| Average comprehensive car insurance premiums for WA drivers (new car) | |
| Driver profile | Annual premium |
| Family | $1,646 |
| 45+ years old | $606 |
| 30-44 years old | $677 |
| 25-29 Female | $823 |
| 25-29 Male | $883 |
| Under 25 Female | $1,555 |
| Under 25 Male | $1,741 |
Source: CANSTAR, May 2016. Premiums rounded down to nearest dollar.
Car Insurance for Older Cars in WA
CANSTAR researchers also uncovered the average comprehensive car insurance premiums for WA drivers who own an older car (pre-2008).
 |
|
|---|---|
| Average comprehensive car insurance premiums for WA drivers (older car) | |
| Driver profile | Annual premium |
| Family | $1,538 |
| 45+ years old | $541 |
| 30-44 years old | $625 |
| 25-29 Female | $585 |
| 25-29 Male | $628 |
| Under 25 Female | $1,365 |
| Under 25 Male | $1,538 |
Source: CANSTAR, May 2016. Premiums rounded down to nearest dollar
WA Comprehensive Car Insurance vs Other Levels of Cover
In Western Australia, car registration includes compulsory third party (CTP) insurance – the bare minimum level of coverage. CTP insurance in WA will only cover your liability if you were to injure or kill someone in a car accident.
This is how car insurance coverage typically varies between different levels:
| Type | Damage to your car | Damage to other people’s property (e.g. other cars) | Damage or loss caused by theft of your car | Injuries or death to other people in an accident |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compulsory third party |  |
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| Third party property | |
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| Third party property, fire and theft | |
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| Comprehensive | |
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A comprehensive car insurance policy can give you the most peace of mind, but coverage can vary between different providers. That’s why CANSTAR rates WA policies on value as well as price.
Comprehensive car insurance – features CANSTAR looks for
Car insurance isn’t just about price – the cheapest car insurance policy isn’t necessarily going to give you the level of insurance cover you need. Some of the features that CANSTAR looks for when assessing the value of car insurance in WA includes:
| Policy Benefits & Options | |
|---|---|
| After Accident Care | Towing after accident, vehicle returned after repairs, Taxi fares covered after accident, Emergency accommodation after accident, Accident cleanup benefit/public liability cover, max |
| Repairs | Repair for excess outlay, lifetime guarantee, choose own licenced repairer, genuine parts, help locating spare parts |
| Windscreen Cover | No-excess windscreen claim, extra cost |
| Other Cover | Personal effects covered in accident, Key replacement/recoding benefit if lost/damaged, Trailer/contents cover, Baby capsule/child seat cover, Death benefit. |
| Rental Car | Rental car included – after theft/accident, additional cost, max days/cost daily for rental car |
| Roadside Assistance | Roadside Assist offered, extra cost |
| Standard Company Terms | |
| Exclusions | Accidental damage, vandalism, fire/explosion, theft/attempted, hail, flood, storm, war |
| Company Terms | Agreed/Market value, New-for-new, Same cover for substitute car |
| Application/Claims Process & Support | |
| Application Process | Can apply online, over phone, in branch |
| Claims Process | Can lodge claim online, over phone, in branch, via mobile app |
| Support | 24 hour helpline, phone assistance no of days per week/hours per day for claims/application, weather alerts |
| Policy Terms | |
| Excess Options | Min/Max excess, default excess in each state, nil excess, non-nominated driver excess, windscreen excess, discount for higher excess |
| Premiums | Monthly payment, discount for additional driver age restriction, online discount, low km discount, no claims discount, multi-policy discount, discount for good driving |
| Eligibility | Minimum/Maximum entry age (These are new questions this rating required for information purposes only –whether to score them and the weight to assign, if any, is to be raised next rating) |
| Customer Claims Satisfaction | |
| Customer Claims Satisfaction | A survey is conducted measuring quality of service provided during claims |
You can find out more about car insurance claims satisfaction here.
WA Car Insurance Providers
In alphabetical order, these are the 46 car insurance providers that CANSTAR rates for WA:
| 1300 Insurance | 1Cover Direct Insurance |
| 1st for Women | AAMI |
| AI Insurance | Allianz Australia |
| ANZ | Aon |
| Apia | Aust Seniors Insurance Agency |
| Australia Post | Bendigo Bank |
| Bingle | BOQ |
| Budget Direct | Bupa |
| cashback | CGU |
| Coles Insurance | Commonwealth Bank |
| Dodo Insurance | GE Money |
| Guild Insurance | HBF Financial Services |
| HSBC | Hume Bank |
| ibuyeco | Just Car Insurance |
| K-Mart Tyre & Auto Service | NAB |
| National Seniors | NRMA Insurance |
| OnePath | Over Fifty Insurance |
| Ozicare | People’s Choice Credit Union |
| Progressive Direct | QBE |
| RAC | Real Insurance |
| St.George Bank | Suncorp Bank |
| Virgin Money | Westpac |
| Woolworths | Youi |
2016 WA Award Winner – QBE
In CANSTAR’s 2016 Car Insurance Rating, the State Award winner for WA was QBE. QBE won this award for offering outstanding value across all the different star ratings profiles (e.g family, male 25-29 etc.) within WA.
For more information on how we do our ratings and judge our awards, read our car insurance methodology here (PDF).
What do WA drivers want in a car insurance policy?
The thousands of searches on CANSTAR’s car insurance comparison table each year give us a picture of what consumers want in a policy. After isolating the data to searches made within WA, our data revealed that Western Australian drivers desire policies which allow the car to be insured at either agreed or market value. With regards to after accident care, WA drivers want the ability to lodge claims online most of all.
WA usage of the features filter on CANSTAR’s car insurance comparison table between 1st January 2016 to the 17th of September 2016:
Features:
- Agreed or market value: 25.16%
- Cover for unnamed drivers: 19.42%
- Pay monthly at no extra cost: 18.94%
- Reduction for driver’s age: 14.03%
- Roadside Assistance: 10.83%
- 24 hour help line: 7.41%
Note: Percentage values represent the distribution of usage of this filter
Features glossary:
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Pay monthly at no extra cost | The premium can be paid in monthly instalments without costing you more than it would if you were paying it annually. |
| Agreed or market value | The policy allows the driver to insure their car at either agreed or market value. |
| Roadside Assistance | On-road mechanical help for policyholders left stranded by their cars. |
| Cover for unnamed drivers | The insurance covers drivers of the vehicle that aren’t named on the policy. |
| Reduction for driver’s age | The policy allows holders to reduce the premium by putting an age restriction on who’s insured to drive the car. |
| 24 hour help line | The insurance provider has someone to speak to over the phone at any time of the day. |
WA usage of the after accident care filter on CANSTAR’s car insurance comparison table between 2nd of January 2016 to the 18th of July 2016:
After Accident Care:
- Can lodge claim online: 40.73%
- Free repair service: 30.96%
- Emergency repairs available: 28.31%
Note: Percentage values represent the distribution of usage of this filter
After accident care glossary:
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Free repair service | Other than the excess payment, there’s no cost for repair when you make a claim. |
| Can lodge claim online | A claim on the policy can be made over the internet through the provider’s website/app. |
| Emergency repairs available | The policy allows immediate repairs to be made to the car (up to a certain cost) to help you get home or to a service station. |
WA Road statistics
Some facts and dangers to be aware of:
How many cars?
- There’s over 2.2 million motor vehicles registered in the WA (as at 31 January 2016)
- This makes up for over 10 percent of the 18.4 million motor vehicles in Australia.
Source: ABS
How many road deaths?
- 183 people died on WA roads during the year ending July 2016.
- This is around 14 percent of the total fatalities in Australia (1,292) that year.
- Relative to its population, WA has the third-highest road fatality rate in the country (after NT and TAS). In the year ending July 2016, the annual deaths per 100,000 population was 7.02.
Source: Commonwealth Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development
Road fatality factors: In 2015, these were some of the biggest causes of road deaths on WA roads:
- Speed-related accidents killed 62 (39%)
- Alcohol-related crashes killed 39 (24%)
- Driver fatigue was a factor in 16 deaths (10%)
Source: WA Road Safety Commission.
Mobile phone usage: A 2015 CANSTAR Blue survey of WA drivers found that:
- 36% have made/received a phone call (without hands free) while driving
- 31% admit to texting while driving
- 11% admit to using social media while driving
Source: CANSTAR Blue
WA Car Theft
Western Australia has the second highest rate of motor vehicle theft in Australia, after Northern Territory. Figures from the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council show that in the 2015/16 financial year, the theft rate per 1,000 registrations in WA was 3.90. The national rate is 2.86.
These were the 10 WA regions with the most motor vehicle thefts:
| 10 Worst Areas for WA Motor Vehicle Theft (2015/16 FY) | |
|---|---|
| LGA | No. of motor vehicle thefts |
| Stirling | 728 |
| Wanneroo | 622 |
| Swan | 471 |
| Gosnells | 470 |
| Rockingham | 442 |
| Belmont | 399 |
| Cockburn | 375 |
| Armadale | 338 |
| Joondalup | 329 |
| Canning | 316 |
Source: NMVTRC
WA Weather threats
Cyclones, wild storms, hail and bushfires are all major threats to cars in Western Australia.
Cyclones: According to BOM, the northwest coastline between Broome and Exmouth actually gets more cyclones than any other region in Australia. These cyclones tend to hit the coast over the December-April months.
Storms: While Perth rarely experiences a cyclone, recent history has shown that wild storms can cause serious damage to the city. In March 2010, a severe hailstorm hit Perth and caused $1.08 billion of damage. Vehicle damage amounted to 32 percent of all insurance claims during that storm.
Bushfires: In recent years, devastating bushfires have hit areas such as Parkerville, Margaret River, Kelmscott and Roleystone.
You can keep up to date with the latest bushfire and severe weather alerts through the WA Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES).
Compare Car Insurance Policies in WA
