Insurances Annual Renewal Time Again

Islund on 25/09/2015 - 09:00

We all have two certainties in life - death and taxes.

There is an almost certainty and that is insurance - my largest expense after my mortgage.

It is that time of year again when I need to start paying out again for Motor vehicle (with Allianz) and Home & Contents (with Real).

Does anyone have an insurer that they could speak highly of?

Does anyone know a broker who they could recommend who could do the running for in terms of sussing out the best (for me) home/motor vehicle/CTP/health insurances.

Thanks for your help

Financial

Comments

  • ms_caz on 25/09/2015 - 09:56
    +1

    We have a number of (domestic) products with Budget Direct. We found them to be fantastic when dealing with a no-fault homeowners issue, but have had an absolutely terrible experience with them trying to chase up a claim after tenants basically destroyed a rental property. Obviously you are not looking at the landlord insurance package (which is the one we are having trouble with) but it would appear that the quality of service is related to the case manager if you ever have to make a claim.

    Bottom line, once our claims are finalised we are moving all our packages elsewhere (but still looking for where!)

  • Hellfire on 25/09/2015 - 10:26
    +1

    An insurance broker won't find you the cheapest deal. They'll usually be the most expensive option but you'll be well covered.

    I've tried a fair number of insurers as I tend to switch every few years chasing the best value (not the cheapest). Mostly it is uneventful so no feedback on most.

    I've had good car claims experiences with Progressive and NRMA.

    Good home claims experience with QBE. My neighbour had an initially good experience with AAMI but that soured after they denied the claim part way through repairing her house.

  • Almost Banned on 25/09/2015 - 11:46
    +1

    I can't tell you anything about the claims process but I just took out home & contents with Coles Insurance.
    They were the cheapest and you get Fly Buys (I don't collect them but the wife does).
    Seemed ok to me - however the 'renewal' was about $300 more than the price I ended up paying.
    I called them and told them that Real was much cheaper - then got them to go cheaper still.

  • Cheeper on 25/09/2015 - 13:07
    +1

    I was with Allianz but switched to Progressive for motor insurance, never had a claim but reports say they are ok.
    Realised about 40 yrs ago that in most cases contents insurance was a waste of $ unless you have very expensive jewellery, etc..

    • jdf on 25/09/2015 - 14:30
      +1

      Now that you mention it, yeah contents insurance does sound like a waste of money.

    • enforcer on 25/09/2015 - 14:45
      +1

      I worked out that it would be about $25k to replace everything in our place. I have a few guitars and other instruments so that may have weighed quite heavily on the outcome.

    • Cheeper on 25/09/2015 - 15:17
      +1

      Insurance is a personal thing, some need it and for some it can be a waste of money.
      Car insurance, tpp at least, is a must as would be house insurance. Medical insurance would be a necessity if a person had ongoing health problems too. Travel insurance is one you should have if travelling os.
      You can buy insurance for just about anything, but which one is suitable for you?

  • Geekomatic on 26/09/2015 - 14:51

    If you're 50+, get a quote from APIA.

    • Islund on 26/09/2015 - 15:43

      I know someone who is and asked them to run it past Apia and they were expensive for both the car and home insurance

  • OldBugger on 26/09/2015 - 16:35

    Just this week I went through the same process regarding car insurance renewal. I suggest you firstly ring your choice of repairer in your area for advice. Then compare a few insurers against conditions, excesses and of course premiums.

    I was with Allianz with one car and to renew was $150 more expensive than if I cancelled it and ordered a new policy with them online. They say that this is due to the extra benefit of getting free roadside. But I found a code - "switch" - enter that in the online process and roadside will be included. But I still wanted to compare others.

    I rang a well respected repairer in my area of WA. He suggested Allianz, SGIO (NRMA) and RAC as they let you choose repairer and he has had the least issues when dealing with them. The online quotes for a Ford Ranger with $550 basic excess, market value and no claim bonus protection was as follows (these include any online discounts):

    SGIO Allianz RAC
    Premium (yr) $435 $609 $706
    Excess for under 25 yr olds $1250 $1500 $300 to $650
    Extras Loyalty discounts Free roadside "SWITCH" Open driver cover

    I went with SGIO here.

    My other car, a Skoda, had a more dramatic saving from SGIO being $252! Allianz quoted $800+ and RAC $749. As you can guess, I again went with SGIO. The great part of this process was that SGIO offered a loyalty discount the more vehicles you have insured with them. As I just placed the Ranger in moments before, I was therefore an 'existing customer', they gave me an extra $30 off the online quote.

    Just my experience. Your circumstances and needs may be different so check the PDS carefully as they say.

    • Islund on 26/09/2015 - 18:10

      Thanks for that - Allianz had that 'road service' spin here two years back but road service on its own is not that expensive.

    • Islund on 26/09/2015 - 22:06

      Thanks - will definitely try it out

    • Islund on 03/10/2015 - 20:20

      Damn - story of my life. Missed the dates.

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