Northern and regional Queensland Household & Residential Strata Insurance provider, Sure Insurance, today urged Townsville and far north Queensland
householders to review the levels of their home building and contents insurance to confirm they are adequately covered.
The insurance provider’s home and contents insurance alert is delivered as the Bureau of Meteorology forecast the possibility of three cyclone events this season with one cyclone likely to cross the coast.
Bradley Heath, Managing Director of Sure Insurance said: “We are appealing to Townsville and far north Queensland householders to check their current home
building and contents sum-insured as it’s critically important to avoid underinsurance and have in place sufficient financial capacity to completely rebuild their home and replace the entire contents should a total loss occur.”
“Sure Insurance research revealed the average home building sum-insured in noncyclone risk areas of regional Queensland is just on $532,000 and home contents just over $80,000.”
“However, the average building sum-insured across Cairns, Townsville and Mackay is $513,000 and home contents $72,000 – with notable differences in the insured building and contents amounts across the three north and far north Queensland centres,” said Mr Heath
Home Building average sum insured: (Nov 2024)
Regional centre Cairns Townsville Mackay
Avg sum insured $518,547 $505,547 $514,730
Home Contents average sum insured: (Nov 2024)
Regional centre Cairns Townsville Mackay
Avg sum insured $70,633 $73,163 $75,382
“Several important factors are considered when calculating a building sum-insured including the total current cost to completely rebuild the home plus GST, the cost of debris removal, planning, engineering, and local government fees.”
“Householders may be surprised to learn how much regional building and construction costs have risen over the past several years, especially the cost of a complete home rebuild, and just what the total value is of the entire contents of their home.”
“It’s also important to be aware that should a customer’s home become unliveable after an insured event and temporary accommodation is required – Sure Insurance provides an accommodation benefit for 18-months up to a maximum of 10 percent of the total building sum insured.”
“We do work closely with customers taking into account individual circumstances and choices for temporary accommodation,” said Mr Heath.
Checking an adequate building sum-insured only takes a few minutes with the user-friendly Sure Insurance partner sum insured calculator:
https://buildingcalculator.sure-insurance.com.au/
A guide to checking home contents sum-insured is also available at the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) website:
https://insurancecouncil.com.au/consumers/calculators/
“We want to see Sure Insurance customers well educated about their household insurance to ensure they are able to make informed decisions about their cover, and are fully prepared for possible severe weather and cyclone events – we think that’s only fair.”
“Since launching in 2019, we have remained dedicated to bringing fairness to regional and northern Queensland household and residential strata insurance by providing the best possible premium prices,” said Mr Heath.
For further information contact Mike Sopinski, Sure Insurance Communications & Engagement Lead on 0421 052 598.