Landlords Insurance

What is landlords insurance and why is it important?

Landlords insurance can cover both the building and the contents of your investment property in the case that they need repair, rebuilding, or replacement after an insured event. This includes protection from unpredictable weather and the impacts of cyclones, floods, storms, and bushfires. Landlords insurance can also protect you against things like theft or damage by a tenant, lost rent, and legal liability.

What’s the difference between landlords and homeowners insurance?

Landlords insurance provides protection for an investment property you are renting out and not living in, whilst homeowners insurance is for your primary residence.

Homeowners insurance covers the home and contents of the house you permanently live in, the contents in your house, and your legal liability related to the investment property. It does not cover the risks that come with having a tenant living at your investment property, such as tenant damage and rent default, making landlords insurance relevant to cover any investment property that you permanently rent out.

I already have home insurance, do I need landlords insurance too?

Landlords insurance should not be used to cover your primary residence, however, if you have an investment property, Bank Australia Landlords Insurance could be an option. Landlords insurance can protect your investment property from the risks that come with having a tenant living at your investment property. Additionally, if you’ve borrowed money to buy your investment property, your financial institution may require you to take out insurance on it.

Am I covered if my tenant defaults on their rent payments or for other forms of loss of rent?

If you take out a Bank Australia Landlords Insurance policy, when your tenant is in default, we may pay the net rental income for up to $5,000, minus any rental bond entitlement. If your building is damaged to an extent that the tenant can’t live in it, or access to use your building is not possible due to damage to the investment property or strata title development, we may pay for loss of rent on the insured property for the time it is unoccupied. This benefit is automatically included in your policy and subject to terms and conditions in the PDS.

Am I covered if my investment property becomes unoccupied?

Your investment property will continue to be covered under a Bank Australia Insurance Landlords policy against insured events even if it becomes unoccupied. You may be required to pay an additional excess if something happens, but you can rest easy knowing the investment property is covered. We consider your investment property unoccupied if no one has been living in it for more than 60 consecutive days or if someone stays there on average for less than one night a week during the 60 day period.

For more information or if you want to chat about your Bank Australia Insurance cover, contact us on 132 888 or visit our website at insurance.bankaust.com.au

Bank Australia Limited ABN 21 087 651 607, AFSL 238431 arranges this insurance as an agent for Honey Insurance Pty Ltd ABN 52 643 672 628, AFSL 528244. Insurance issued by RACQ Insurance Limited ABN 50 009 704 152, AFSL 233082 and distributed by Honey Insurance Pty Ltd and Bank Australia Limited (on behalf of Honey Insurance Pty Ltd). Terms, Conditions, limits and exclusions apply. This is general advice only and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs and may not be right for you. If you purchase a general insurance product, Bank Australia Limited is paid a commission which is a percentage of your premium. Always read the PDS, any applicable SPDS, FSG and TMD available at insurance.bankaust.com.au/documents before making any decision.