
Australian bushfire donation scams: What you need to know before donating
Here's how to make sure your money goes to people who really need it during the Australian bushfire crisis.
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If your home has been damaged, your home and contents insurance policy may offer bushfire cover as long as you've taken out the insurance 48-72 hours prior. The level of coverage you'll receive may vary depending on factors including where you live and the value of your home.
If you need to make a home insurance claim because of the bushfires, you can use this guide to check if you have the right cover, learn how to make a claim and find a list of helpful resources.
You can get bushfire cover with home and contents insurance, though some insurers have different definitions of what they'll cover. Most should include bushfires under fire cover e.g loss or damage to your home and contents caused by fire, including bushfires and grass fires. Be sure to read the product disclosure statement (PDS) to make sure that bushfire is specifically covered. It's worth noting you will probably need car insurance if you also want to protect your vehicle.
The amount of cover you need depends on a number of factors, including the value of your home and how much it will cost to completely rebuild. With this kind of thing, you always want to make sure that you're covered in the event that your home is completely destroyed. There's no use undervaluing to get a cheaper premium because it will just cause you grief if the worst should happen.
Get someone to come in physically to your home and value for it's rebuild value. This is different to what you might value your place if you were to put it up for sale. It's how much it would cost you to rebuild your physical home, including labour costs, and excluding land value.
If your home is completely destroyed by bushfire, there's a good chance you will need to rebuild it to a higher standard in order to meet regulations around bushfire risks. This is because after the Black Saturday bushfires wreaked havoc on Victoria in 2010, the government made changes to the national building code in an effort to make homes safer. All new homes built in an at-risk bushfire zone must now follow specific design requirements based on the area's Bushfire Attack Level (BAL) rating.
As a result, you are probably best opting for total replacement cover. This ensures your home is rebuilt completely if it's destroyed so you don't run the risk of being underinsured. Alternatively, you could add a buffer to your 'sum insured' policy if you think you can accurately estimate how much it would cost to replace your home with the new guidelines.
Most home insurance policies will cover you for bushfires as long as you've taken out cover 48-72 hours prior. However, as soon as a bushfire becomes a known event, you might not be covered. Because there isn't a specific bushfire warning distance or level where you are no longer covered, your best bet is to take a policy out as early as possible. That way, you avoid this grey area.
Most insurers will place an embargo on anyone who takes out a policy in an area that is affected by bushfires. Alternatively, they will have a no-claim period on claims related to bushfires.
Luckily you don't have to worry about being disqualified from cover based on where you live. Insurers won't usually deny you cover for living in a bushfire-prone area, though they will take this into consideration when calculating your insurance premium.
Bushfire insurance will let you cover your home and all of your contents depending on whether you choose building insurance, contents insurance or both.
Here's how each of these will protect you:
This protects the physical building plus anything permanently attached to it like cupboards and carpets. If a bushfire damages or destroys any of these, it will usually pay for the following:
This covers the personal belongings you keep in your home, like your furniture and electronics. If a bushfire damages or destroys any of these, it will usually pay for the following:
The cost of bushfire insurance can differ from person to person, home to home and neighbourhood to neighbourhood. Insurers will collect your personal details before calculating your premium and use the following information to come up with the final cost:
It’s stressful enough worrying about a bushfire that could potentially sweep through your neighbourhood. Luckily you don’t have to worry about being disqualified from cover based on where you live.
Insurers won’t usually deny you cover for living in a bushfire-prone area, but they will take this into consideration when calculating your insurance premium. Homes in bushfire-prone areas pose a bigger fire risk to insurers than homes that are not and this will have an upward effect on your overall cost. However, it’s possible that your house is less risky in other ways. For example, if you live in a rural area, your home might be less prone than urban homes to theft and vandalism.
Imagine how devastating it would be to think you were fully covered, only to find out your claim only covers part of your rebuilding costs. This is called underinsurance, and one way to avoid it is to factor in the national building code regulations mentioned above. Other ways include:
It doesn’t pay to be underinsured, so make sure you are covered for at least the full value of your home and have enough contents insurance to replace your essential belongings.
There are a few other situations where you won’t be covered. These are called exclusions and it’s important that you become familiar with them. Here are some of the most common:
The Insurance Council of Australia recommends you do the following in the event of a claim:
A rejected claim can sting to say the least, but luckily there is a rather generous appeals process. Here’s what you need to do to keep your claim alive:
Every state and territory has its own bushfire information services:
Here's how to make sure your money goes to people who really need it during the Australian bushfire crisis.
Read more…Bushfire victims are being warned of another potential danger, as scammers often strike in the wake of a natural disaster.
Read more…See how insurance providers are offering help to their customers.
Read more…Learn where to seek help during this difficult time.
Read more…Local tradespeople to get the jobs when rebuilding in bushfire devastated communities.
Read more…Find out what you can claim if your trip has been cancelled or rescheduled because of the Australian bushfires.
Read more…Where to find assistance when the bushfire crisis has left you short of funds.
Read more…You may be able to defer your credit card repayments or get an emergency credit limit increase through your bank if you have been affected by the bushfires.
Read more…This summer's bushfire season has damaged thousands of properties. If you have home and contents insurance, here are a few steps to take.
Read more…Helpful tips for documenting bushfire damage and making an insurance claim.
Read more…Picture: GettyImages
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