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Accidental damage insurance can help save the day if you have one of life's expensive little mishaps. Whether it's spilled wine, a smashed TV or a broken vase, accidental damage insurance can help towards the cost of repair or replacement.
Accidental damage insurance does what it says on the tin. If your property, or items within it, are damaged accidentally, it'll help cover the cost of repair or replacement.
Sometimes it's included as standard in home insurance policies, other times it's offered as an optional extra.
Accidental damage insurance helps cover the cost of repair or replacement, if something in your home is damaged by a sudden, unintended or unexpected event.
A wide range of events falls under that umbrella, but it typically includes:
Laptops are usually covered under your accidental damage policy and depending on the insurer, you might even be covered if the damage happens outside of your home.
Accidental damage to your laptop includes dropping it or spilling liquids on it. Just remember, it won't cover scratches, dings and dents if they don't affect your laptop's performance. You should also check the product disclosure statement (PDS) to see whether or not cracked screens will be covered.
Accidental damage insurance will either come included in your home and contents policy or you will be given the choice to add the cover for an additional cost.
We requested quotes from four different insurance companies to see how price varies between home insurance policies with accidental damage cover as standard, accidental cover as an optional extra and without any accidental damage insurance at all.
The research found that, for the two companies that offer both options, add-on accidental damage is only an extra $11 a month.
The research also shows that it's possible to get add-on cover at a cheaper price than home insurance without accidental damage, which is why it's so important to compare home insurance policies carefully.
It depends on the contents of your home, but accidental damage insurance can definitely be a worthwhile investment for lots of Australians.
For example, if you pay an extra $11 a month for accidental damage insurance, you'd be covered if your TV fell from the wall and smashed, if your dog knocked over an antique vase or you spilled red wine on your new cream sofa.
Remember, you'll have to pay an excess before you can claim on your accidental damage policy, but when you take into account how expensive many items in the home can be, the cover is definitely worth considering.
While accidental damage insurance covers a wide range of possible events, there are some core exceptions that you need to be wary of. Specifics will vary between different insurers but common exclusions are:
Other exclusions will apply so please check your PDS carefully.
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