Find out how Commbank can keep your residential or investment property secure from unforeseen losses
The Commonwealth Bank is an Australian provider of integrated financial services and are one of the most recognised brands in the industry. Commbank offers two forms of home insurance with Building cover and Contents cover. Home insurance protects your most valuable asset against damage from natural disasters and covers the cost of replacing or repairing your home. Contents insurance covers the cost of replacing and repairing household items and possessions. In the event that something should happen to your home, having the right cover is a very important part of reducing the stress and costs related to repairing your home.
Insuring with Commbank brings the piece of mind that can only be found with a well-known and established home insurer. Keep reading to learn more of the benefits of insuring your home with CommBank.
Commbank Home Insurance Cover Options
Commbank’s Residential Home Package covers both Building and Contents insurance. Building cover insures the cost of repairing or replacing your home for the sum insured in the event that it is damaged or destroyed as a result of an insured event. Contents insurance covers the cost of replacing the contents of your home on a new-for-old basis up to the sum-insured. This policy covers your home and contents for a wide variety of Insured Events including flooding, fire, storm, explosion, theft, animal damage and many more dangers:
- Storm
- Theft or attempted theft
- Escape of liquid
- Explosion
- Animal Damage
- Accidental glass breakage
- Legal liability
- Malicious acts including vandalism
- Sudden impact
- Lightning
- Fire
- Burning out of electric motors and power surge
- Riot and public disturbance.
Depending on the combination of building and contents cover you choose, the policy provides a number of additional benefits including alternative accommodation costs, storage fees and even domestic pet cover. Commbank also offers Optional Cover to provide protection for accidental damage and Portable Contents Cover for items you wish to cover outside of the home to ensure all your needs are catered for in a complete and well-rounded package.
The Investment Home package provided by Commbank is available for investment property owners and can provide critical protection for any accidental or malicious damage from tenants. With this package, the property owner can choose Building cover, Contents cover or both. Some of the Insured Events that you will be protected against under this policy include: fire, storm, malicious acts, explosion, accidental glass breakage and much more.
An additional benefit of this package is that it covers the loss of rent for up to 52 weeks providing you with security in the knowledge that your investment is not at risk. The investment home package provides cover for the following events:
- Theft or attempted theft
- Explosion
- Fire
- Storm
- Animal Damage
- Accidental glass breakage
- Malicious acts including vandalism
- Sudden impact
- Lightning
- Escape of liquid
- Loss of rent up to 52 weeks
- Riot and public disturbance
- Optional cover includes expenses to evict the tenant.
Commbank Home Insurance Product Comparison
| Residential Home Package | Investment Home Package | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insured Event | Building | Contents | Building | Contents |
| Accidental Glass Breakage | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Animal damage | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Burning out of electric motors and power surge | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Earthquakes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Explosion | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Fires | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Flood | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Legal Liability | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Lightning | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Malicious Act (Including Vandalism) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Riot and Public Disturbances | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Storm | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sudden Impact | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Theft or Attempted Theft | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Additional Benefits
| Additional Benefits | Residential Home Package | Investment Home Package | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insured Event | Building | Contents | Building | Contents |
| Alternative Accommodation Costs | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Contents in Transit | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Damage by Emergency | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Demolition and Debris Removal Costs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Domestic Pet Cover | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Emergency Work and Temporary Repairs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Loss of Rent | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Mortgage Discharge | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Moving within Australia | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Storage Fees | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Temporary Removal of Contents | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Visitors Property | No | Yes | No | No |
Tailor Your Cover with these Optional Benefits
| Optional Benefits | Residential Home Package | Investment Home Package | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insured Event | Building | Contents | Building | Contents |
| Accidental Damage | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Domestic Workers Compensation Cover | No | Yes | No | No |
| Loss of Renta Extra | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Malicious Damage or Theft By Tenants | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Portable Contents Cover | Yes | Yes | No | No |
So what general exclusions do I need to know about?
You will not receive payment under your Commbank Insurance cover if it is cause by:
- Defects, structural or design faults, faulty workmanship or faulty design
- Damage to your building that at the time of construction was not compliant with local government regulations
- Wear and tear and lack of maintenance including rust, corrosion and deterioration
- Subsidence or landslide
- Erosion that occurs naturally
- Tree lopping at your insured address by you, your family member, a person with your consent or a person who lives at your insured address
- The gradual rising levels of the sea or oceanic waters due to any change in climate
- The vibration, settling, shrinking or expanding of earth or any building foundation, wall, pavement or path
- Any cleaning process using chemicals
- Rats, mice and other vermin and insects including but not limited to cockroaches, termites, flies, moths, lice or bedbugs
- Birds or bats pecking, scratching, biting, soiling or nesting
- An act intended to cause damage by; you, your family member; a person with your consent or a person who lives at your insured address
- Accidental scratching, chipping and/or denting.
How much does Commbank Home Insurance cost?
The cost of your insurance depends on your premium and your basic premium reflects how likely it is that you will be making a claim under your policy. It also takes into account the potential value of that claim. Factors that impact your premium include:
- What you choose to cover – Whether you choose to cover both your building and its contents, the premium will be higher if you choose to cover only one or the other.
- Optional covers you select – You will be required to pay an additional premium for any optional covers you select
- The amount you insure your home for – The higher the amount you value your home the higher the premium will be
- The address and location of your insured address – When your home is in a high-risk area that could be prone to bushfire, flooding, etc it will be more expensive.
- Characteristics of your building – If your building is more likely to withstand anything that may endanger it, your premium will be lower.
- Your claims history – The insurer will take into account the number of claims you have made in the past and the value of each claim.
What excess is charged on Commbank policies?
Excess is a predetermined amount that you will have to pay to the Insurer when they accept your claim. The amount of excess can be chosen by you or imposed by the Insurer. Commbank provides the following excess options:
- $100
- $200
- $300
- $500
- $750
- $1,000
- $2,000
- $5,000
When you select a higher excess option you may be able to reduce your premium. There is no excess payable for Legal Liability claims. You can find the details for the excess amount applied to your policy on your Certificate of Insurance.
Back to topHow can you save on your Commbank Home Insurance Policy?
- Combined Policy discount – When you purchase both Building Insurance and Contents Insurance on the same policy Commbank provides a 10% discount off the basic premium
- Internet discount – When you apply online and purchase the combined building and contents insurance you can receive 15% off your basic premium. In addition if you are looking to only purchase either building or contents insurance you can receive up to a 10% discount if you apply and purchase online.
- Choosing a higher excess bracket – Choosing a higher excess bracket can reduce your premiums
Making a Claim
- In the event of a claim, you should get in touch with Commbank as soon as possible
- This can be done by completing a new claims form online or by calling Commbank’s claims line
- As the owner you need to take any steps that could prevent any further loss or damage to your building
- It is important to disclose all known information when making a claim to ensure your claim is not rejected
- In the event that your claim is due to theft, attempted theft, a malicious act or a sudden impact you must contact the police and keep any copies of the police report to provide to the insurer
Questions you might have
Q. Is my home covered for damage caused by flood?
- A. Yes Commbank’s Building and Contents insurance policy does cover loss and damage caused by flood to both your building and contents.
Q. What’s an insured event?
- A. An Insured Event is an event that is covered by your Home Insurance policy. What cover you choose determines what Insured Event’s you are covered for.
Q. Does my age affect my home insurance premium?
- A. Yes your age does affect your home insurance premium and is one of a number of factors that contribute to how it is calculated.
Q. If I make a building and contents claim will I have to pay two excesses?
- A. No when making a building and content claim you will only have to pay one excess when your building and contents are insured on the same policy.
Q. Is it possible to get an emergency claim payment to cover some immediate expenses?
- A. Yes it is possible to make emergency payments in some situations. The decision for this is made when Commbank accepts your claim and has assessed your situation.
Q. How long will it be before an assessor inspects my home?
- A. Commbank have local assessors on board and can bring in extra assessors from other regions but unfortunately they are unable to give an exact timeframe because it depends on the extent of the damage.
Looking to apply for cover with Commbank?
For six years running, Commbank’s Building and Contents insurance has won the Canstar award for Outstanding Value. So if your looking for a product that is going to give you complete confidence that your taking care of your prized possessions.
I got a Home Insurance Residential Home Package with phone cover for $38.40/monthly. I loss the phone after 3 month and paid about $115.2 in months for 3 month. After I make a claim what I got from insurance: Cost to replace Phone (Samsung S5) – $495.51
Outstanding premium for the rest of the policy period – $387.20
Excess applicable on claim – $100
Final settlement – $495.51 – $387.20 – $100 = $8.31
That’s mean after in 3 month insurance, did paid $115.2 and then I get $8.31 to my bank account without a phone!!! WTF
if I have home and contents ins how much extra to have pet ins on the same policy at present its at $1100 pa
Hi Ron,
Thanks for getting in touch. finder.com.au is a comparison service and doesn’t have an affiliation with Commonwealth Bank Home Insurance. According to the Commbank website, they don’t currently offer a pet insurance product. If you would like to compare policies for the brands in our panel, please head over to our pet insurance page.
All the best,
Richard
Please quote for a brick and tile home (private single residence, no mortgage) in Kensington WA for the sum of $500,000. Security devices on all building in/out entries. No contents insurance required.
Hi Marilyn,
Thanks for your question. finder.com.au is a comparison service and not an insurer. You’ll need to head to the Commonwealth Bank Home Insurance website to get a quote.
I hope this was helpful,
Richard