ShareCover Insurance

ShareCover offers flexible insurance options for short-stay hosts and rideshare drivers. Backed by Insurance Australia Group (IAG), ShareCover let's you take out cover for as long you need, whether it's a day or month. There are no cancellation fees and you can manage your policies online.

This policy could be suitable for hosts on Airbnb, Stayz, Uber, Ola and Didi.

Who is ShareCover?

ShareCover is issued by Insurance Australia Ltd, which is part of the Insurance Australia Group (IAG). The leading general insurance company in Australia and New Zealand, IAG has been protecting people since 1851 and last year paid more than $6.8 million in claims.

What kind of policies are on offer?

ShareCover provide two types of insurance - home insurance and car insurance.

• Short-stay landlord insurance
• Rideshare insurance

Keep in mind that this service is an add-on. It does not replace the need for comprehensive or third party insurance for your vehicle.

Want to know more about insurance for your holiday home?

You can also check out our guides on holiday home insurance and short term rental insurance.

How does ShareCover compare to a normal home and contents policy?

Your standard home and contents policies generally come up lacking when it comes to cover for guests, especially for damage. Most policies contain exclusions such as:

You are not covered under any section of this policy for damage, loss, cost or legal liability that is caused by, arises from or involves tenants, paying guests or boarders, or someone who lives with them or a person who entered the home or unit with their consent ...

ShareCover can fill the gaps left by your home and contents policy and provide you with added protection. Because every home and contents policy is different, it's hard to do a one-to-one comparison of cover. However, many home and contents policies provide limited-to-no cover for many of the benefits offered by ShareCover, which is highlighted in the table below.

What does a ShareCover policy include?

Here's a breakdown of some of the inclusion in each ShareCover policy.

Pay-per-night

Short-stay rental house/apartment

How much does it cost?

There are several factors that impact the cost of your ShareCover home and car insurance premiums.

• The location of your home and car. Homes and cars in certain areas are statistically more likely to experience certain insured events such as theft.
• The type and amount of cover you select. The higher your level of cover, the more expensive your premiums will be.
• The excess you select. Selecting a higher excess will lead to lower premiums.
• Your claims and insurance experience. ShareCover will take your claims history into account when determining your level of risk and therefore how much your premiums will cost.
• Compulsory government charges. These vary depending on where you live and could include stamp duty, GST and a fire services levy.

Who is eligible for a ShareCover policy?

The main eligibility criteria for a ShareCover policy is as follows:

• The type of property you own or rent. It must be a free standing house, townhouse, villa or duplex, semi-detached house or terrace. It's not suitable for body corporate buildings and houseboats.
• How the property is used. The property must be let or sublet to paying guests for temporary residential accommodation through a recognised platform and is only applicable when it's being let or sublet, up to a maximum of 90 days.
• The condition of your property. The home needs to meet acceptable dwelling criteria. For example, it should be secure, watertight, structurally sound and well maintained.

Here's some information on ShareCover Insurance complaints

We looked at home insurance complaint data from the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) between July 2020 and June 2021. The data breaks down different underwriters and compares their business size to the number of complaints processed.

When comparing insurers, keep in mind that insurers with a larger market share serve more customers, so can potentially get more complaints.

Here's an overview of how Sharecover (Insurance Australia Limited) did:

• Despite its large size, Insurance Australia Limited resolved 40.14% of complaints directly with customers.
• Insurance Australia Limited received 974 complaints during this period, the second-highest volume of the insurers we looked at.