Insurance Premiums - CRAZY increases

[matto_]

Assume this has been done before, but am appalled by the gall of my current insurance company.

Have a majority of our policies with them, and got latest premium notice in mail. Our premiums have gone up by 100% in two years. Called to ask why this had happened and whether they realised that we had many policies with them. Apparently we get a measly 5% discount for multiple policies (which is already applied) and there is absolutely nothing they can do about the premium.

Have other people seen such exorbitant rises with little to no reasonable explanation?

Are there reasonable insurance companies out there ( or am I just a bit jaded)?

 

[wylie]

There is another thread about this, and yes, it is happening to many of us it seems. I had a 35% increase in our PPOR policy. I've renewed several policies over the last few months and each time I called the company, got immediate reduction over the phone just for asking, then tweaked each policy to increase the excess and make the replacement value more realistic.

I've saved a few thousand just by doing this spread over several policies.

Our PPOR (hom and contents) went from $1200 to $1700 with Suncorp (not exact figures but thereabouts). I called Youi and have the same cover with a few tweaks and paying $970. (We don't need flood cover where we are, and when we did lose our carpet earlier in the year after very heavy rain got into our house, Suncorp didn't pay up, so I'm not paying for flood cover that we will never use.)

 

[Aaron_C]

Yep the major insurance companies are a big rip off. Got quoted about $1,200-1,300 for my latest premium for Allianz, AAMI etc. Youi was $1,000. Hopefully they don't do the same thing as the others do next year when it comes up for renewal.

 

[THEGREAT888]

Have you guys try a new comer insurance company such as COLES INSURANCE or WOOLWORTH INSURANCE? Or even GIO?

You might be surprised with their offers..

Please check it out and share with us the outcome

T

 

[nww]

Have now all with youi, the sales person gives you their direct number and email
address so have developed a business relationship with one person over the
last 12 months who knows how many policies you have and can on the spot
offer discounts for multiple policies

 

[beachgurl]

We've just received our PPR renewal and it's at least 40% higher than last year.

Each time we've had a policy renewal we've gotten on the phone and got a discount (further to the multiple policy discount we already get). Shows that it's probably worth having a look around at other insurers tho.

 

[Rolf Latham]

choice

lots of providers, lots of options


just make sure one compares oranges with oranges and not oranges with carrots

ta
rolf

 

[eKwatee]

Just go my renewal from Allianz (which I have 5 policies with in total) for contents insurance for my PPOR apartment, after this years increase now = $493 per annum. I did an online quote on Woolworths site (apples for apples on excess, content value etc(Allianz force me to have a minimum amount)) = $297 per annum.

 

[1911naomi]

I'm with Anz. Did quote now with Woolworths and comprehensive build and cont ins was same price. Woolworths have a budget option though

 

[MTR]

Have you guys try a new comer insurance company such as COLES INSURANCE or WOOLWORTH INSURANCE? Or even GIO?

You might be surprised with their offers..

Please check it out and share with us the outcome

T

I have found GIO to be competetive and excellent.

One way of reducing insurance premium is by taking out max excess. $5000, not for all and depends on how many IPs you have age of IPs etc. Just another cost effective option.

MTR

 

[trinity168]

Try and check out Whirlpool forums or productreview to check the reviews for the insurance company/cover too.

 

[BMan]

There is another thread about this, and yes, it is happening to many of us it seems. I had a 35% increase in our PPOR policy. I've renewed several policies over the last few months and each time I called the company, got immediate reduction over the phone just for asking, then tweaked each policy to increase the excess and make the replacement value more realistic.

I've saved a few thousand just by doing this spread over several policies.

Our PPOR (hom and contents) went from $1200 to $1700 with Suncorp (not exact figures but thereabouts). I called Youi and have the same cover with a few tweaks and paying $970. (We don't need flood cover where we are, and when we did lose our carpet earlier in the year after very heavy rain got into our house, Suncorp didn't pay up, so I'm not paying for flood cover that we will never use.)

i have just been looking into house insurance

how do you tweak it to remove flood cover? do you have to do it over the phone?
theres no way my house will flood being on a hill and even then the soil is so sandy that it would just absorb into the ground

what excess do you choose to put on there?

whats peoples thoughts on AAMI ? they dont list a value of cover just says they cover the full amount for replacement and rebuild of new for old.

with my car insurance i tweaked it and saved $228 (from what i paid the previous year) not the 50% increased price they offered and mind you thats through the same company....

 

[wylie]

How do you tweak it to remove flood cover? do you have to do it over the phone?
theres no way my house will flood being on a hill...

Sorry if I have confused anybody. What I meant was that we were with Suncorp so had flood cover automatically (but it didn't help us when our downstairs area flooded in one of Brisbane's recent major rain/flood episodes, because that apparently was "overland flow" .

What I meant was that I gave Suncorp the flick and went with a company who don't provide flood cover automatically. We also are on a hill and there is no risk of flood.

what excess do you choose to put on there?

We increased the excess from $500 to $1000. The first day of our new Youi policy my husband closed the electronic sliding gate onto the tiler's new van . We took it with him to a panel beater who said $600 would cover the repair. If he quoted an insurance job I guess it would have been higher but he knew we were paying cash, no insurance. I didn't want to make the call to say our one day old policy was being claimed on, and our new excess was now $1000. Even had we had a $500 excess we would not have gone through insurance.

We've changed all IP policies to $1000 excess because any small repairs less than $1000 we would consider not claiming anyway as it likely pushes up the premium.

 

[DaveM]

I have been finding Terri Scheer to be very competitive for building insurance. I have been getting quotes for insurance for an IP to be settled in a few weeks and they were $690 premium where AAMI, GIO etc were all $1000+.

 

[n17]

Insurance x3

IP in Forest Hill, Lockyer Valley. Buzz (now gone bust) was $425 last year, the best 2013 renewal I could get was QEB was $1145

Two floods in two years what can you do

 

[mystery]

IP in Forest Hill, Lockyer Valley. Buzz (now gone bust) was $425 last year, the best 2013 renewal I could get was QEB was $1145

Two floods in two years what can you do

Be thankful it's an IP and not your PPOR ... at least you can claim some of it back through tax deduction.

Mystery