A pipe lets go in the wall
Escape of liquid · listed events
Sudden water damage from a burst pipe or appliance. Slow leaks are treated differently; the PDS says how.
Home, contents & landlord
Your home.
Properly covered.
Tell Gary about the place once. We look the property up from the address, more than one insurer prices it, and a real person places the policy.
Building or contents
What each part actually covers.
Building is the house and what’s fixed to it; contents is what you’d take with you if you moved. Both together, on one policy, is the combination most owner-occupiers on our panel are quoted for.
Owner-occupiers and landlords today. Renters’ contents is on the list; ring us in the meantime.
BuildingContents
Walls, roof, floors and the rest of the structure
BuildingContentsFitted kitchens, built-in wardrobes and fixtures
BuildingContentsFences, sheds and garageslimits often apply
BuildingContentsFurniture, clothes, electronics and appliances
BuildingContentsCarpets and curtainsbuilding in some policies, contents in others
BuildingContentsSomewhere to stay while it’s repairedfor a set period, as each PDS says
BuildingContentsSpills, knocks and breakagesthe accidental damage tier, where offered
BuildingContentsA guide, not a policy. Every insurer’s PDS sets out exactly what it covers, and we link it beside every price.
When it happens
The nights home insurance
is for.
What each part of a policy responds to. Your quote shows which apply at the tier you pick.
Hail through the roof
Storm · listed events
Storm, hail and rain damage, on each insurer’s definitions. Flood is defined separately, and we link every PDS.
Someone forces the back door
Burglary & theft
What was taken and the damage done getting in. Locks and an alarm are part of the price.
The saucepan gets away from you
Fire · listed events
Fire and smoke damage to the house and to what’s in it.
Paint on the new carpet
Accidental damage · a higher tier
Spills, knocks and breakages that listed events don’t reach, where you choose the accidental damage tier.
You rent it out
Landlord policies
The building, and the contents you provide, on a policy written for rentals. What it pays for around tenants differs; the PDS sets it out.
How it works
Three steps. One sitting.
Tell Gary about the place
Start with the address. We look the property up, so you’re not guessing at floor area or the year it went up.
The insurers price it
Each one rates the same answers. Where a policy comes in tiers, you see them side by side, whole.
A person places it
You pick and pay; a broker places the policy and your documents arrive by email.
High-value homes
The big house gets an underwriter.
When the building is insured for $3 million or more, the same form also goes to Prevail, a specialist insurer for high-value homes. Its underwriters look at each home themselves.
- It comes back as a referral, and a broker brings you the underwriter’s price
- Other insurers on the panel quote beside it where their limits reach
- Same form as every other home
Before you start
What the form asks.
Intake sheetabout ten minutes
- The address
- and what’s there, which we look up
- The build
- walls, roof, floors, year built, storeys
- The sums
- what to insure the building and contents for
- The excess
- what you’d pay first on a claim
- Security
- locks, and an alarm if you have one
- The history
- claims in the last few years, plainly
Nothing you don’t have to hand. If we already know it, we don’t ask.
Worth knowing
The bits people wish they’d read.
Who decides the sum insured?
You do. You nominate what the building would cost to rebuild and what the contents would cost to replace. Each insurer’s PDS explains how they apply it at claim time, and it is worth reading before you settle on a number.
Does a higher excess lower the premium?
Usually, and the other way round. The insurers set minimums; if you pick below one, the quote comes back at their floor and says so, rather than being quietly declined.
Am I covered for flood?
Whether flood is covered, and what counts as flood rather than storm or run-off, differs between policies. It is written down in each PDS, and we link to them with every quote.
Why did I get “referred” instead of a price?
Certain addresses and building types are priced by an underwriter rather than the computer. When that happens we come back to you with the underwriter’s figure, not a guess.
Is this advice?
Everything here is general information only. It doesn’t consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. We explain how home insurance works and show what households commonly choose; read the PDS and decide what fits.
Keep reading
Cover
Car insurance
Comprehensive or third party, from the daily drive to the good car.
See the coverClaims
How claims work with Gary
Who to call, what to send, and what your broker does from there.
Read onAbout
The Gary way
How we quote, how we’re paid, and the house rules we work by.
Read onGuides
Gary’s guides
Plain-English reads on what real policy wordings ask of you.
Read onOn the panel
Multiple insurers. One form.
Homes are priced by Blue Zebra, Clover and Castle, with Prevail for homes of $3 million and more. Each quote names its insurer, links its PDS, and shows what the premium includes and how we’re paid, in writing rather than in the fine print.