Whether you spend most of your commute time mazing through Melbourne’s CBD or cruising along the scenic route to Ballarat or Bendigo, you need car insurance that protects you for the unique requirements and road conditions in Victoria. Here’s how to find the right policy.
What types of car insurance are available in Victoria?
In Victoria, as in most other states and territories in Australia, there are four main types of car insurance. Let’s look at each:
Transport Accident Charge (TAC)
You might know this most basic type of insurance by several different names, like compulsory third party (CTP) insurance or ‘green slip’. But it’s called TAC in Victoria, where it’s mandatory. If you’re at fault, it covers medical expenses for anyone injured in an accident, including pedestrians, passengers and even yourself. It also protects you from civil liability for injury or death to others.
In Victoria, TAC is automatically included in your vehicle registration costs, so there’s no need to jump through extra hoops to organise it before registering your car, like you might in some other states.
Third-party property and third-party fire and theft
The other two types of third party car insurance are third party property insurance (TPP) and third party fire and theft (TPFT) insurance. These are both optional and are mainly designed to cover you for damage done to someone else's car - although TPFT will cover your car against fire and theft specifically.
However, neither will cover to repair or replace your car if you are responsible for an accident. These are usually cheaper than comprehensive policies.
Comprehensive
Comprehensive car insurance policies, on the other hand, offer the highest levels of cover. You get all the benefits of third party property cover, but your wheels are also covered for a range of circumstances, whether you’re at fault or not.
These are the policies featured on Mozo in the table above. While they are pretty comprehensive, there will be variations between each one, so be sure to check the policy's PDS to know exactly when your cover will kick in and when it won't.
How much does car insurance cost in Victoria?
According to the 2024 Mozo Car Insurance Report, Victoria drivers are subject to the highest average car insurance premiums, sitting at $2,139 per year - the only state to surpass the $2,000 mark on average.
Of course this comes off the heels of record-breaking inflation within the insurance industry throughout 2023 and 2024.
But what exactly is the insurance company weighing up when putting together your quote? Well, some of the things that are usually taken into account include:
Your age and gender. Younger male drivers are generally considered to be more of a risk to insure than older women.
The age and colour of your vehicle. Newer, more expensive cars cost more to cover.
Where you live. This includes your address in Victoria and whether your car is garaged.
Projected mileage. Some insurance providers offer cheaper premiums for Victorians who don’t use their cars so often.
With every insurance provider working through the premium equation a little differently, it's important not to just go with the first quote you get. Instead, shop around and identify a few policies you think would suit you and get quotes from all of them.
How to find the cheapest car insurance in Victoria
With such comparatively high costs in Victoria, it is no wonder you’re looking for ways to save on your car insurance. If you are a Victorian looking to trim down your premiums, some of the below tips might help you do just that:
Determine the type of coverage you need. What level of coverage you need is totally personal and up to you, except for the Transport Accident Charge. What level of coverage you choose will dictate the price, with the least level of coverage generally resulting in a lower premium. However, don’t just consider the price; quality of coverage is very important when looking at insurance.
Compare rates from multiple insurance companies. Shop around for the best rate you can find on the type of policy you choose. Mozo can help you compare Victorian car insurance policies to identify a few policies that meet your needs.
Check for any relevant discounts. There are various discounts you can get in Victoria for car insurance including loyalty, no claims, multi-car and multi-policy discounts.
Consider increasing your excess to lower premiums. The more you agree to pay when you need to make a claim, which is called excess, the lower your premiums are. This can help save money in your budget, but can be tough to fork out if something goes wrong and you need to make a claim.
Maintain a clean driving record for lower rates. Insurance companies don’t want to cover risky drivers since they will be the most likely to claim, so keep safe on the roads to help lower your premiums.
What features should Victoria drivers look out for in a car insurance policy?
Aside from the most common features, which are outlined in the table above, there are a few other optional add-ons that can give you even more protection. Keep an eye out for some of these optional extras:
Excess-free windscreen cover. No one wants to pay a huge excess to replace a windshield on account of an errant pebble. Excess-free windscreen cover means if your windscreen or windows get damaged, you can have them repaired or replaced without paying your normal excess.
Choice of repairer. It is your car and you might want the luxury of sending it to a mechanic or panel beater of your choosing, if you are involved in a bingle.
Rental cover. Rental cover is often included in comprehensive policies, but only if you’re not at fault. If you want a rental car to help you get around after an accident you cause, you can pay a bit more to add this cover to your premium.
Personal property. Our cars can often become a mini storage unit for our clothes, laptops or sunglasses. If that’s the case for you, keep an eye out for a generous personal property cover cap on your next comprehensive car insurance policy.
Roadside assistance. So you’ve broken down and you need help, ASAP. Roadside assistance is for times just like this and while most insurance companies won’t offer this as standard, some will meet your most immediate mechanical needs for an additional premium
Victoria is home to some extreme weather conditions, resulting in unfortunate natural disasters. Consider a policy that includes cover for:
Bushfires
Floods
Cyclones
If you live in a metropolitan area in Victoria, like Melbourne, you might also want to consider the following cover to protect yourself:
Theft
Personal assets
Windscreen Coverage
What's the best car insurance in Victoria?
When looking for a new policy, most people want to find the best car insurance in Australia to cover their rides. So, a great place to start is by checking out the winners in the Exceptional Value and Exceptional Quality categories in the latest Mozo Experts Choice Car Insurance Awards for 2024.
The Mozo experts analysed over 10,000 car insurance quotes to find the best value policies for a wide range of customers. Check out the methodology report for more information.
However, not all policies are one-size-fits-all, so it’s important to bear this in mind when comparing car insurance policies in Victoria.
