Saving money on your insurance premium? Pros and cons of combined insurance

Two is better than one, eh? With insurance premiums climbing, many Australian policyholders have tried to find cheaper insurance, whether it’s raising their excess, decreasing their coverage, or combining their policies. 

Home & contents insurance is a classic combination offered by providers, and often comes with a combined policy discount. But could you potentially save by getting your home, car, and even travel insurance policies from one provider? 

Let’s investigate this insurance cost-saving tactic.

Combining insurance policies can have some pretty great advantages. The main pros are:

• Discounts. Insurance providers may offer multi-policy discounts. The most common discounts are for combined home and car insurance, but travel insurance has started to become a popular third.
• Everything under one roof. It can simplify your time and energy to have all your insurance just through one provider. Not only are all your accounts managed in the same place, but all your bills are, too. 
• Rewards. Some insurance providers offer rewards programs for customers with more than one type of insurance policy from them. These programs can come with discounts or gift cards for popular shopping, accommodation, and entertainment brands. Rewards will have terms and conditions, of course, so always read the product disclosure statement (PDS) before signing up. 

If you’ve found an insurance provider whose individual policies all work for you, rolling them all together could be a neat way to tighten your budget.

There are some drawbacks to consider if you get more than one insurance policy from the same provider. The main cons include: 

• Potentially expensive in the long run.  lot of discounts on combined insurance may be introductory or ‘honeymoon’ discounts. This means they expire after your first year of coverage. Your premium may then rise, and the policies may no longer be good value.
• Complacency. If everything is under one roof, it could be easy to get complacent and not check that your insurance is still competitive in terms of value and coverage. As a rule of thumb, it’s a good idea to review your insurance policies every year when they’re up for renewal to ensure you’re getting the best bang for your buck. 
• You miss out on specialist providers. Large providers usually offer multiple kinds of insurance, so you may miss out on some of the savings and coverage available through specialist providers who only put out one type of policy. A good example is Honey Insurance, an insurtech provider focusing on just home & contents insurance. 

Comparing policies and getting insurance quotes is still one of the better ways to find good value coverage, since this gives you an idea of what coverage is available to you. Always read the PDS before buying an insurance policy.

Here are some of the main insurance providers offering different kinds of insurance, including home & contents insurance and car insurance:

• BudgetDirect
• Australia Post
• Youi
• Virgin Money
• Allianz

If you’re looking for the best home insurance or the best car insurance, check out the winners of the latest Mozo’s Experts Choice Awards. 

Compare home and contents insurance policies in the table below.