5 iconic movie characters who’d get home insurance claims rejected
No place like home, hey? Movie houses can be iconic parts of cinema magic, from the cosy crush of Full House to the spooky nostalgia of Disney’s Haunted Mansion. Childhood memories abound of wacky hijinks and just so. Much. Property damage!
But since we’re adults now, we’ve got to be wondering: there’s no way their home insurance policy covered all those antics, right?
While underinsurance can be a problem, it’s important to know what exclusions may apply to your policy – and these movie characters definitely didn’t read the PDS.
So let’s grab the moving boxes and unpack why these 5 iconic characters would likely get their claims rejected.
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Home Alone (1990): Illegal activities in your house
While Kevin McCallister valiantly defended his home from those buffoons, there’s no way his parents’ home insurance policy covered the damage caused by his booby-traps.
As a rule of thumb, insurance providers won’t reimburse claims where you were found to be at fault, especially if the incident was illegal. This is their way of mitigating risk and ensuring everything is above room & board (yep, two housing puns for ya).
Aside from not abandoning their child home alone on Christmas, the McCallisters would be better off taking preventative measures instead, which not only lower their premiums but reduce the risk of having to file an insurance claim at all.
After all, “This is my house. I have to defend it!”
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The Castle (1997): Damage caused by renovations
A man’s home is his castle, and it’s natural that you’d want to upgrade your premises. However, if you’re thinkin’ about putting in a patio, maybe hold off until you’ve sorted out the insurance situation first.
This classic Aussie comedy is actually brilliant at illustrating the difference between home & contents insurance and construction insurance. While home and contents policies usually only cover your existing home and belongings, construction insurance is specifically geared towards builders and renovators.
Next time Dale digs a hole, just make sure he does it through a licensed and insured construction contractor. That way, if he accidentally damages 3 Highview Crescent in the process, the Kerrigans’ claim has a good chance of succeeding.
Otherwise – “tell him he’s dreamin’!”
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Up (2009) and Dug Days (2021): Pet damage
When Carl Fredricksen first jet-set in his balloon-ified home for South America, he likely didn’t expect to bring home with him a lovable talking dog, Dug.
However, now that he has a furchild, he’ll need to keep in mind that for any future home and contents insurance policies, he probably won’t receive a claim payout if Dug damages his home. Accidental damage isn’t usually covered in home insurance policies at all; it needs to be purchased as an optional extra. However, it is possible for him to find a policy that suits his needs, it’s just a matter of comparing what’s on the market and reading the product disclosure statement.
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Terminator (1984): Nuclear catastrophes
A classic of the 1980s, James Cameron’s Terminator gives us a horrifying vision of 2029 as a robot-dominated, nuclear hellscape. Too bad none of those rubble houses would be covered!
It’s one of those “truth is stranger than fiction” facts, but most home insurance policies (even pet insurance policies) have an exclusion specifically for damage sustained to your home and belongings due to catastrophes such as nuclear explosions, war, rebellion, and riots. We like to think John Connor and the resistance would have other problems at that point, though.
RELATED: Does home and contents insurance cover flood/storm damage?
The Addams Family (1991): Pre-existing damage
While the macabre aesthetic definitely suits Morticia and Gomez Addams, their insurance provider may not vibe with the pre-existing state of their creepy mansion.
Like with pre-existing conditions for travel insurance, pre-existing damage has widely variable coverage under home and contents insurance policies – usually, it won’t be covered at all.
Good thing the Addams love their creaky stairs and leaky roof!
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Ready to save on home insurance? Browse our home insurance guides and compare a selection of policies below.
Compare home & contents insurance policies
Home Cover - Buildings & Contents
- Main events covered
Fire
Theft
Storm
Flood
- Monthly payments
cost extra
- Yes
- Underinsurance protection
- Optional ExtraUp To 30% Of Buildings Sum Insured, Applied Automatically For Eligible Policies
- New for old
replacement
- Yes
- General contents
- Yes
- Cash
- Up to $800
- Cd dvd and electronic files
- Up to $1,000 for electronic files and software
- Computer software hardware
- Yes - hardware. Up to $1,000 for software.
- Camera and accessories
- Yes
- Carpets
- Yes
- Antiques and valuables
- Up to $20,000 per item, set or pair of artworks or antiques. Up to $5,000 per collection.
- Jewellery
- Up to $2,500 per item, set or pair
- Replacement of documents
- Up to $800
- Tools of trade
- Up to $5,000
- Contents while moving
- Yes
- Lock replacement
- Up to $2,500
- Temporary accommodation
- Up to 24 months, up to 20% of buildings sum insured combined with temporary accommodation for pets
- Debris removal
- Yes, combined with building costs
- Demolition cost
- Yes, combined with building costs
- Accidental loss and damage
- Optional Extra
- Accidental breakage of glass
- Yes
- Lightning
- Yes
- Earthquake
- Yes
- Storm surge
- Yes
- Buildings and structural improvements
- Yes
- Building materials
- Up to $2,000
- Landscaping
- No
- Gates and fences
- Yes
Terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits may apply to any of the insurance products shown on the Mozo website. These terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits could affect the level of benefits and cover available under any of the insurance products shown on the Mozo website. Please refer to the relevant Product Disclosure Statement and the Target Market Determination on the provider's website for further information before making any decisions about an insurance product.
Read reviews and learn more about QBE home insurances
Home & Contents Insurance
- Main events covered
- Fire
- Theft
- Storm
- Flood
- Monthly payments
cost extra - No
- Underinsurance protection
- No
- New for old
replacement - Yes
- General contents
- Yes
- Cash
- Up to $300
- Cd dvd and electronic files
- Up to $5,000
- Computer software hardware
- Hardware yes, software up to $5,000 combined with CDs/DVDs
- Camera and accessories
- Up to $2,000
- Carpets
- Yes - limits apply for carpets over 10 years old
- Antiques and valuables
- Up to $2,000 per item, up to $12,000 in total
- Jewellery
- Up to $2,000 per item, up to $6,000 in total
- Replacement of documents
- Up to $1,000
- Tools of trade
- Up to $2,000
- Contents while moving
- Yes
- Lock replacement
- Up to $1,000
- Temporary accommodation
- Up to 12 months, up to 10% of sum insured
- Debris removal
- Up to 20% of sum insured combined with demolition cost
- Demolition cost
- Up to 20% of sum insured combined with debris removal cost
- Accidental loss and damage
- Optional Extra
- Accidental breakage of glass
- Yes
- Lightning
- Yes
- Earthquake
- Yes
- Storm surge
- Yes
- Buildings and structural improvements
- Yes
- Building materials
- No
- Landscaping
- Up to $1,000 for plants
- Gates and fences
- Yes - Up to 50% of the total cost, up to 2km
Terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits may apply to any of the insurance products shown on the Mozo website. These terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits could affect the level of benefits and cover available under any of the insurance products shown on the Mozo website. Please refer to the relevant Product Disclosure Statement and the Target Market Determination on the provider's website for further information before making any decisions about an insurance product.
Read reviews and learn more about honey home insurances
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Home & Contents Insurance
- Main events covered
- Fire
- Theft
- Storm
- FloodOptional Extra
- Monthly payments
cost extra - Yes
- Underinsurance protection
- Optional ExtraUp To 25% Of Building Sum Insured
- New for old
replacement - Yes
- General contents
- Yes
- Cash
- Up to $800 in total
- Cd dvd and electronic files
- Up to $3,000 combined with computer software
- Computer software hardware
- Hardware yes, software up to $3,000 combined with CDs/DVDs
- Camera and accessories
- Yes
- Carpets
- Yes
- Antiques and valuables
- Up to $5,000 per item for artwork, up to $12,000 in total, up to $2,000 for collections
- Jewellery
- Up to $1,000 per item or set, up to $5,000 in total
- Replacement of documents
- No
- Tools of trade
- Up to $2,000
- Contents while moving
- Up to 20% of sum insured
- Lock replacement
- Up to $1,000
- Temporary accommodation
- Up to 10% of sum insured, up to 12 months. Combined with temporary accommodation for pets.
- Debris removal
- Up to 10% of sum insured combined with demolition cost and emergency storage
- Demolition cost
- Up to 10% of sum insured combined with debris removal cost and emergency storage
- Accidental loss and damage
- Optional Extra
- Accidental breakage of glass
- Yes
- Lightning
- Yes
- Earthquake
- Yes
- Storm surge
- No
- Buildings and structural improvements
- Yes
- Building materials
- Up to $1,000
- Landscaping
- Yes, garden borders, pathways and paved areas.
- Gates and fences
- Yes
Terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits may apply to any of the insurance products shown on the Mozo website. These terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits could affect the level of benefits and cover available under any of the insurance products shown on the Mozo website. Please refer to the relevant Product Disclosure Statement and the Target Market Determination on the provider's website for further information before making any decisions about an insurance product.
Read reviews and learn more about Budget Direct home insurances
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Home & Contents Insurance
- Main events covered
- Fire
- Theft
- Storm
- Flood
- Monthly payments
cost extra - Yes
- Underinsurance protection
- No
- New for old
replacement - Yes
- General contents
- Yes
- Cash
- No
- Cd dvd and electronic files
- Yes, excludes electronic files
- Computer software hardware
- Yes
- Camera and accessories
- Yes
- Carpets
- Yes
- Antiques and valuables
- Yes
- Jewellery
- Optional Extra, select specific replacement value for each item of jewellery where the individual value is more than $15,000
- Replacement of documents
- No
- Tools of trade
- Optional Extra, up to $1,000 per item , up to $5,000 in total
- Contents while moving
- Up to 20% of sum insured
- Lock replacement
- Up to $1,000
- Temporary accommodation
- Up to 12 months, up to 12% of sum insured
- Debris removal
- Up to 20% of sum insured combined with demolition and professional fee costs.
- Demolition cost
- Up to 20% of sum insured combined with debris removal and professional fee costs
- Accidental loss and damage
- Optional Extra
- Accidental breakage of glass
- Yes
- Lightning
- Yes
- Earthquake
- Yes
- Storm surge
- No
- Buildings and structural improvements
- Yes
- Building materials
- Up to $1,000
- Landscaping
- No
- Gates and fences
- Yes
Terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits may apply to any of the insurance products shown on the Mozo website. These terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits could affect the level of benefits and cover available under any of the insurance products shown on the Mozo website. Please refer to the relevant Product Disclosure Statement and the Target Market Determination on the provider's website for further information before making any decisions about an insurance product.
Read reviews and learn more about Youi home insurances
* Terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits may apply to any of the insurance products shown on the Mozo website. These terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits could affect the level of benefits and cover available under any of the insurance products shown on the Mozo website. Please refer to the relevant Product Disclosure Statement and the Target Market Determination on the provider's website for further information before making any decisions about an insurance product.
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