Australia’s Best Landlord Insurance for 2025
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Having tenants in your property is different from living in it, which is why your home insurance should be different too. The best landlord insurance expands on standard home insurance by offering protection for unique landlord-related risks like tenant damage, unpaid rent and legal liability.
Here we’ve gathered a few standouts, including winners from the 2025 Mozo Experts Choice Awards for Landlord Insurance across the Exceptional Value and Exceptional Quality categories, plus a provider recognised in the 2025 Mozo People’s Choice Awards for Home Insurance.
Let’s take a closer look.
How did we choose the winners of our Mozo Experts Choice Awards?
For the 2025 Mozo Experts Choice Awards for Landlord Insurance, our team conducted a comprehensive analysis of 48 policies across 34 providers to identify the best landlord insurance policies in Australia.
To select the year’s best policies for Exceptional Quality, we looked at a range of factors, paying close attention to not only key building and contents cover, but also to the key risks that landlords like you might face, including loss of rent and malicious damage by tenants. This award highlights landlord cover that is market-leading for its generous benefits and flexible options, irrespective of price.
The analysis was carried out using data collected in August 2025, covering policies and features available during July-August 2025.
How are our Mozo People’s Choice award winners for Home Insurance determined?
The 2025 People’s Choice Awards for Home Insurance are decided by you, the actual customer.
For the 2025 awards, more than 2,000 Aussies rated their providers on customer service, customer satisfaction, the signup experience, and ease of claiming. We are highlighting an award winner here that is not only trusted by Australian homeowners, but also offers landlord insurance for those needing to cover an investment property.
Best landlord insurance in Australia for December 2025
Budget Direct Landlord Insurance*
- 30% discount on your first-year premium for new combined landlord building and contents policies purchased online (T&Cs apply)
- Up to $1000 to replace stolen keys, locks and keycodes
Why it won: Budget Direct’s landlord cover won an Exceptional Quality award at the 2025 Mozo Experts Choice Awards for an impressive fourth time in a row.
It provides comprehensive protection for your property against events like fire and storm, with up to $20 million in legal liability included. It’s then tailored for landlords with powerful protections available for an additional premium, such as cover for ‘Theft and Malicious Damage by Tenants’ and ‘Tenant Default’.
A unique benefit is that selecting one of these landlord covers also unlocks up to $3,000 for related legal expenses. There’s also an optional ‘sum insured safeguard’ is also available, giving you a powerful buffer of up to 25% if rebuild costs are more than your sum insured.
Act now and get a 30% discount on your first year’s premium for a new combined policy purchased online. (T&Cs apply).
QBE Landlord Insurance*
- 10% online policy discounts for policies purchased online (T&Cs apply)
- Up to $30 million legal liability cover (T&Cs)
- Underinsurance protection for eligible policies
Why it won: This award-winning policy from QBE won in the Exceptional Quality category for the third time in a row at the 2025 Mozo Experts Choice awards for Landlord Insurance, and it’s not hard to see why.
It builds on QBE’s Home and Contents Insurance, which also picked up an Exceptional Quality award at the 2025 Mozo Experts Choice Awards for Home and Contents Insurance, highlighting its strength across both areas.
The policy provides cover for key risks like fire, storm and theft, with up to $20 million in legal liability included. For an additional premium, you can tailor it with landlord-specific options (at an additional premium) such as cover for theft and malicious damage by tenants or their visitors, rent default, accidental damage, and even damage caused by tenants’ pets.
On top of that, QBE’s Buildings Sum Insured Safeguard can provide up to an industry leading 30% buffer on your sum insured if you qualify, while you’ll also find up to $2,000 in mortgage discharge cover and up to $2,500 toward environmental upgrades to buildings after a total loss.
Get a 10% discount now (T&Cs apply) if you purchase your policy online.
Mozo People's Choice Award Winner
Youi Landlord Insurance *
- Flexible choice of excess to suit you
- Legal liability cover (T&Cs, limits and exclusions apply)
- Get assistance from a dedicated claims team
Why it won: Youi stands out for its service, taking home a 2025 Mozo People’s Choice Award for Excellent Customer Service & Claims Experience. This strong reputation for looking after customers is a major plus for landlords who want a smooth and supportive process when it's time to claim.
You start with Youi’s home insurance, protecting against standard events like fire, storm and theft, plus up to $20 million in legal liability.
Landlord-specific options can then be added for an extra premium. These include cover for intentional damage by tenants and rent default cover.
Other benefits include up to $1,000 to replace locks and keys if they’re stolen and another $1,000 for mortgage discharge costs after a total loss.
More Exceptional Quality Landlord Insurance Winners
When assessing the quality of landlord insurance policies on offer, our experts looked at the level of cover offered for a range of events including loss of rent, acts of tenants and legal liabilities, among others. After assessing 33 policies, our Expert Judges awarded the following providers:
- Budget Direct
- QBE
- Youi
- CHU
- Coles
- ING
- Qantas Insurance
- Suncorp
- Virgin Money
What is landlord insurance?
Landlord insurance is a contract between you and your insurer, where you pay a premium in return for financial protection for your investment property, your contents inside, and your rental income against a range of insured events, including tenant-related risks.
In many cases, it’s simply a normal home and contents insurance policy in which you add on, at an additional premium, landlord-related protection.
What does landlord insurance cover?
While landlord insurance policies can differ significantly between providers in terms of coverages, limits, and exclusions, there are some common protections you'll typically encounter. These include:
- Dwelling/building protection. This covers your rental property itself against disasters like fires, storms, falling trees and vandalism. If the structure needs major repairs or to be fully rebuilt, dwelling coverage has you covered.
- Contents coverage. Don't forget about those detached items inside like appliances, carpets, blinds and any furnishings you've provided. Contents coverage protects that stuff you own within the rental.
- Loss of rent. Let's say a covered incident leaves your rental too damaged to live in during repairs. Loss of rent coverage reimburses you for that missed rental income until it's habitable again. Some policies will even cover loss of rent if your tenant defaults on payments.
- Liability protection. Accidents happen. If a tenant or guest injures themselves at your rental property and sues, liability covers the legal costs and potential settlements.
- Legal expenses. Speaking of legal issues, this can help cover attorney fees if you need to hire a lawyer for things like evicting a problematic tenant.
In addition to these, there are other cover options you can add for an additional fee. We’ll cover those next.
What does landlord insurance not cover?
There are some common things that most policies won't cover you for, and it pays to know what they are. Typical exclusions include:
- Neglected maintenance. Insurers expect you to keep your property in good shape. If a claim arises from a problem you've ignored, like damage from a slow leak you never fixed or a termite infestation, it likely won't be covered.
- Normal wear and tear. Things like carpets getting worn or paint fading over time are considered part of the normal cost of owning a rental, not an insurable event.
- Extended vacancy. Your policy will usually have a limit on how long the property can be empty (often 60 or 90 days). If it’s vacant for longer and something happens, you might not be covered.
- Damage by you. This one's pretty straightforward. Any damage you cause to your own property on purpose isn't covered.
It's worth noting that some major events, like floods, might be an optional extra rather than a standard inclusion. The only way to be 100% sure of what you are and aren't covered for is to read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS).
What are some optional extras for landlord insurance?
There are quite a few optional extras you can add to further customise your policy based on your specific rental situation and risks. Some of the optional extras you can consider tacking onto your policy include:
- Rent default cover. No matter how well you get your tenants, financial hiccups happen. This cover is your peace of mind, ensuring you're not out of pocket if the rent stops coming in due to unexpected tenant troubles.
- Tenant damage. Whether it's accidental stains or intentional vandalism, tenants can sometimes mess up your rental. This protection covers repair costs for damage they cause.
- Lock replacement. This will replace your locks and keys if the keys have been stolen or there’s reason to believe they’ve been duplicated without authorisation.
- Disaster-prone area cover. If you live in a flood or bushfire zone, you may be required to pay an additional premium to be covered for those events.
It’s worth noting that some policies will offer one or more of these as part of their standard package, no additional fee necessary. However this is not always the case, so it’s important to refer to your product disclosure statement (PDS) to be absolutely sure what you’re covered for and what you’re not.
How much is landlord insurance?
Landlord insurance isn't a one-size-fits-all deal. The price depends on a few things:
- Your property. Location, size, and building type significantly affect insurance costs. For example, a spacious home in a well-to-do neighbourhood might have different insurance premiums compared to a compact house in a more remote area. Additionally, properties located in flood zones or areas with higher environmental risks could see an impact on insurance pricing.
- Your coverage. Do you want protection from things like tenant damage, rent default or special flood cover? The more coverage you choose, the more you'll typically pay.
- Your excess. This is the amount you pay out of pocket before insurance kicks in. A higher excess can lower your premium, but it means you'll have to pay more upfront if something happens.
To get an accurate idea of how much you'll pay, it's best to contact an insurance company directly. They can give you a specific quote based on your individual situation.
How to find the cheapest landlord insurance
To find the cheapest landlord insurance means striking the right balance between price and protection, so that you get the right level of protection without paying more than you need to.
Here are a few ways to bring down the cost of your premium:
- Compare quotes. Prices can vary a lot between insurers for similar cover, so comparing a few policies here on Mozo and getting some quotes is one of the simplest ways to save.
- Choose a higher excess. Opting for a higher excess will almost always lower your premium. Just make sure it’s an amount you’re happy to pay if you ever need to claim.
- Pay annually. Insurers will usually charge less if you pay annually versus monthly. Just make sure you review your policy every year before renewal time to make sure it still offers the right level of value.
- Ask about discounts. Many policies, including a few of the ones featured above offer sign-up discounts, bundling discounts and others. If in doubt, ask the insurer.
The goal is to get the best value for your situation. An ultra-cheap policy might look appealing, but it could leave you exposed if you ever have to make a major claim.
* 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.
^See information about the Mozo Experts Choice Home Insurance Awards
FAQs about landlord insurance
How is landlord insurance different from home insurance?
A major factor is that landlord insurance can cover loss of rental income, while home insurance doesn’t. It won’t be claimable in every circumstance and can take time to be paid out, so make sure you read the details around this in your PDS.
Landlord insurance will also often cover additional legal costs, generally for representation throughout the process of evicting a tenant by court order or making a legal claim for rental loss.
How do I make a landlord insurance claim?
Like most insurance products, this involves contacting your provider, with your policy details at hand, and beginning the claims process in whatever format they offer (online, over the phone).
Photos or other proof of damages will help bolster the perceived validity of your claim, as will bank records in the case of rental loss. If the claim relates to a theft, make sure you file a police report and also have those documents or details to share with your insurance company.
If repairs are necessary, make sure you consult your insurance provider on how to go about organising this. Go through any nominated inspectors and providers to get work done if that condition is stipulated in your insurance policy. If your claim needs to be escalated legally, follow the insurance company guidance.
Is landlord insurance tax deductible?
Depending on your circumstances, it can be. Building, contents and public liability insurance falls under investment maintenance and management expenses, and therefore is claimable for your investment property taxes. Optional extras may not qualify for this.
Is landlord insurance worth having?
Landlord insurance could be worth having, because there are inherently extra risks around when renting out your home to strangers. No matter how thoroughly tenants are assessed, you never know how they might inadvertently or maliciously damage your property. Plus, landlord insurance covers the unforeseeable events all owners would want their properties covered for.
Do I need landlord insurance if my investment property is in a strata building?
When your rental is an apartment or townhouse in a strata complex, it’s still a good idea to have landlord insurance, but there are some slight differences.
The main thing to know is that the strata corporation (or body corporate) has its own insurance, often called a 'master policy'. This policy typically covers the entire building structure, the roof, external walls, and common areas like stairwells and gardens. So, if a storm damages the roof, the strata's insurance covers that.
That leaves you, the landlord, to cover everything inside your own unit's walls. Landlord insurance in your case usually protects:
- Internal fixtures. This covers things inside your unit that aren't part of the main structure, like your carpets, blinds, kitchen appliances, and any furniture you provide.
- Loss of rent. If a covered event (like a kitchen fire) makes your unit unlivable, this can cover your lost rental income while it's being repaired.
- Liability protection. Accidents happen. If a tenant or guest is injured inside your specific unit and decides to sue, this has your back for legal costs.
Basically, your policy works hand-in-hand with the strata's master policy to make sure your investment is protected from all angles.
Does landlord insurance cover commercial property?
No, if you're in the commercial property business, a standard landlord insurance policy won't quite cut it. But there is commercial landlord insurance available.
Many of the same principles apply, you're still covering the building, getting liability protection, and covering loss of rent. The main difference is that the risks are tailored to a commercial setting.
For example, the liability risks might be higher if the business has customers coming and going all day. If you own specific business fittings, like the built-in fridges and cooking equipment in a cafe, you'll want to make sure they're covered. Loss of rent is also looked at differently, as it's tied to the financial success of the business renting your space.
Just remember: commercial landlord insurance is for you, the property owner. The tenant running the business inside is responsible for their own separate business insurance to cover their business risks.