Commonwealth covers up to an additional 25% on top of your sum insured building and contents when it isn't enough to cover your loss. This is often an optional add-on for many other insurers we looked at.
Its home and contents insurance has been awarded for its outstanding value for a number of years.
You get up to 15% off combined building and contents insurance – insurers such as Budget Direct, St.George and Westpac all offer larger discounts when you sign up.
Sorry! We currently don't have this brand on our panel. But don't fret, you can head to the Commbank home insurance website or compare a bunch of other home insurance companies with Finder.
You can get 3 different policy types. Commbank offers building insurance, contents insurance and a combined home and contents insurance policy. To add to that, Commbank also offers landlord insurance.
Some main events covered by Commbank home insurance include:
Commbank home insurance is backed by Hollard Insurance. It offers customers the choice to pay more than the standard excess amount (which differs depending on the state you live in) and has a standard cooling off period of 21 days.
Congratulations, CommBank!
CommBank received the following awards in the 2024 Customer Satisfaction Awards:
These are some standard features that you can claim if an insured event causes damage or loss.
Alternative accommodation
Contents in transit
Damage by emergency services
Demolition and debris removal
Domestic pets
Loss of rent
Accidental glass breakage
Animal damage
Burn out of electric motors
Earthquakes
Escape of liquid
Optional add-ons
Commbank home insurance comes with few optional extras compared to other insurers such as Budget Direct, Virgin and Qantas.
Accidental damage
Domestic Workers' Compensation Cover
Portable contents cover
Exclusions
All home insurance policies will have general exclusions. Here are some things you won't be covered for with Commbank.
Defects or poor workmanship
Damage if your property is not compliant with government regulations or requirements
Your building while in the process of major renovation, alteration, extension or structural improvement unless Commonwealth has agreed to continue the insurance
Wear and tear and lack of maintenance, including rust, corrosion and deterioration
Water, including rainwater, after it has disappeared beneath the surface of the land at your insured address
Normal actions of the sea, ocean or other marine waters
The gradual rising of the levels of the sea, oceanic waters or other marine waters due to any change in climate
Subsidence or landslide
Make sure you read Commbank' PDS for a more detailed breakdown of what's not covered. You can also head to general exclusions for more information.
Commbank home insurance complaints
Important to know. The complaints data below relates to home insurance policies that, at the time, were backed by Commbank's previous underwriter – Commonwealth Insurance Limited. Commbank home insurance policies are no longer underwritten by Commonwealth Insurance Limited. Today, Commbank is underwritten by Hollard Insurance Partners Limited.
We looked at home insurance complaints data from the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) between July 2020 and June 2021. The data breaks down different underwriters and compares their business size to the number of complaints processed.
When comparing insurers, keep in mind that insurers with a larger market share serve more customers, so can potentially get more complaints.
Here's an overview of how Commbank did:
Despite its considerable size, Commbank was able to resolve a large percentage of the complaints it received directly with its customers.
It does, however, have a large volume of complaints when compared to other insurers like Allianz.
This is the bottom line about Commbank
Commbank home insurance is a good overall home insurer compared to other policies on the market. It comes with plenty of benefits included as standard and an additional 25% on top of your sum insured building and contents when it isn't enough to cover your loss. However, you can get bigger discounts elsewhere.
To make a claim, contact Hollard Insurance (this policy's underwriter) at 13 1361 as soon as you can. You must take all reasonable actions to prevent or stop further damage to your property and be honest when making your claim. You must also report the incident to the police if the claim relates to theft or malicious acts. You will need to prove ownership of anything you are claiming under the contents policies. You can use the following to establish ownership:
Receipts
Warranty certificates
Instruction manuals
Original packaging
Photographs
Bank or credit card statements
Valuation certificates
Before processing your claim, Hollard Insurance may need to take action against a third party, interview you regarding the claim, or inspect your building and contents. Once Hollard Insurance has assessed your claim, they will contact you to discuss how they will settle. They may either repair, replace or reimburse you for the cost of your possessions that were damaged or destroyed by an insured event.
To be eligible for a Commonwealth Bank home or contents insurance policy, you must be:
Be aged 15 years and above (unless by exception), or a company
Own a domestic home in Australia
Meet underwriting guidelines and all policy acceptance criteria. Certain factors increase the risk and may mean you can't get cover, including:
The type of property (e.g. if it's under construction)
The total replacement value of the building
The condition of the home (e.g. poor condition)
The use of the property (for example if it's used for business, commercial or farming activity)
Whether the home is occupied.
Leave a Commonwealth Bank home insurance review
If you've held, or currently hold, a Commonwealth Bank home insurance policy, we'd love to hear from you. Your reviews help other Australians decide if Commonwealth Bank is right for them. Some reviews are from a survey commissioned by Finder.
Gary Ross Hunter was an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio
Gary Ross's expertise
Gary Ross has written 644 Finder guides across topics including:
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