As a landlord, you want to protect your most important asset. If anything ever went wrong at your investment property the dollar signs start adding up. Landlord insurance will protect you from damage to your property, defaults on your rent and many other things outlined in the policy. You'll want to find the best policy that works for you, so that's why our insurance experts read through the PDS's to pull out the jargon. So you can find the most important features that are important to you.
Finding the best landlord insurance
As the cost of living crisis wears on, it makes sense to get the best landlord insurance because you don't want to risk losing income on your investment property.
To help you find the best option for your needs, our insurance experts selected 4 policies based on factors such as cost, popularity, benefits and inclusions. We looked at 16 landlord insurance brands, analysed over 35 benefits and looked through each provider's product disclosure statements to see exactly what is and isn't covered.
Remember, there's no single best landlord insurance policy that suits everyone, since each of our needs are slightly different depending on the property we own, but we can help narrow down your options.
Top pick for most popular
To determine our most popular pick, we chose the landlord insurance policy that had the most clicks between January 2023 and May 2023 based on our data – in short, the insurer that had the highest number of sales.
Top pick for short-term rentals
We looked at Finder partners and selected our top pick based on the following benefits: cover for stays less than 3 months, accidental damage, malicious damage, theft and damage by tenants’ pets. There may be more providers that cover short-term rentals. We did not do a full market comparison.
Top pick for value
We ran quotes for 16 Australia-based providers and determined our top pick based on excellent value for money. Qantas had the cheapest policy in the 2 categories we analysed. At $1,444.54 annually, its home & contents policy placed ahead of Budget Direct ($1,544.97) and Youi ($1,681.56). The other providers we looked at were: QBE, ANZ, AAMI, Bendigo Bank, Bupa, Catholic Church, CommBank, Honey, Landlord Select, Over Fifty, St. George, Virgin and Westpac.
We did not look at all insurers on the market in our research, which was undertaken in May 2023.
Most popular landlord insurance: Budget Direct
What we like about Budget Direct:
It's the most popular landlord insurer on Finder – it had more clicks than any other landlord provider between January 2023 and May 2023 based on our data. Budget Direct placed ahead of QBE and Qantas respectively.
It covers the essentials like fire, storm, rainwater and theft (or attempted theft). It also pays you lost rent if your investment property becomes uninhabitable because of an insured event. Other insurers cover these benefits, but Budget Direct is often cheaper.
You get 30% off your first year's premiums when you buy a combined home and contents policy online – no landlord insurer on Finder offers a bigger discount.
As the name implies, Budget Direct provides low-cost, no-frills policies. If you want a more comprehensive (and expensive) policy, it might not be for you. For example, you need to pay extra if you want cover for tenant malicious damage and floods.
It's one of the only insurers in Australia to offer cover for short term rentals of less than 3 months – ideal if you're renting out your entire property or holiday home on Airbnb. You don't need to have a lease agreement in place to be covered, just some kind of booking record, such as one made through a holiday rental platform.
QBE is the only insurer we found that will cover damage by tenants' pets for up to $4,000. It's also the only insurer we found that covers accidental damage by your tenants or paying guests.
It's also our Green Insurer of the Year winner. It will replace your home and the items in it with eco-friendly upgrades if damaged or destroyed.
Youi landlord insurance can also cover short term rentals. However, we selected QBE as our top pick because its product disclosure statement (PDS) provides much clearer information about what it will cover and the type of properties it will cover. Youi also doesn't specify it covers damage by tenants' pets.
Finder's research of 16 providers found Qantas to be the most price-competitive. It had the cheapest combined (home & contents) policy at $1,444.54 per year. What's more, at $1,221.34 it offered the lowest price for standalone buildings insurance.
Qantas policies are underwritten by Auto & General. This is the same firm that underwrites Budget Direct. It means you get the same level of cover as a Budget Direct policy – but you also earn Qantas Points. You earn 1 Qantas Point for every $1 you spend on your premium.
A Qantas landlord policy will cover your investment property for common risks such as fires and theft. It can also pay you a rental income for up to 12 months if your property's damaged by an insured event and unsafe to live in.
Just like Budget Direct, a Qantas landlord insurance policy doesn't automatically cover floods and malicious damage. If you want cover for either of these events, you'll need to pay more. You will also need to pay extra for tenant default and theft by tenants and their visitors.
Editor's top landlord insurance pick for November 2024
In addition to our best landlord insurance picks, Finder's editor for insurance James Martin has reviewed landlord insurance policies in November 2024 and selected a policy that he believes is good value and worth considering.
Good option for Winter 2023
What we like about Qantas landlord insurance: Amid high interest rates and sky-high insurance pricing, anything to keep a lid on bills should be warmly welcomed. New Finder research suggested Qantas offers comparatively low pricing for both buildings-only and combined cover. Keep in mind it's a less comprehensive policy than some others. You may want to add rent default cover and legal expenses on to your policy if these are important to you. Qantas is backed by a major insurer – Auto & General – which will bring added peace of mind for some.
There are 3 types of landlord insurance. The one you need depends on the property you own and whether or not it is furnished:
Landlord building insurance
This covers loss or damage to the building itself. It's probably best if you own a freestanding house that is unfurnished.
Landlord contents insurance
This covers damage to the items you keep at the property. It's best for people who own a furnished strata property such as an apartment, which strata insurance may cover.
Landlord building and contents
This protects the building and your items (not the tenants). It's suited to property owners with furnished houses (e.g. white goods, curtains, carpets).
Why landlord insurance matters
While a bond is often enough to cover minor damage, it's usually only equal to 4 weeks of rent. Landlord insurance can cover you for the entire rebuild costs and pay you for lost rent. This is helpful if you rely on your rental income to pay your own bills.
More tips to find the best landlord insurance policy for you
If you're still looking for a policy, these 3 questions could help narrow down your search:
Do you own a unit or apartment?
If so, then you probably don't need landlord building insurance – the strata insurance you pay will cover you.
Is your property furnished or partly furnished?
Then you might want to get contents insurance to cover the items you keep at your property (in addition to building insurance if you own a freestanding house). Even if you only have items such as carpets, blinds and white goods, it can be worth getting. If something happens, the costs could be significant.
Do you want cover for rent default?
Rent default pays you an income if your tenant stops paying the rent – for example, if they lose their job or fall ill. You'll need to pay extra if you want this included in your policy.
Once you've narrowed down your options to a handful of insurers, it's worth getting quotes from each insurer. This will help you see who comes out on top for price.
Isn't my home insurance enough?
Home insurance is essentially what it says on the box. Insurance to cover your home in the event of something going wrong at home. Landlord insurance works in a similar way as home insurance but includes extra things to cover a rental property. Depending on what policy you choose you'll be able to claim for things like damage to your property, types of water damage, lost rent or even tenancy default. You can also add in optional covers for appliances you furnish the property with. Remember to check the policy PDS for a list of inclusions and exclusions before you sign up.
Compare to find the best landlord insurance policy for you
These are our top landlord insurance picks but there are other policies out there. You can use our table below to compare all the landlord insurance policies available on Finder.
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You pay the same as buying directly from the landlord insurer. Better still, we regularly run deals that you won't find on any other site – plus, our tables make it easy to compare policies.
We're experts
Our team of insurance experts have researched and rated dozens of policies as part of our Finder Awards and published hundreds of guides to make it easier for you to compare.
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Unlike other comparison sites, we're not owned by an insurer. That means our opinions are our own and we work with lots of landlord insurance brands, making it easier for you to find a good deal.
FAQs about the best landlord insurance policy
The best landlord insurance differs depending on your needs. To help you narrow down options though, we've selected 4 different top picks based on popularity, comprehensiveness, perks and short-term rentals:
Most popular. Budget Direct landlord insurance
Total replacement cover. ANZ landlord insurance
Short-term rentals. QBS landlord insurance
Perks. Qantas landlord insurance
If you have contents insurance as part of your landlords policy then yes, carpet can be covered. If you've opted to cover the building only, then no, you won't be covered for damage to your carpet.
If you rent out property in Australia, it's a good idea to get landlord insurance, particularly if you rely on the income to pay for your own bills. It's a financial safety net in case your property becomes uninhabitable, is damaged or you're sued by a tenant.
Yes. Landlord insurance premiums are tax deductible. You can generally claim an immediate deduction in the income year you prepay your premiums for expenses of less than $1,000 and over $1,000.
If you own an apartment, unit or townhouse, you probably don't need landlord building insurance because the building will be covered by strata. A better value option is to get landlord contents insurance as this will cover the items you keep at the property, including carpets, appliances, blinds and curtains.
Landlord insurance covers the building and it can cover a few other landlord specific things. For example, a landlords policy could cover things like loss of rent and malicious damage caused by tenants. A building insurance policy only covers the building, it likely won't have those additional benefits like loss of rent.
Landlord insurance will not cover wear and tear. This is generally listed as an exclusion on all landlord insurance policies as insurance is supposed to be for unexpected events that are outside your control. Wear and tear is not part of this.
This article was reviewed on 25 May by James Martin. James is the insurance editor at Finder and he's written on a range of insurance and finance topics for over 7 years.
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 648 Finder guides across topics including:
James Martin was the insurance editor at Finder. He has written on a range of insurance and finance topics for over 7 years. James often shares his insurance expertise as a media spokesperson and has appeared on Prime 7 News, WIN News, Insurance News, 7NEWS and The Guardian. He holds a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification and a Tier 1 Generic Knowledge certification, both of which meet the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio
James's expertise
James has written 212 Finder guides across topics including:
Can you please let me landlord insurers that will insure your property that don’t require a current tenancy agreement in Victoria?
Finder
AngusSeptember 23, 2024Finder
Hi Marcus, Without a tenancy agreement of some sort, many insurers will be relucant to offer landlord insurance, since there won’t be clear evidence of how much income is at stake in the event that a claim needs to be made. If it’s for a property which is newly listed, evidence of promoting the property for rent online or via an agent would be relevant, but those details would need to be updated once an actual tenant was in place. Hope this helps.
CherylJanuary 11, 2024
Is there any Landlord Insurance which covers the scenario where a tenant sublets her residential rental when she goes on holidays, eg 2 months in France. She has not responded to request to answer if she is/is not doing so but the “visitor” has just confirmed she is paying the tenant to stay. This is in NSW.
Finder
SarahFebruary 14, 2024Finder
Hi Cheryl,
This depends on which insurer you are with and what the specifics of your policy us. Many landlord insurers require a property manager to be professionally letting the property as part of the policy eligibility as this minimises their risk of something going wrong, so if this is a clause in your policy, it could cause some issues. I would recommend you contact your insurer to double check what applies in your situation.
Best of luck!
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Can you please let me landlord insurers that will insure your property that don’t require a current tenancy agreement in Victoria?
Hi Marcus, Without a tenancy agreement of some sort, many insurers will be relucant to offer landlord insurance, since there won’t be clear evidence of how much income is at stake in the event that a claim needs to be made. If it’s for a property which is newly listed, evidence of promoting the property for rent online or via an agent would be relevant, but those details would need to be updated once an actual tenant was in place. Hope this helps.
Is there any Landlord Insurance which covers the scenario where a tenant sublets her residential rental when she goes on holidays, eg 2 months in France. She has not responded to request to answer if she is/is not doing so but the “visitor” has just confirmed she is paying the tenant to stay. This is in NSW.
Hi Cheryl,
This depends on which insurer you are with and what the specifics of your policy us. Many landlord insurers require a property manager to be professionally letting the property as part of the policy eligibility as this minimises their risk of something going wrong, so if this is a clause in your policy, it could cause some issues. I would recommend you contact your insurer to double check what applies in your situation.
Best of luck!