Following a CHOICE analysis that found serious problems with the definition of “fire” in major home and contents insurance policies, CHOICE CEO Alan Kirkland is in Canberra on behalf of over 35,000 Australians asking for fair insurance contracts.
In delivering a petition to Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s office and meetings with other key Government figures, Kirkland will argue the case for standard definitions in insurance contracts, as previously recommended by a 2017 Senate Inquiry and the ACCC as recently as December 2019.
“People take out insurance for peace of mind – the confidence that they’ll be looked after if something goes wrong,” says Kirkland.
“That’s particularly important for people living in bushfire-affected communities. The last thing somebody who has been through a bushfire needs to worry about is whether their insurance claim will be knocked back due to a tricky term or condition. The solution here is simple: a standard approach across the industry that ensures that all damage resulting from a bushfire is covered. That’s what people think they are getting when they pay their premiums.”
“Just as the Government had to intervene to force the industry to adopt a standard definition of flood, our analysis shows that it’s time to do the same thing for fire cover.”
CHOICE is recommending the Government model reform based off of the successful introduction of a standard flood definition in 2012.
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