Contents insurance: what it covers and how to compare it
Contents insurance pays to repair or replace your belongings, such as furniture, clothes, appliances, electronics and jewellery, when they are damaged, destroyed or stolen by an event the policy lists. Most policies also include legal liability cover, which protects you if you are found responsible for injuring someone or damaging their property.
You can buy it on its own if you rent or own a strata unit, or bundle it with building cover if you own a house. The price gap between two policies is usually explained by four things: the sum insured, the events covered, the item limits and the excess. This page walks through each so you can compare like with like; our guide to home and contents insurance covers the rest.
By Better Rate Mate Editorial Team ยท Last reviewed
General advice only. It doesn't consider your circumstances. Read the PDS and TMD before you decide.
What counts as contents
The working test is whether an item is permanently attached to the home. Moneysmart gives the examples that trip people up: a floor rug is contents but the floorboards are not; pot plants can be contents while garden plants are not; an above-ground pool that can be moved may be contents while an inground pool is part of the building.
The line moves between insurers and between types of policy. Carpets, fitted blinds and built-in appliances are commonly treated as part of the building for a house owner, but a renter or strata unit owner can often insure them as contents because they own them and the building policy does not. Read the definitions section of the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) before you set your sum insured, because anything you value that falls on neither side of the line is uninsured.
| Item | House owner | Renter or strata unit owner | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freestanding fridge, washing machine, TV | Contents | Contents | Often subject to an electrical or appliance limit |
| Built-in dishwasher, oven, cooktop | Usually building | Often contents if you own them | Easy to leave out of both policies |
| Carpets, fitted blinds, curtains | Usually building | Often contents | Unit owners should check the strata policy first |
| Floor rugs, pot plants, outdoor furniture | Contents | Contents | Items kept outside may have lower limits |
| Jewellery, watches, art, collections | Contents, with limits | Contents, with limits | Low default caps unless you list the item |
| Cars, motorbikes, boats | Excluded | Excluded | Need their own policy |
Listed events, and why accidental damage is usually extra
A standard contents policy is a listed-events policy: it pays for loss caused by the events it names, typically fire, storm, lightning, earthquake, theft or burglary, malicious damage, impact, escape of liquid and (in most policies, not all) flood. If the cause is not on the list, there is no claim.
Moneysmart notes that most contents insurance does not include accidental damage. Adding it covers mishaps that are not a listed event, such as a stained couch or a dropped television. It costs more, and it still carries exclusions such as wear and tear, gradual damage and damage caused by pets, so read that section of the PDS as closely as the list of events.
Replacement value and the limits inside it
Most contents policies pay replacement value, often called new for old: the cost of buying the item new today rather than what your used one was worth. Some cheaper policies pay indemnity value instead, which allows for depreciation. Moneysmart's example is a fridge worth $500 in its current condition; indemnity cover pays about $500 even if a comparable new fridge costs much more.
Replacement value is then capped by item limits. Policies commonly set a maximum for categories such as jewellery and watches, art, collections, cash, and sometimes electrical appliances. Moneysmart's illustration is a $1,000 appliance limit applied to a $2,000 television: you would pay the other $1,000 yourself. If you own anything worth more than the category cap, list it as a specified item, which usually costs extra but lifts the limit to the value you nominate.
Cover for things you take out of the house
Standard contents cover applies at the insured address. Portable contents cover, usually an optional extra, protects belongings such as phones, laptops, glasses, handbags, cameras and bicycles when you take them out. Unspecified portable cover gives a small per-item cap; specified portable cover insures named items for their listed value. Check where it applies (some policies are Australia-only, some worldwide for a limited period) and whether it covers accidental loss or only theft and damage.
How much contents cover you need
The quickest reliable method is room by room: list what is in each room and price it new, at today's prices. Include the things people forget, such as linen, kitchenware, tools in the garage, clothing and shoes. Moneysmart suggests filming each room on your phone as a record, which also helps prove ownership if you ever claim without receipts.
Our contents insurance calculator adds the rooms up for you and flags any category, such as jewellery, that is over your policy's limit. The Insurance Council of Australia also publishes a free contents calculator. Whatever figure you arrive at, review it at each renewal and after any large purchase. Underinsurance is not only a building problem: if your contents sum insured is too low, the most the insurer pays is the sum insured, and some policies apply further reductions.
Is there a 'normal' amount of contents cover?
No official figure exists. We found no government or regulator source that publishes a typical contents sum insured, by number of bedrooms or otherwise, and an average would hide the gap between a share-house bedroom and a family home with a garage full of tools.
Calculators don't settle it either. The Insurance Council's contents calculator uses typical replacement costs from Sum Insured Pty Ltd and describes its result as an approximate guide only. When ASIC reviewed insurers' sum-insured calculators in 2014, it found material differences between their estimates for the same inputs, sometimes even between brands owned by the same insurer. The reliable figure is your own room-by-room total.
Contents cover for strata unit owners
If you own a strata unit, the owners corporation's policy covers the building and, depending on the state, parts of your lot; your contents policy covers your belongings and your liability. Where one stops and the other starts differs by state. In Western Australia, for example, Landgate's guide says the strata company insures the parts of buildings that make up lots, including paint and wallpaper, but not carpet or temporary floor, wall and ceiling coverings. Our strata insurance page sets out the rules state by state.
Benefits that are often built in
Beyond the listed events, contents policies commonly include legal liability cover ($20 million in both the NRMA and Suncorp home PDSs), temporary accommodation if you cannot live at home after an insured event, replacement of spoiled food after a power outage or fridge motor failure (sometimes an option), cover for contents in transit when you move, and new-for-old replacement of locks after keys are stolen. The amounts and time limits differ between policies, and these are the benefits a cheaper policy most often trims.
- Legal liability: covers your liability for injury to others or damage to their property, including when you are away from home in many policies.
- Temporary accommodation: usually capped at a dollar amount, a percentage of the sum insured or a number of months.
- Food spoilage and motor burnout: frequently optional rather than standard.
- Moving house: cover in transit often only applies to specific events such as a collision involving the removal vehicle.
General advice only. This information doesn't take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Consider whether the product is right for you and read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Target Market Determination (TMD) before you decide. We don't compare every product in the market, and we may earn a commission if you take up a product through our links.
What to watch for
- Item and category limits. Anything valuable above the default cap needs to be listed as a specified item or it will be paid only up to the cap.
- Theft conditions. Theft where there was no forced entry, or where doors and windows were left unlocked, is often excluded or limited.
- Pet damage. Chewing, scratching and soiling by your own pets are commonly excluded, even on accidental damage cover.
- Unoccupied homes. Many policies reduce or remove cover if the home has been left unoccupied for longer than the period the PDS allows.
- Flood. It is standard in many policies but not all. The Key Facts Sheet has to say whether flood is covered.
Common questions
Is it worth paying for contents insurance?
It is worth pricing up what it would cost to replace everything you own at today's prices before deciding. Most people are surprised by the total. Contents insurance also usually includes legal liability cover, which protects you if you are found responsible for injuring someone or damaging their property, and that can be worth more than the contents cover itself.
What does contents insurance actually cover?
It covers loss of or damage to your belongings caused by the events listed in the policy, typically fire, storm, theft, malicious damage, escape of liquid and, in most policies, flood. It usually includes legal liability, and it can be extended with accidental damage and portable contents cover. Wear and tear, gradual damage and items above category limits are the common gaps.
Does contents insurance cover my things outside the house?
Only if you add portable contents cover, or if the policy includes a small built-in allowance. Portable cover usually has a low per-item limit unless you list specific items such as a laptop, bike or engagement ring with their values.
How much should contents insurance cost?
The ACCC's June 2026 monitoring report put the average contents-only premium at $531 in 2024-25: $626 in northern Australia and $527 elsewhere. Your premium depends on your sum insured, postcode, security, claims history and the excess you choose, so compare quotes on the same sum insured, excess and options, then compare what each policy covers.
What is a normal amount for contents insurance?
There isn't an official one. No regulator publishes a typical contents sum insured, and calculators give different answers for the same home. Add up what it would cost to replace everything at today's prices, room by room; our contents estimator does the sum.
Is contents insurance the same for renters?
Largely, yes: renters insurance is contents insurance for tenants. See renters insurance for what a tenant needs and what the rental laws say.