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Curious About Insurance Nuances in Australia – Can Anyone Share Insights?

Submitted by Roe » Tue 24-Jun-2025, 21:05

Subject Area: General

2 member ratings

Hey all,
I’ve recently moved to Australia and I’m trying to get my head around how insurance works here, especially the more specific types that aren’t usually mentioned in general guides. I’ve sorted out the basics like health and car insurance, but I’m curious about things like property-related policies, business insurance, and anything else that might be common or even required depending on where you live or what kind of property you own.
For instance, someone mentioned there are certain insurance requirements when you live in an apartment building or a townhouse. I wasn’t sure if they meant personal content insurance or something building-specific. And I overheard a discussion about certain types of coverage being handled collectively through a body corporate or something like that?
Would love to hear from anyone who’s dealt with these details firsthand or has some clarity on how it all fits together. It’s a bit of a maze when you’re new.

2 Comments 

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RE: Curious About Insurance Nuances in Australia – Can Anyone Share Insights?

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By anonymous » Thu 26-Jun-2025, 00:06, My rating: ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭

Yeah, it’s definitely not always intuitive, especially coming from a place where things might be more individually handled. In Australia, if you live in a strata-titled property—like a townhouse or apartment complex—there’s a very specific type of insurance called Strata insurance that comes into play. It’s not optional; it’s actually required by law in every state and territory here. What makes it unique is that it covers all the shared areas and structural parts of the property. That includes things like the roof, walls, shared gardens, driveways, even lifts in some cases. It’s arranged by the owners corporation (that’s the Aussie version of the body corporate you mentioned), and everyone chips in through strata fees. You’re still responsible for your own belongings inside your unit though—furniture, electronics, personal stuff. That would fall under contents insurance, which is separate. One thing I found unusual is how much detail is involved in the policy—sometimes you see cover for things like cracked tiles in common bathrooms or even damage to shared plumbing. Definitely not something you deal with if you're just renting a house!

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