Time for home insurance renewal, and the size of the premium blew me away. Got a few online quotes, and they were all similar.

Then I noticed a little place to click on the renewal web page that said "excess". I clicked on it, and raised my excess to the maximum possible....$5000, and my annual premium came down by $1500. Unreal banana peal, why didn't I discover this years ago, I could have an extra $30k in the bank by now.

Now if someone breaks into my house and steals $5000 worth of stuff it won't send me broke, but if my house burns down it would, that's what I want to pay insurance for. Even if I claimed every 4 years (I haven't claimed once in 25 years), I'd still be ahead.

Harrow said..
Time for home insurance renewal, and the size of the premium blew me away. Got a few online quotes, and they were all similar.

Then I noticed a little place to click on the renewal web page that said "excess". I clicked on it, and raised my excess to the maximum possible....$5000, and my annual premium came down by $1500. Unreal banana peal, why didn't I discover this years ago, I could have an extra $30k in the bank by now.

Now if someone breaks into my house and steals $5000 worth of stuff it won't send me broke, but if my house burns down it would, that's what I want to pay insurance for. Even if I claimed every 4 years (I haven't claimed once in 25 years), I'd still be ahead.

I know that the insurance companies have had this for a while because my car insurance was like that a long time ago, but they surely haven't had it for that long, and I doubt it would be 20 years.

It can go wrong sometimes though, but I guess that is the risk you are taking. I think I had an accident in an AU Falcon where I had something like $2000 in excess as it was the standard excess plus the nominated amount. It was only when they accepted that it was the other guy's fault that it made sense, i.e. I paid nothing.

I think it does work well for the insurance companies though. They are not going to have to pay out for tiny annoying claims, but the serious ones will still get claimed and obviously the numbers work out.

I stopped paying house contents insurance nine years ago. I figure if someone breaks in and steals my laptop, it's a work machine and it's insured through them and I'll pay the excess. Other than that I'll take the risk as we don't have much of value to a thief. If they take my eight year old camera I can probably buy one twice as good at half the price I bought it for in 2012.

This is in the city. I think the risk is low here. In the country it's completely different. Farm houses are targeted by thieves and are high risk. If we move out I'll get content insurance.

Mobydisc said..
I stopped paying house contents insurance nine years ago. I figure if someone breaks in and steals my laptop, it's a work machine and it's insured through them and I'll pay the excess. ....

Contents insurance covers all the stuff not bolted down in the house. Furniture and beds and appliances and stuff (not sure about curtains and carpets and awnings). If your house burns down the building insurance might replace the shell and kitchen and bathroom.. The contents insurance is what fills it with stuff.

You want to read your insurance policy before going the $5000 excess. If you have to make individual claims for each thing then the excess could apply for each thing. You'd have to think that if your house burns down the $5000 excess is paid and then they assess everything in the house together.

lotofwind said..
Please send me your address, and what size tv do you own? I promise I will steal "just" over $5000.

Once your insurance pays up, i'll give you your stuff back and go halves in your payout.
We both win.

So far I have 51 people I do this with, if I get you on board as well that makes 52 which means I get a years full time wage.
And you will for fill my dream of having full time employment.

His insurance wont pay up if he has $5,000 excess. And he wont give you half.
You're not writing this from prison are you?

Thanks for posting this Harrow...
Just went and did a similar thing and reduced premium a decent amount. It's something you don't really think about with life business and all that...

Mobydisc said..
In 12 years we have gone through two TVs. First is a Samsung plasma 42 inch diagonal bought in 2007 from Dick Smith for $1999.

2017 we bought a LG 55 inch diagonal for $800. This TV is now in our living room and the Samsung is in our bedroom with a Chromecast. The LG is quite amazing with streaming apps built into it.

If only taxes & State regulated prices worked the same way... 50% taxes and $500 power, rates and water bills of 2007 would be 20% or cost maybe $200 today?

Why does the price for unregulated goods or services keep going down while regulated goods and services keep going up in price?

Moby, why does the price on some goods go down, in this case your particular example of a tv? Its because the product is a mature technology and there is a lot of competition.

Now, where are your examples of services? I think you are being a bit naive. Surely you appreciate that services, including government services, have a large component being people's labour? As this is the case, why wouldn't the percentage stay the same?

Have you thought about relocating to some of these low tax places around the world? I am sure you can find a place that suits you, with low taxes.

You might have a problem with earning the same income and the level of safety, but other than that you should be okay

Mobydisc said..

Im not really interested in moving somewhere else for the usual reasons. Thus I am destined to work for the State for half of my work life. A medieval peasant was tithed one seventh of their harvest. Oh to pay 14%. This would be better.

Well, at least you will live out your life in a relatively safe society with good health care and the freedom to choose where you want to live.

If you only want to pay 14%, as I have said, there are plenty of places out there. Was the medieval peasant given good access to health care and social security?

Maybe you need to choose which way you want it? Safety or less taxes?

What about education? Do you see cost savings where the quality is at least as good where someone has automated things and just presses buttons? No, I doubt it.

Where do they get funding for the education system? Should it be dropped altogether and become user pays?

kk said..
But to suggest that the public sector in Australia is in any way shape or form an efficient machine is laughable.

The same services could be delivered by at least half the people at half the cost if it was run in the same way as the private sector.

That's what a lot of people assume, but no one goes in there and points out where it is inefficient and fixes it. Not because they don't try, but because it is a lot of work that gets done and there are no shortcuts.

Sure, you could deliver the "same service" with half the people (which probably means half the cost), but would you want it? We often hear about people complaining about waiting times. Waiting times in hospitals, waiting times to get served, waiting times for everything. How do you do that with half the people?

I think anyone that hasn't worked there thinks the government is one big group where they have coffee breaks for 8 hours a day. The reality though is not the same.

I recently had a heart check done, and as I was in the non-urgent category, I spent most of the day waiting for the time of a specialist or access to machines. It was interesting to see. There were no nurses standing around chatting with nothing to do, and there were no obvious wastes of time. They just did the best they could with the resources that they had.

In NSW, Service NSW now do the motor registry services and lots of other stuff. If you went there and watched them you wouldn't think they were inefficient as they are busy all the time and its not like they stand around chatting to you either.

On the other side, I worked at Optus a while back, and cost cuts have dropped the number of people dramatically, and it now seems to be where people are unhappy with the service is something goes wrong. Their business loses network connection and they are not happy, but they wanted cheaper prices, and this is what you get, overseas help, and less responsive businesses. I am not sure its a good strategy as customers are still leaving.

Just called QBE.

Asked for a quote to raise my excess from $500 by a factor of 10 to $5,000.

Yearly saving was only $300.

It would take me 15 years of not making a claim to 'get in front'.

Harrow said..
I noticed a little place to click on the renewal web page that said "excess". I clicked on it, and raised my excess to the maximum possible....$5000

Well done, you read the form.
I've been increasing my excess to max since, may be 2001.
Same w/ house insurance, but this time I also play with amount insured, as it's not a straight equation w/ most insurers.

Investment property
Cut out rental income insurance, cut total amount insured by 10%, raised excess to 5000, 33% reduction in premium.

hope I never have to use it