Survey finds many Australians underinsured

As many as three out of five Australians with home and contents insurance aren't adequately covered by their policy, a survey has found.

The survey of 1000 people by NRMA Insurance found that 60 per cent of respondents with home and contents insurance never inform their insurer when they make a new, large purchase for their home.

That leaves them open to the risk that if their home is burgled, damaged or destroyed, they won't be able to replace everything that's lost.

A further 22 per cent of respondents only sometimes inform their insurance company when they make a large purchase for their home.

And yet eighty per cent of people holding insurance policies believed their current level of insurance was sufficient.

"There is potentially a large number of Australians who are unaware they are underinsured," said NRMA Insurance chief executive Rick Jackson.

"These findings show it's critical that customers understand what's covered by their policy and what isn't, because misconceptions about insurance can prove costly."

Commonly overlooked items to include for homes and contents insurance were kitchen items, manchester, DVDs and CDs, clothing and footwear.

For cars, the insurance cover is better, but not all customers choose to have comprehensive policies.

Seventy-six per cent of respondents did have comprehensive car insurance, while the rest either only had it for one of their cars or not at all.

The survey also showed that many people don't bother to read their insurance policies properly, with 52 per cent of people saying they skim over the most important points when their policy is renewed or don't even read the details at all.

- AAP