Landlords Insurance

About This Policy

This policy insures a residential property that you own and let to a tenant under a residential tenancy agreement. It covers the things that most often go wrong for a landlord: damage to the building and to the contents you provide, rent you lose, damage by a tenant, and your legal liability as owner.

It has six sections. The schedule shows which of the first two apply. The other four apply to every policy.

If you own a lot in a strata scheme, the body corporate insures the building. You can insure the contents you provide, and the other sections then apply to your lot.

This policy, together with your schedule, your proposal and any endorsements shown in the schedule, forms your contract of insurance with us. Please read them together and tell us if anything is incorrect. Where the schedule and this wording differ, the schedule applies. Words with special meanings are listed in the Definitions section.

Version and Document History

This document is version-controlled. The version and date shown on the cover page and in the footer of each page govern this text. The version stated in your schedule as current at the start of the policy period applies for the whole policy period, unless your schedule or an endorsement states otherwise.

Important Information

Who issues this policy. The insurer, its Australian Financial Services Licence and its contact details are shown in the schedule. Where the insurer subscribes to the General Insurance Code of Practice, the schedule says so.

If a property manager arranged this policy. A property manager may arrange this policy as the insurer's distributor. They do not give advice about whether it suits you. Read this wording, the Product Disclosure Statement and the Target Market Determination before you buy it.

Who this policy is for. This wording is designed for retail clients. An issuer using it must give a Product Disclosure Statement and make a Target Market Determination available, as the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) requires. This wording is not itself a Product Disclosure Statement.

Your duty when you apply. This policy is sold to individuals as a consumer insurance contract under the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth). You have a duty to take reasonable care not to make a misrepresentation to us before the policy is entered into, renewed, extended, varied or reinstated. Answer every question in the proposal honestly and completely. If you do not take reasonable care, we may be entitled to reduce our liability for a claim, to cancel the policy, or, where the misrepresentation is fraudulent, to avoid the policy from its beginning, as that Act allows.

If the insured is a company, trust or other entity that is not an individual, this policy is not a consumer insurance contract. You then have the duty of disclosure in s.21 of that Act. Before the policy is entered into, renewed, extended, varied or reinstated, you must tell us every matter you know, or that a reasonable person in your circumstances could be expected to know, that is relevant to our decision whether to insure you and on what terms. You do not need to tell us anything that reduces the risk, that is common knowledge, that we know or should know as an insurer, or that we waive. If you do not comply, we may be entitled to reduce our liability for a claim or to cancel the policy, as that Act allows.

[WP REVIEW: confirm whether a landlord policy bought by an individual for a residential investment property is a consumer insurance contract under s.11AB of the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth), and so which duty applies to an individual and to an entity.]

Terms that differ from standard cover. The Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) sets standard cover for home building and home contents contracts. This policy gives less cover than standard cover in each of the ways listed here. They are listed so that you are clearly informed of each of them before this policy is entered into.

• flood is covered, but we do not pay for damage by storm or flood in the first 72 hours after this policy first starts, except as the Storm and Flood in the First 72 Hours exclusion allows;
• we do not pay for theft or malicious damage by the tenant or the tenant's guests under the Building or Landlord's Contents sections; the Tenant Damage section covers them, with its own limit and excess;
• we do not pay for damage by erosion, subsidence or landslip except as the Earth Movement exclusion allows, or for damage by actions of the sea (see the Action of the Sea exclusion);
• we do not pay to fix a defect, or for damage from gradual causes (see the Defects and Gradual Causes exclusion);
• cover is limited while the property is unoccupied for more than 60 days (see the Unoccupied Property exclusion);
• we do not pay for loss, damage or liability caused or contributed to by short-stay letting, unless the E04 Short-Stay Letting endorsement applies (see the Short-Stay Letting exclusion);
• we do not pay for land, loss of market value, a retaining wall not built to the building laws, water entering through an opening made for building works or left open, an order or action of a government or public authority, or damage to property while it is being worked on (see the Other Property Exclusions exclusion);
• we do not pay for loss, damage or liability caused deliberately by you or a person acting with your authority, or arising from illegal activity at the property that you or your property manager knew of or had reason to suspect (see the Your Deliberate Acts exclusion and the Illegal Use You Knew Of exclusion);
• we do not pay for loss of, damage to or corruption of electronic data, or for loss from unauthorised use of a computer system (see the Electronic Data exclusion);
• we do not pay for loss, damage, liability or cost arising from terrorism, war or nuclear risks (see the Terrorism exclusion, the War exclusion and the Nuclear exclusion);
• for contents more than ten years old we may deduct a reasonable amount for age and condition, we pay for an item that is one of a pair or set only for the item damaged, and if we cannot find matching materials we replace materials only in the room or area where the damage happened (see the How We Settle Contents Claims provision and the How We Settle Building Claims provision);
• there is no cover for contents other than those you provide for the tenant's use.

[WP REVIEW: confirm whether the Building and Landlord's Contents sections of a landlord policy are prescribed home building and home contents contracts under the Insurance Contracts Regulations 2017, so that standard cover, s.35 notice and a Key Facts Sheet apply; if they are, which of the listed terms the Regulations permit; and whether this list, given before the policy is entered into, clearly informs the insured.]

Key Facts Sheet. Where the law requires it, a Key Facts Sheet for the Building section and one for the Landlord's Contents section are given with this policy.

Cooling-off period. You may cancel this policy within 21 days of the date it starts, and within 21 days of each renewal, by telling us in writing. If you have not made a claim, we will refund the full premium paid for that period, less any non-refundable government charges we cannot recover. After that, you may still cancel under the Cancellation condition.

Commission and fees. The schedule or the quote shows any commission or fee paid to your property manager or broker in connection with this policy.

Financial Claims Scheme. If the schedule shows the insurer is an APRA-authorised general insurer, you may be entitled to a payment under the Financial Claims Scheme if the insurer becomes insolvent. Information is available at www.fcs.gov.au.

Schedule

(Completed separately for each policy. It contains your specific details.)

The schedule shows:

• Your name, and the name of any co-owner who is also insured
• The address of the property, and whether it is a house, a townhouse or a lot in a strata scheme
• The policy period, with its start and end dates
• The sections that apply, with the building sum insured and the contents sum insured
• The basic excess and the tenant damage excess
• The weekly rent limit and the rent cover limit
• The limits of the extensions and additional benefits, where they differ from the defaults stated in them
• Your property manager, if a property manager manages the property
• Any interested party, such as a financier
• The premium, including stamp duty, any emergency services levy, and GST
• Any commission or fee paid to your property manager or broker
• The insurer and its licence, and the state or territory whose law governs this policy (see the Governing Law condition)
• The endorsements that apply, by code, with their variables

Definitions

In this policy, the words below have these meanings wherever they appear, whatever their capitalisation. The singular includes the plural.

Building

This section applies if the schedule shows it. The schedule shows the building sum insured and the basic excess.

Damage to the Building

If the building suffers damage during the policy period caused by an insured event, we will pay to repair or rebuild it, as set out in the How We Settle Building Claims provision.

The insured events are:

• fire, including bushfire, and smoke and soot from a fire;
• lightning, and power surge caused by lightning;
• explosion;
• storm, and rainwater or water run-off that enters the building because of a storm;
• flood;
• earthquake and tsunami;
• escape of liquid from a fixed pipe, drain, tank, appliance, toilet, bath, shower base or waterbed, or from an aquarium;
• theft or attempted theft, and malicious damage, by a person who is not a tenant or a tenant's guest;
• impact by a vehicle, aircraft, watercraft, falling tree or branch, power pole, aerial, satellite dish, or space debris;
• riot or civil commotion, and damage by a person taking part in it;
• glass breakage of fixed glass in the building, including glass in a cooktop or oven.

The most we will pay for any one event is the building sum insured, plus the amounts the extensions to this section say are payable in addition.

How We Settle Building Claims

Repair or rebuild. We pay the cost of repairing or rebuilding the damaged part of the building to a condition substantially the same as, but not better or more extensive than, its condition when new, using current materials and methods. We may choose to arrange the repair ourselves, or to pay you the reasonable cost of the repair. We do not deduct for wear, tear or depreciation.

Costs included. The cost of repairing or rebuilding includes the reasonable cost of demolishing and removing debris, and the fees of architects, engineers, surveyors and other professionals needed to repair or rebuild, and the extra cost of complying with the building laws in force at the time of repair for the damaged part of the building.

Safety net. If the building is destroyed and the cost of rebuilding is more than the building sum insured, we pay up to 20% more than the building sum insured, or the higher percentage shown in the schedule, provided the building sum insured was your reasonable estimate of the rebuilding cost when this policy started or was last renewed.

Matching materials. If we cannot find materials that match the undamaged parts, we pay to replace the materials in the room or area where the damage happened, and not elsewhere.

When you do not rebuild. If you do not repair or rebuild, or the law does not allow it, we pay what it would have cost us to repair or rebuild at the date of the damage, up to the building sum insured.

No under-insurance penalty. We do not reduce a claim because the building sum insured is less than the full rebuilding cost.

Emergency Repairs and Temporary Protection

After damage covered by this section, we pay the reasonable cost of emergency repairs, temporary fencing, boarding up and other measures needed to prevent further damage or to make the property safe, up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $5,000) for any one event. This amount is in addition to the building sum insured. Keep the invoices and photographs of the damage.

Keys and Locks

If a key to an external door or window lock of the property is stolen, or a lock is damaged by an insured event, we pay the reasonable cost to replace or re-key the affected locks, up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $1,000) for any one event. This amount is in addition to the building sum insured.

Trees, Plants and Landscaping

We pay the reasonable cost to replace trees, shrubs, plants and lawns at the property damaged by an insured event other than storm, flood or escape of liquid, and to remove a fallen tree or branch that has damaged the building or blocks access to it, up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $10,000) for any one event. This amount is in addition to the building sum insured.

Fire Services Charges

We pay any charge a fire or emergency service lawfully makes for attending the property because of an insured event, up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $10,000) for any one event. This amount is in addition to the building sum insured.

Loan Repayments While the Property Is Untenantable

If damage covered by this section makes the property unfit to live in while no residential tenancy agreement is in force, so that the Loss of Rent After Damage clause does not apply, we pay the repayments due on any loan secured over the property for the period the property remains unfit to live in, up to three months and up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $10,000). This amount is in addition to the building sum insured.

Landlord's Contents

This section applies if the schedule shows it. The schedule shows the contents sum insured and the basic excess.

Damage to the Landlord's Contents

If the contents suffer damage at the property during the policy period caused by an insured event listed in the Damage to the Building clause, we will repair or replace them, as set out in the How We Settle Contents Claims provision.

The most we will pay for any one event is the contents sum insured.

How We Settle Contents Claims

We pay the cost of repairing the damaged item, or of replacing it with a new item of the same kind and quality, whichever is less. We do not deduct for wear, tear or depreciation, except that for an item more than ten years old we may deduct a reasonable amount for its age and condition. Where an item is one of a pair or set, we pay only for the item damaged and not for the rest of the set.

What the Building and Landlord's Contents Sections Do Not Cover

These exclusions apply to the Building and Landlord's Contents sections. The Tenant Damage section has its own exclusions.

Storm and Flood in the First 72 Hours

We do not pay for damage by storm or flood that happens in the first 72 hours after this policy first starts. This exclusion does not apply if this policy started immediately after another policy covering the property for storm and flood expired without a break, or if you bought the property within 72 hours before this policy started.

Defects and Gradual Causes

We do not pay for:

• the cost of fixing a defect in the design, workmanship or materials of the building;
• wear and tear, rust, corrosion, rot, mould, mildew or gradual deterioration;
• damage that happens gradually over time, including from water or moisture seeping, leaking or condensing over a period, unless neither you nor your property manager knew of it, and neither could reasonably have known of it;
• damage caused by insects, vermin or tree roots.

We do pay for damage to other parts of the building that results suddenly and accidentally from a defect or from one of these causes, for example a ceiling that collapses because a pipe bursts.

Earth Movement

We do not pay for damage caused by erosion, subsidence, settling, shrinkage, expansion, landslide, landslip, mudslide or other movement of the earth. We do pay for such damage if it happens within 72 hours of, and as a direct result of, an earthquake, a storm, a flood, the escape of liquid from a pipe or tank, or an explosion.

Action of the Sea

We do not pay for damage caused by action of the sea.

Unoccupied Property

If the property has been unoccupied for more than 60 consecutive days, we pay for damage that happens after that only if it is caused by fire, lightning, explosion, earthquake or impact, unless the E09 Unoccupied Property endorsement applies. Cover is restored when a tenant moves in.

Other Property Exclusions

Under the Building and Landlord's Contents sections, we do not pay for:

• theft or malicious damage by a tenant or a tenant's guest, which the Tenant Damage section covers;
• land, or the cost of stabilising or improving land;
• loss of market value, or any loss of rent except as the Loss of Rent section provides;
• damage to a retaining wall that is not built to the standard of the building laws in force when it was built;
• damage by water entering the building through an opening made for building works, or through a door, window or opening left open;
• damage caused by a lawful order or action of a government or public authority, other than to prevent the spread of fire or other damage;
• damage to property while it is being worked on, if the damage results from the work.

Loss of Rent

This section applies to every policy. The schedule shows the weekly rent limit, the rent cover limit and the tenant default excess.

The rent cover limit (default $30,000) is the most we pay under this section for all claims in the policy period. It applies to the Tenant Default clause, the Death of a Sole Tenant clause, the Loss of Rent After Damage clause and the Prevention of Access clause together. Each cover is also limited by its own period and by the weekly rent limit.

Loss of Rent After Damage

If damage covered by the Building or Landlord's Contents section makes the property unfit to live in while a residential tenancy agreement is in force, or while you have signed a residential tenancy agreement for a tenancy due to start, we pay the rent you lose from the date of the damage until the property is fit to live in again, for up to 52 weeks, subject to the rent cover limit.

This cover also applies where the body corporate's building is damaged by an event that this policy would have covered, if the lot is unfit to live in because of it.

Prevention of Access

If a government or public authority prevents access to the property because of damage to nearby property, or an emergency near it, that this policy would have covered had it happened at the property, we pay the rent you lose for the time access is prevented, for up to 12 weeks, subject to the rent cover limit.

Tenant Default

If a tenant stops paying the rent and you end the tenancy as the tenancy legislation allows, we pay the rent the tenant owes from the date the rent was first unpaid, as follows:

• until the tenant leaves the property, or the tribunal makes an order for possession, for up to 20 weeks;
• if the tribunal makes an order for possession and the tenant does not leave, until the tenant leaves, for up to 52 weeks in total.

If the tenant leaves without giving the notice the tenancy legislation requires and owes rent, we pay the rent they owe and the rent you lose until a new tenant moves in, for up to 20 weeks, provided you take reasonable steps to let the property again.

This cover is subject to the rent cover limit shown in the schedule (default $30,000), which applies to all cover in the Loss of Rent section together.

Death of a Sole Tenant

If the only tenant named in the residential tenancy agreement dies, we pay the rent you lose from the date of death until the tenant's possessions are removed and the property can be let again, for up to 15 weeks, subject to the rent cover limit.

How the Tenant Was Chosen

For the Tenant Default clause, the Death of a Sole Tenant clause and the Tenant Damage section, the tenancy must meet these conditions:

• there is a residential tenancy agreement for it, signed by you or your property manager and the tenant;
• before a tenancy that started after this policy first started, you or your property manager checked each adult tenant's identity, and checked at least one of a previous landlord's or property manager's reference, a residential tenancy database, or proof of income;
• a bond of the amount the tenancy legislation allows, up to four weeks' rent, was paid and lodged with the bond authority.

If a condition is not met, the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) condition applies. We will not refuse a claim only because of it, unless it could reasonably be regarded as capable of causing or contributing to the loss.

How We Settle Rent Claims

We work out the rent you lose at the weekly rent payable under the residential tenancy agreement at the time of the loss, up to the weekly rent limit. From that we deduct:

• any part of the bond that is paid to you for rent;
• any rent the tenant or anyone else pays you for the same period;
• for the Tenant Default clause, the tenant default excess shown in the schedule (default one week's rent).

We pay each month, or at the end of the claim if you prefer. If the tribunal orders the tenant to pay rent, or the bond authority releases bond for rent, after we have paid you, you must repay us that amount, up to what we paid.

What the Loss of Rent Section Does Not Cover

We do not pay for:

• rent lost while the property is vacant between tenancies, other than as the Loss of Rent After Damage clause, the Tenant Default clause and the Death of a Sole Tenant clause provide;
• rent lost while the property is being renovated, improved or repaired other than because of damage this policy covers;
• rent owed by a tenant who was more than 14 days behind in rent when this policy first started, until that tenant has paid the rent on time for two consecutive months;
• rent above the amount in the residential tenancy agreement, or rent the tribunal reduces or orders need not be paid;
• rent lost because of a dispute about the amount of the rent, or about repairs you were required to make, rather than because the tenant did not pay;
• rent lost because you did not give, or delayed giving, a notice the tenancy legislation requires, or did not apply to the tribunal within a reasonable time after the tenant failed to pay;
• rent lost because a tenant leaves early as the tenancy legislation allows, for example after giving notice of family violence, or because of hardship.

Tenant Damage

This section applies to every policy, for damage to the building where the Building section applies, and to the contents where the Landlord's Contents section applies. The schedule shows the tenant damage limits and the tenant damage excess.

Malicious and Intentional Damage by a Tenant

We pay for damage to the building or the contents caused during the policy period by a tenant or a tenant's guest acting maliciously or intentionally, and for theft by them of the contents or of fixtures and fittings of the building.

The most we pay for all damage and theft caused during one tenancy is the limit shown in the schedule (default $70,000).

Accidental Damage by a Tenant

We pay for damage to the building or the contents caused accidentally during the policy period by a tenant or a tenant's guest.

The most we pay for all accidental damage caused during one tenancy is the limit shown in the schedule (default $70,000).

Drug Contamination

If a tenant causes drug contamination of the property during the policy period, we pay the reasonable cost of testing for it, cleaning or removing it, and repairing or replacing the parts of the building and the contents that must be removed, and the rent you lose while the work is done, for up to 12 weeks.

The most we pay for all drug contamination in the policy period is the limit shown in the schedule (default $30,000).

How We Settle Tenant Damage Claims

We settle claims as the How We Settle Building Claims provision and the How We Settle Contents Claims provision set out. From the amount we pay, we deduct:

• any part of the bond that is paid to you for the damage;
• any amount the tenant or anyone else pays you for the same damage;
• the tenant damage excess shown in the schedule (default $500) for each tenancy.

Claim the bond for the damage first, as the tenancy legislation allows. We will not delay paying the rest of the claim while the bond claim is decided.

What the Tenant Damage Section Does Not Cover

We do not pay for:

• wear and tear, such as scuffed paint, worn carpet, faded curtains, loose handles or minor marks;
• damage that was there before the tenancy started, as shown in the condition report for the tenancy;
• damage you or your property manager knew about during the tenancy and did not take reasonable steps to stop or repair;
• damage that results from the tenant failing to clean or maintain the property over a period, rather than from one incident;
• damage by an animal, unless the E03 Pet Damage endorsement applies;
• damage caused by you, or by a tenant who is a member of your family;
• drug contamination that started before this policy first started, or that you or your property manager knew of, or had reason to suspect, before the tenant who caused it moved in;
• property the tenant owns.

Liability

This section applies to every policy. The schedule shows the limit of liability.

Liability as Owner of the Property

We will pay the amount you become legally liable to pay as compensation for personal injury or property damage that happens during the policy period in Australia, caused by an occurrence in connection with your ownership of the property.

Limit. The most we pay for all compensation arising from one occurrence is the limit of liability shown in the schedule (default $20,000,000). All personal injury and property damage arising from one source or original cause is one occurrence.

Defence costs. In addition to the limit, we pay the reasonable legal costs we incur or approve in defending or settling a claim covered by this section, and interest on a judgment up to the date we pay or offer to pay it.

Settlement. We may take over and conduct the defence or settlement of any claim in your name. We may at any time pay you the limit, less any amount already paid, and then we have no further obligation for that occurrence except for defence costs already incurred.

Workers

We do not pay for personal injury to a person employed by you that arises out of their employment, where you are required by law to insure that liability under a workers compensation scheme, or would be but for an exemption.

Contractual Liability

We do not pay for liability you agreed to under a contract, to the extent it is more than the liability you would have had without the contract.

Vehicles, Aircraft and Watercraft

We do not pay for liability arising from the use of a vehicle that is registered or required to be registered, or of an aircraft or a watercraft longer than 8 metres.

Your Own Property

We do not pay for damage to property you own, or to property in your care or control other than the tenant's property at the property.

Pollution

We do not pay for liability arising from the discharge, dispersal or escape of pollutants, unless it is sudden, identifiable, unintended and unexpected, and happens at a specific time and place during the policy period.

Asbestos

We do not pay for liability arising from asbestos, or from any material containing asbestos.

Business Activities

We do not pay for liability arising from a business, trade or profession you or anyone else carries on at the property, other than letting the property under a residential tenancy agreement.

Fines and Penalties

We do not pay fines, penalties, or punitive, exemplary or aggravated damages.

Additional Benefits

These benefits apply to every policy, in addition to the sums insured and limits of the other sections, unless a benefit says otherwise.

Legal Costs for Tenant Disputes

We pay the reasonable legal costs and tribunal fees you incur, with our agreement, to recover possession of the property, unpaid rent or the cost of damage from a tenant in a matter this policy covers, up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $10,000) in the policy period. We will not unreasonably withhold our agreement.

Tax Audit Costs

If the Australian Taxation Office audits your income tax return for the rental income and expenses of the property, we pay the reasonable fees of your accountant or tax agent for the audit, up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $5,000) in the policy period. We do not pay any tax, interest or penalty.

Body Corporate Excess

If the property is a lot in a strata scheme and the body corporate recovers from you the excess under its building policy for damage to the lot that this policy would have covered, we pay that excess, up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $5,000) for any one event.

Reletting Costs

After a claim we pay under the Tenant Default clause, we pay the reasonable advertising and letting fees you incur to find a new tenant, up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $2,500) for each claim.

Removing Abandoned Goods

If a tenant leaves goods at the property when the tenancy ends, we pay the reasonable cost of storing, removing or disposing of them as the tenancy legislation requires, up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $2,500) for each tenancy.

Tenant's Emergency Accommodation

If damage covered by the Building section makes the property unfit to live in and you must, under the residential tenancy agreement or the tenancy legislation, pay for the tenant's temporary accommodation, we pay that cost, up to the limit shown in the schedule (default $3,000) for any one event.

How Claims Are Paid

This applies to every section.

Excess

You pay the basic excess shown in the schedule for each claim under the Building and Landlord's Contents sections. If one event gives rise to claims under both sections, only one basic excess is deducted.

The tenant damage excess shown in the schedule applies to claims under the Tenant Damage section, once for each tenancy. The tenant default excess applies as the How We Settle Rent Claims provision sets out. No excess applies to the Liability section or the Additional Benefits section.

The schedule may show a separate excess for damage by earthquake. That excess replaces the basic excess for that damage.

GST and Claims

Where you are entitled to an input tax credit for the GST on the cost of a repair or replacement, we pay the claim net of that credit. Each sum insured and limit in this policy includes GST to the extent you are not entitled to an input tax credit for it.

Other Insurance

If a loss covered by this policy is also covered by another insurance policy, we will not refuse or reduce our payment because of that other insurance. We may seek contribution from the other insurer as the law allows. This does not apply where the schedule or an endorsement states that this policy is excess of a specified underlying policy, in which case this policy pays only after the limit of that specified policy is exhausted.

Who We Pay

We pay you, or as you direct. Where an interested party is shown in the schedule, we pay as the schedule requires. We may pay a repairer or supplier directly.

General Exclusions

These exclusions apply to every section.

Short-Stay Letting

We do not pay for loss, damage or liability to the extent that it is caused or contributed to by short-stay letting of the property, or any part of it, including by a guest, unless the E04 Short-Stay Letting endorsement applies. This does not exclude loss, damage or liability that the short-stay letting did not cause or contribute to, for example a fire that a guest did not start.

Your Deliberate Acts

We do not pay for any loss, damage or liability caused deliberately by you, or by a person acting with your authority.

Illegal Use You Knew Of

We do not pay for any loss, damage or liability arising from illegal activity at the property that you or your property manager knew of, or had reason to suspect, and did not take reasonable steps to stop. Illegal activity by a tenant that you did not know of does not affect your cover.

War

We do not pay for any loss, damage, liability or cost arising from war, invasion, act of foreign enemy, hostilities or warlike operations (whether war is declared or not), civil war, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, military or usurped power, or confiscation by a government or public authority.

Nuclear

We do not pay for any loss, damage, liability or cost arising from ionising radiation, contamination by radioactivity from nuclear fuel or waste, or nuclear weapons material.

Terrorism

We do not pay for any loss, damage, liability or cost arising from an act of terrorism, meaning an act, including the use of force or violence or the threat of it, by any person or group, committed for political, religious, ideological or similar purposes, including the intention to influence a government or to put the public in fear. This exclusion does not apply to the extent the Terrorism Insurance Act 2003 (Cth) requires cover to be provided. [WP REVIEW: confirm whether a residential investment property is eligible property under the Terrorism Insurance Act 2003 (Cth).]

Electronic Data

We do not pay for loss of, damage to or corruption of electronic data, or for loss arising from unauthorised use of a computer system, other than physical damage to the building or contents by a resulting fire or explosion. Unauthorised use means use of a computer system by a person not permitted by its owner to use it.

Your Obligations

Telling Us About a Claim

Tell us as soon as reasonably practicable after damage, a loss of rent or an occurrence that may lead to a claim, and tell the police promptly about any theft or malicious damage.

Give us the information and documents we reasonably ask for to assess the claim, including the residential tenancy agreement, the rent ledger, the condition reports and any tribunal orders, and allow us to inspect the damaged property before it is repaired, unless emergency repairs are needed under the Emergency Repairs and Temporary Protection extension.

Steps When a Tenant Does Not Pay

When a tenant is behind in rent, you or your property manager must take the steps the tenancy legislation provides to recover the rent or end the tenancy, including giving the notices it requires and applying to the tribunal within a reasonable time. Tell us before you apply to the tribunal for an order about a claim under this policy.

Inspecting the Property

You or your property manager must make a written condition report at the start and end of each tenancy, and inspect the property at least once every six months while it is let, or as often as the tenancy legislation allows if that is less often. Keep the reports.

Reducing Loss

Take reasonable steps to prevent further damage or loss, keep the property in a reasonable state of repair, and keep damaged property and evidence until we have had a reasonable opportunity to inspect it.

Admissions

Do not admit liability for, or agree to settle, a claim under the Liability section without our written agreement, which we will not unreasonably withhold. Co-operate with us in the defence of the claim.

Telling Us About Changes

Tell us during the policy period, as soon as reasonably practicable, if:

• the property will be unoccupied for more than 60 consecutive days;
• you start or plan building works costing more than $50,000, or works that affect the structure of the building;
• the property will be used for short-stay letting, as a rooming house or for student accommodation, or for any purpose other than letting under a residential tenancy agreement;
• you start to manage the property yourself, or appoint a property manager.

We will tell you whether the change affects your cover or premium. The Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) condition applies.

Our Right of Recovery

After we pay a claim, we may take over your rights to recover the amount from anyone else, including a tenant, and act in your name. Help us do so, at our cost.

General Conditions

Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth)

Nothing in this policy excludes, restricts or modifies the operation of the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth). Where this policy is inconsistent with the Act, the Act prevails.

If this policy would otherwise let us refuse to pay a claim, in whole or in part, because of something you did or did not do after this policy was entered into, section 54 of the Act applies. We may not refuse to pay the claim only because of that act or omission. Our liability is reduced by the amount that fairly represents the extent to which our interests were prejudiced. Where the act or omission could reasonably be regarded as capable of causing or contributing to the loss, we may refuse to pay only the part of the claim that the act or omission caused or contributed to. We may not refuse any part that you prove the act or omission did not cause. This applies to every condition, exclusion, limit and obligation in this policy, not only to the claims conditions.

Joint Owners

Where more than one person is named in the schedule as the insured, a fraud, deliberate act or failure to comply with this policy by one of them does not affect the cover of any other who did not know of it and did not take part in it.

Cancellation

You may cancel this policy at any time by telling us. If you cancel within the cooling-off period in the Important Information section, we refund the premium as that section states. Otherwise we refund the premium for the unexpired policy period on a pro-rata basis, less any non-refundable government charges. If we have paid a total loss of the building, or of an item of the landlord's contents, no refund applies to that building or item.

We may cancel this policy only as the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) allows, by giving you written notice as that Act requires, which is at least 30 days' written notice or any longer notice the Act requires. We refund the premium for the unexpired policy period on a pro-rata basis. [WP REVIEW: confirm the notice an insurer must give to cancel a landlord policy, including whether s 60 of the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) applies as well as s 59.]

Cancellation does not affect a claim for damage, a loss of rent or an occurrence that happened before cancellation.

Renewal

Each renewal is a new contract. Before this policy ends, we will tell you whether we offer to renew it and on what terms, as s.58 of the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) requires. We are not obliged to offer renewal.

Fraud

If a claim is made fraudulently, we may refuse to pay it, as s.56 of the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) allows.

Sanctions

We do not provide cover, pay any claim or provide any benefit under this policy to the extent that doing so would expose us to any sanction, prohibition or restriction under:

• the Autonomous Sanctions Act 2011 (Cth), the Charter of the United Nations Act 1945 (Cth), or regulations made under either Act; or
• the trade or economic sanctions laws of the United Kingdom, the United States of America or the European Union, to the extent they apply to us.

[WP REVIEW: confirm that naming the UK, US and EU regimes is appropriate for Australian capacity; this is a deliberate library-wide scope choice.]

GST

The premium includes GST where it applies, under A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (Cth). Claims are paid as the GST and Claims provision sets out. Tell us your entitlement to input tax credits when you make a claim.

Privacy

We collect, use and disclose personal information about you, your co-owners and your tenants to assess the proposal, administer this policy and manage claims, in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and our privacy policy. Our privacy policy explains how a person can access and correct their information and how to complain about a privacy matter.

Disputes and Complaints

If you are unhappy with our service or a decision, contact us at the details in the schedule. We will acknowledge the complaint within one business day and give our decision within 30 calendar days.

If you are not satisfied with our response, or we have not responded within 30 calendar days, you may take the complaint to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA), a free and independent dispute resolution service: www.afca.org.au, 1800 931 678, info@afca.org.au.

Governing Law

This policy is governed by the law of the Australian state or territory in which the property is located.

Jurisdiction

You and we submit to the jurisdiction of the courts of the state or territory whose law governs this policy, and of any court that may hear appeals from them.

Headings and References

Headings are for convenience only. A reference to legislation includes any legislation that amends or replaces it. A reference to a clause by its heading is a reference to that clause as it appears in this wording.

How to Make a Claim

1. Make the property safe and arrange emergency repairs if needed (see the Emergency Repairs and Temporary Protection extension).
2. Contact your property manager or broker, or contact us directly at the details shown in the schedule.
3. Tell the police about any theft or malicious damage, and get the report number.
4. For damage by a tenant or unpaid rent, send us the residential tenancy agreement, the condition reports, the rent ledger and any notices and tribunal orders.
5. Tell us what happened and when, and give us photographs, quotes and invoices.
6. We will acknowledge your claim, keep you informed, and tell you our decision as the General Insurance Code of Practice requires where the insurer subscribes to it.

Endorsement Library

An endorsement applies only if its code is shown in the schedule. Each endorsement changes this policy only as it states, and is read together with the variables shown for it in the schedule. Where an endorsement and the rest of this policy conflict, the endorsement applies to the extent of the conflict. If a variable an endorsement needs is not shown in the schedule, the default stated in the endorsement applies; if it has no default, the endorsement does not apply until we show the variable in the schedule.

E01 Accidental Damage

We cover damage to the building and the contents caused accidentally by anyone other than a tenant or a tenant's guest, as if it were an insured event listed in the Damage to the Building clause. Every other term of the Building and Landlord's Contents sections applies.

We do not pay under this endorsement for damage to glass in a television, computer or other screen, for mechanical or electrical breakdown, or for damage to property while it is being repaired or worked on.

Schedule variables: none.

E02 Higher Weekly Rent

The weekly rent limit is the amount shown in the schedule for this endorsement, in place of the limit in the definition of Rent.

Schedule variables: weekly rent limit (no default).

E03 Pet Damage

The Malicious and Intentional Damage by a Tenant clause and the Accidental Damage by a Tenant clause also cover damage to the building and the contents by an animal kept at the property by a tenant, where the residential tenancy agreement or the tenancy legislation allows the tenant to keep it. The most we pay for damage by animals during one tenancy is the pet damage limit shown in the schedule for this endorsement, within the tenant damage limits.

We do not pay for damage by an animal that is gradual, such as scratching or chewing over a period, or for cleaning, fumigation or odour removal.

Schedule variables: pet damage limit (default $5,000).

E04 Short-Stay Letting

The Short-Stay Letting exclusion does not apply. While the property is used for short-stay letting:

• a guest is treated as a tenant, and their stay as a tenancy, for the Tenant Damage section, with the short-stay damage limit shown in the schedule for this endorsement;
• the Tenant Default clause and the Death of a Sole Tenant clause do not apply;
• the Loss of Rent After Damage clause pays the average nightly booking income for the same months in the previous year, or the confirmed bookings you lose if the property was not let then, for up to 12 weeks.

Schedule variables: short-stay damage limit (default $20,000); special excess (default the tenant damage excess).

E05 Rooming House or Student Accommodation

The property may be let by the room, under a separate agreement for each room, as a rooming house or as student accommodation. Each occupant is treated as a tenant. The tenant damage excess applies once for each room in which damage happens, and the rent cover limit applies to all rooms together.

Schedule variables: number of rooms let; special excess (default the tenant damage excess).

E06 Specialist Disability or Supported Accommodation

The property may be let as specialist disability accommodation or supported independent living accommodation, with the occupants' tenancies arranged under a residential tenancy agreement or a supported accommodation agreement under the law of the state or territory. Each occupant is treated as a tenant, and their agreement as a residential tenancy agreement.

Damage caused by an occupant because of their disability is covered under the Accidental Damage by a Tenant clause and not the Malicious and Intentional Damage by a Tenant clause.

Schedule variables: provider name; special excess (default the tenant damage excess).

E07 Agreed Value

The building is insured for the agreed value shown in the schedule for this endorsement. If the building is destroyed, we pay the agreed value, whatever the cost of rebuilding, and the safety net in the How We Settle Building Claims provision does not apply. For partial damage, the How We Settle Building Claims provision applies up to the agreed value.

Schedule variables: agreed value (no default); date of valuation.

E08 Building Works

Building works described in the schedule for this endorsement may be carried out at the property. The Unoccupied Property exclusion does not apply while the works are under way and a builder licensed for them is responsible for the site. We do not pay for damage to the works themselves, to materials not yet fixed to the building, or for damage that results from the works.

Schedule variables: description and contract value of the works; expected completion date.

E09 Unoccupied Property

The Unoccupied Property exclusion does not apply until the date shown in the schedule for this endorsement, provided you or your property manager inspect the property at least every 14 days and keep it secure.

Schedule variables: date cover for unoccupancy ends (no default).

E10 Heritage-Listed Building

The building is listed on a heritage register. We pay the extra cost of repairing heritage features using the methods and materials the heritage authority requires, up to the heritage limit shown in the schedule for this endorsement, in addition to the building sum insured.

Schedule variables: heritage limit (default 10% of the building sum insured).

E11 Interested Party

The interest of the party named in the schedule for this endorsement is noted. Noting an interest does not make that party an insured and gives it no right to claim, but we will tell it if this policy is cancelled, if you agree that we may do so.

Schedule variables: interested party name and interest.

E12 Lloyd's Underwriters

This policy is underwritten by the Lloyd's underwriters named in the schedule. Each underwriter is liable only for its own share, and not for the share of any other underwriter.

The underwriters agree that any dispute about this policy may be heard by a court of competent jurisdiction in Australia, and that the Lloyd's General Representative in Australia named in the schedule may accept service of process for them. Complaints may also be made to Lloyd's Australia at the details shown in the schedule, as well as under the Disputes and Complaints condition.

Schedule variables: underwriters and their shares; Lloyd's General Representative; Lloyd's complaints contact.

E13 Self-Managed Property

You manage the property yourself, without a property manager. For the Tenant Default clause, the Death of a Sole Tenant clause and the Tenant Damage section:

• the tenant default excess is the amount shown in the schedule for this endorsement;
• with your claim, you must give us the records that show the checks in the How the Tenant Was Chosen condition were made, the condition reports and inspection records in the Inspecting the Property obligation, the rent ledger, and copies of the notices you gave.

Schedule variables: tenant default excess (default two weeks' rent).

Licence and Trademark Notice

This wording's text is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). The licence applies to the wording text only. It does not extend to, and no licence is granted in, the "Meridian" name, the Cuttleflow Systems name, logo, bearing mark, or any other trademark, trade dress, or brand asset, all of which remain the property of their respective owners and may not be used without separate permission.

An adopting insurer's own schedule, proposal, endorsements and other materials prepared for use with this wording are not required to be released under CC BY 4.0 merely because they are used together with this wording; CC BY 4.0 requires only that you attribute the wording text you use.

This wording is provided for general use and adaptation. Adopting insurers and their advisers are responsible for obtaining their own legal, regulatory, and reinsurance advice before use, including on the Product Disclosure Statement, any Key Facts Sheet and the Target Market Determination. Use of this wording requires the approval of the relevant capacity provider. Any Wording Partner review and sign-off letter issued in respect of this wording runs to Cuttleflow Pty Ltd t/a Cuttleflow Systems only and does not constitute legal advice to any adopting insurer or insured.

Designed for the Australian market. Assumes application of the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth). Users are responsible for their own legal review, regulatory compliance, and reinsurance alignment.