I am a tenant; do I need insurance?

To answer this question, you must consider all your specific circumstances, but the stories I am about to tell you may help with your decision - David Forrest of First National Cairns Central and Northern Beaches.

Recently a street sewer backed up and released into a property we manage. The coverage was extensive, and the property was rendered uninhabitable due to the biohazard. The damage to the property was significant, but more importantly in this discussion, so was the damage to the tenant’s belongings.

The tenant did not have contents insurance and has consequently lost much of their property and suffered a sizable financial loss. We are trying to help but this situation is simply made more complex because of a lack of insurance.

In a similar situation, a tenant accidentally set fire to a kitchen. The whole unit was damaged by smoke and again the contents were not insured. It is not a legal requirement to have contents insured but as you can see in these situations it would have been a huge help.

We spoke with local insurance broker Joe Vella of JVIB, who said that an indicative premium for $30,000 contents cover for a tenant living in a home in Mt Sheridan could be as little as $16.50 per week.

MORE: To find out more about David and the First National Cairns Central team, click here.