If you own a unit, apartment, or townhouse in a strata scheme, your property is covered by an insurance policy arranged by the Owners Corporation (OC). This Strata Insurance is essential, but it’s often confused with individual lot owners contents insurance.
Understanding the difference is key to protecting your assets.
✅ What the Strata Policy Typically Covers
- Building & Structural Improvements: This includes the walls, roof, foundations, and associated outbuildings that are a part of the property.
- Internal Lot Fixtures: The coverage generally extends to items fixed within your unit, such as internal walls, entrance/internal doors, kitchen cupboards and bench tops, and bathroom vanities, toilets, bathtubs, and shower screens.
- Fixed Flooring: Fixed parquetry floor is generally covered.
- Common Area Contents: This refers to the furnishings or equipment that are available for use by all owners within the shared spaces of the property. These items are typically maintained by the property management and are intended to enhance the functionality and comfort of the common areas
- Utilities: Wall cavity electrical wiring is typically included.
**Items like internal paint, wallpaper, and floating floorboards within your lot may or may not be covered depending on the specific Strata Insurance Policy—always check the document for clarification.
❌ What Strata Insurance Does NOT Cover (Owners Responsibility)
- Lot owners’ contents – The contents belonging to the lot owners include various personal items and property that are not permanently attached to the building structure.
- Freestanding appliances (not hard wired to the building) – Freestanding appliances refer to those devices that are not permanently installed or hardwired into the building’s electrical system. These include items such as refrigerators, washing machines, and other movable appliances.
- Personal effects – Personal effects encompass all personal belongings that are owned by the lot owners, including clothing, jewellery, and other personal items that are not part of the building’s fixtures.
- Light fittings – Light fittings are the fixtures that provide lighting within the property. These can be removed or replaced by the lot owners as they are not considered permanent fixtures of the building.
🤝 Our Commitment: Your Stress-Free Experience
Navigating the specifics of Strata Insurance, especially determining what’s the OC’s responsibility versus your own can be confusing. That’s where we provide a seamless, high-value experience:
- Clear Guidance: We don’t just hand over a complex document. We use this type of clear, comparative information to give Lot Owners a personalised explanation of where the OC policy ends and their individual responsibility begins.
- Proactive Claim Assistance: Should you need to claim, we are a single point of contact. We simplify the claims process by managing the liaison with the broker, who then deals with the insurer directly, giving you peace of mind and saving you considerable time and effort.
- Tailored Policy Review: We urge Lot Owners to refer to their specific Owners Corporation’s Strata Insurance Policy, and we are here to assist with that review, helping you understand any specific differences in coverage and conditions.