Nearly three in 10 Australians have changed their home and contents policies in the past two years, according to survey data from market comparator Finder. 

About 20% of respondents switched policies to save money, with 9% moving to find better coverage.

A further 3% have downgraded or cancelled their insurance due to costs – equivalent to almost 370,000 Australians, Finder says.

The comparator says the results reflect the growing strain of insurance costs for many homeowners, with 68% reporting a rise in their home and contents premiums in the past year. It says median home and contents premiums rose 19%, reaching a record high of $2434 per year.

Finder insurance expert Tim Bennett says many Australians face a “difficult decision” on whether to prioritise other bills over insurance.

“Thousands have abandoned home insurance instead of facing more premium rises,” he said. “Without insurance, an accident in the home or weather-related damage could be financially devastating.”

He says policyholders can reduce costs without downgrading coverage, with the comparator’s data showing 47% of respondents auto-renewed their insurance.

“Don’t automatically renew with your insurer – loyalty doesn’t pay, and you could find a better deal by shopping around and getting quotes from other insurers,” Mr Bennett said. “We found a huge price difference of $2865 when we compared the cheapest annual policy and the most expensive for buildings worth $600,000.”

Finder’s figures are based on an April survey of 1071 respondents, 636 of whom held home insurance.