GIO Home Assist - currently free with a new Home Building Insurance policy (excl. Landlord) — is an optional cover that can offer you help from a plumber, electrician, locksmith or carpenter in a home emergency. So if you’ve had GIO Home Assist added to your policy for 24 hours or more and you come home to something unexpected, like a burst pipe or blown fuse, we can help get it sorted ASAP.
The content on this page applies to policies started or renewed on or after 24 May 2025.
What is home insurance?
Home insurance can cover damage to your home and belongings from events like fire, storms, flood and theft. Without it, you could face the full cost of:
repairing or rebuilding your home,
replacing your belongings, or
legal costs if a visitor is injured in your home.
Your home is more than just four walls and a roof. GIO understands that too. We also know that no two homes are the same. That’s why we offer different types of home insurance cover, so you can find the right fit for your situation and budget.
Explore types of home insurance with GIO
Most Popular
Home and Contents
Covers the main structure of your home and the things inside it.
Repair or rebuild your home after an insured event
Repair or replacement of contents
Cover for fire (including bushfire), flood, storm, storm surge and break-ins
Home Building Insurance
Covers the main structure of your home and permanent attached fixtures.
Repair or rebuild your home after an insured event
Cover for fire (including bushfire), flood, storm, storm surge and break-ins
Accidental breakage of fixed glass
Contents Insurance
Cover for the things inside your home.
Repair or replacement of contents
Cover for fire (including bushfire), flood, storm, storm surge and break-ins
New for old replacement of your contents
Landlord Insurance
Covers an investment property, its contents, or both.
Loss and damage from events like flood, storm and fire (including bushfire)
Theft, vandalism and malicious damage by tenants or guests
Accidental breakage of fixed glass (when you have Property cover)
Home Assist
Emergency 24/7 home assistance, available as optional cover for Home and Contents and Building Insurance.
Plumber
Electrician
Locksmith
Carpenter
Strata Insurance
Covers residential buildings under a strata, body corporate or community title.
Accidental loss or damage from events like flood, storm and fire (including bushfire)
Theft and malicious damage by lot occupiers (such as tenants) and their guests
Loss of rent following an insured event
To learn details of what is and isn’t included, including limitations, read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS).
Why choose GIO Home Insurance
24/7 Claims
Lodge and track claims any time, from anywhere.
Guaranteed workmanship
Lifetime guarantee on repairs we arrange.
Local knowledge and claims team
99 years insuring homes across NSW and Australia.
Did you know you can add optional cover to all GIO Home
Insurance policies?
Choose between extras like:
FAQS
People also ask
Home Insurance provides cover for your home including garages, carports, outbuildings, fixed swimming pools, sealed driveways, gates and fences, along with any permanently attached fixtures like solar panels, walls, ceilings, and floors caused by a range of insured events at your insured address.
Whereas Contents Insurance is for the loss or damage to the contents in your home caused by insured events. Contents are household items that you own or are responsible for and use primarily for domestic purposes. These include things like furniture, furnishings, clothing, unfixed electrical goods and appliances (not housed in a cabinet), window coverings as well as carpet and rugs.
To learn about GIO Home Insurance and Contents Insurance, and what we cover as the home and contents, please refer to the PDS.
Ultimately, the level of cover you choose, and with who, is up to you. Comparing Home and Contents Insurance should be based on what you need cover for, like home, contents, personal valuables or landlord insurance. To compare Home and Contents Insurance, you can:
- Check what cover is automatically included in each policy you’re considering;
- Review any optional/additional covers available;
- Get a quote for the policy or policies you’re looking at;
- and Compare the quote and what it includes against other quotes you may have received.
Contents are household items that you own or are responsible for and use primarily for domestic purposes. That doesn’t include items permanently attached to your home or insured address.
No, your carpets aren’t covered by GIO Building Insurance. You’ll need GIO Home Contents Insurance or a combined Home and Contents Insurance policy to offer cover for your carpets.
For more information, please refer to the Home and Contents PDS.
To help you calculate the replacement value of your home and contents, use our Building Calculator and our Contents Calculator.
Not sure how much to insure for?
Use our calculators to help you estimate the cost of rebuilding your home and replacing your items, to nominate a sum insured amount you’re comfortable with.
Home insurance in action
Burst pipes flooding your kitchen
A pipe under your kitchen sink suddenly bursts when you’re at work. Water flows for hours, flooding your kitchen and damaging cabinets, flooring and nearby appliances.
How GIO Home Insurance can help:
GIO Home and Contents Insurance may cover the cost of repairing the damage caused by the escape of water, including:
replacing damaged cabinets and flooring, and
fixing affected areas of the kitchen
Storm damage to your roof
A severe storm hits overnight. In the morning, you notice water dripping from the ceiling in your living room. Several roof tiles have been blown off. Rainwater has entered the house, damaging the ceiling and carpet.
How GIO Home Insurance can help:
Because storm damage is included in your GIO Building Insurance and GIO Home and Contents Insurance, it can help cover the costs of:
repairing the roof, and
fixing damage caused to your ceilings, walls and flooring.
Stolen electronics during burglary
You spent the weekend away to return home to an unpleasant surprise: your back door was forced open. The burglar has taken your laptop, gaming console, and TV.
How GIO Home Insurance can help:
GIO Home and Contents Insurance and Contents Insurance cover theft and burglary, so your policy may help pay to replace your stolen items up to your policy limits.
Important information
*If you’re eligible for more than one discount, we apply them in a pre-set order to the discounted premium, before government taxes and charges.
^Discount not applicable to GIO Roadside Assist, GIO Home Assist or Excess-free Glass cover optional covers.
NEW GIO Home Assist
Flood
Flood means the covering of normally dry land by water that has escaped or been released from the normal confines of things like a lake, river, or other natural watercourse. It doesn't include high tides, waves and other movements of the sea, or storm surges, and we don't cover loss or damage to retaining walls, sea walls, garden borders and free-standing outdoor walls.
No bushfire, storm or flood cover in the first 72 hours of your policy. Very limited exceptions apply. Actions or movements of the sea and storm surge are not covered (unless the storm surge damage occurs at the same time as damage caused by storm). Limits and exclusions apply.
Storm
Storm means a storm, cyclone or severe atmospheric disturbance. It can be accompanied by strong winds, rain, lightning, hail, snow or dust. Damage caused by the sea is not considered "storm damage" on its own but is covered if it happens at the same time as damage by the storm.
No bushfire, storm or flood cover in the first 72 hours of your policy. Very limited exceptions apply. Actions or movements of the sea and storm surge are not covered (unless the storm surge damage occurs at the same time as damage caused by storm). Limits and exclusions apply.
Storm surge
Storm surge means a rush of water onshore associated with a low-pressure system and caused by strong winds pushing on the ocean’s surface.
We cover loss or damage caused by storm surge that happens at the same time as the other insured damage caused by storm.
Storm surge does not include actions or movements of the sea.
Theft or burglary
Theft or burglary occurs when someone enters the insured address without your consent and steals or intends to steal items. We don't cover loss or damage caused by anyone living at the address.
Temporary accommodation
If you can't live in your home after an incident covered by your policy, you may be entitled to reasonable temporary accommodation costs until your home is repaired or rebuilt. If you’re not sure whether this applies to you, or you want more information on limits and exclusions, check your policy documents or get in touch with us to discuss.
Guarantee on work we authorise
We guarantee the quality of the workmanship for all authorised repairs if we have selected and directly authorised a supplier.
New for old, regardless of age
We will rebuild, replace, or repair with new items or new materials that are reasonably and readily available at the time of rebuild, replacement or repair from Australian suppliers.
When replacing your contents, if the quoted cost to repair is more than the cost of replacement or the content item cannot be repaired, you have the option for a replacement on a ‘new for old’ basis sourced through our supplier network. Conditions apply – see the PDS for more information.
$20 million legal liability
Provides up to $20 million to pay compensation, including all associated legal costs, for death of or bodily injury to other people, or loss or damage to their property, resulting from an incident which happens during the period of insurance in connection with certain situations. Applies to home cover. Please read the PDS for full details of the terms, conditions and exclusions.
For example, with home cover, if someone's injured falling down your stairs, which you're held legally liable for, we cover damages (money paid to the victim as compensation) including all associated legal costs up to $20 million.
Specified portable valuables
This also covers accidental loss or damage to specified items normally carried with you away from home anywhere in Australia or New Zealand, up to the sum insured which you choose for each individual item. Jewellery and watches only are covered anywhere in the world for up to 30 consecutive days, but only while being worn by you or in a secure safe. This optional cover is available with Classic and Classic Extras cover.
Unspecified portable valuables
This covers accidental loss or damage to items normally carried with you away from home like your mobile phone, jewellery, camera, tablet or laptop (max $1,000 per item, pair, set or collection and up to your total Unspecified valuables sum insured). This optional cover is available with Classic and Classic Extras cover.
Safety net home protection
If the cost to repair or rebuild loss or damage to your home covered by your policy exceeds the home sum insured we will pay up to a further percentage of the home sum insured towards either:
- repair or rebuild of the home by our builder, when our builder is repairing or rebuilding
- the amount of our builder’s assessed quote to repair or rebuild the home, when your claim is being settled on this basis
- the amount of your builder’s assessed quote, when your claim is being settled on this basis.
See PDS for full details including limits, terms and exclusions.
Motor burnout
Cover for electric motors in household equipment and appliances that are equal to or less than 10 years old when they burnout or fuse. This includes things like the motor in your freestanding fridge or a split-system air conditioner.
Accidental damage at home
This covers you if you lose, break or damage something accidentally at your home for example by dropping, knocking over or spilling something without intent.
Excess-free Glass cover
When your claim is only for accidental breakage of fixed glass in windows, doors, skylights and shower screens, mirrors fixed to the home, or other fixed glass (including glass tint if fitted) during the period of insurance, we cover the cost to replace that glass without you having to pay an excess.
GIO Home Assist
This is an emergency assistance service that provides you with plumbing, electrical, locksmith or carpentry services in the event of a home emergency. It is not a general maintenance or preventative service (for example, it doesn't cover painting, or replacing light bulbs or tap washers) or a disaster response service. This cover is only available 24 hours after adding it to a new or existing policy.
Some conditions apply. Please refer to the Home and Contents PDS for more information.