Real Home & Contents Insurance

Very Bad Customer service - Better priced policies out there – EDIT JAN 2026 - I wrote my original review in Jan 25. After cancelling my policy, I had to make a claim for an earlier year. I called customer service who told me I was not covered. I also emailed REAL and received no response. I contacted an independent lawyer who advised me to make a claim via the portal, which I did and REAL contacted me a few… Read more

days later. The legal team have been excellent - [Name Removed] was amazing and deserves 5 stars.

HOWEVER- I experienced terrible customer service yet again when I was making enquiries. They could not understand me and gave me incorrect advice

REAL - I am saying the same thing as last year - your customer service needs to improve and must have people who understand your policies as well as being able to understand English. The service from [Name Removed] was outstanding but the people answering the phones are letting your company down big time!

REVIEWED - JAN 2025 After being a customer for over 10 years without a claim, I was very disappointed when I called and asked for a review of my policy and costs. I have more than one policy with this company and wanted them to look at all my policies, but I just received no help and spoke to a very rude customer service person. Escalated this to a complaint and ended up playing phone tag. After researching and finding other content insurance for half the price, I cancelled my policy yesterday.

You decide if you can trust Real - maybe I'm wrong? – In last 7 years, 350% increase in premiums despite no claims, no requests for coverage increase. The old "Building and labor costs have gone up" line. Except that they've only increased the coverage amount by 56% in those 7 years. So I must be substantially underinsured if that's the case. Shouldn't they tell me? 1. Renewal email comes,… Read more

"Thanks for you loyalty", nothing about any increase in a page of text. Open attached statement to find $275/m sneakily went to $370/m.

2. Asked for a quote with excesses increased to maximum. They give me the quote, ask me if I wish to proceed - but fail to mention one quite important thing - what those maximum excesses are. That halved the premium with an NRMA quote I just did. It didn't with Real - just reduced $370/m to $320/m

3. Request immediate cancellation, and of course no refunds for the next 25 day cover that I don't wish.

I suspect they're in financial trouble with such increases and such desperation to force cover on me for the next 25 days, so no longer trust any claim would be paid. I'll let other people dig their way out.

I just did a quote with NRMA and maybe their maximum excesses are higher (I don't know what Real's are - they didn't tell me), but for higher contents and building amounts, it was $184/m compared to Real's $310/m.

CONTENS POLICY – We have been with Real Insurance for a number of years & have been very pleased with their service. If either my husband or myself have had cause to call them, the staff are very friendly & helpful. We see no reason to change insurers. Show details ·  1

Great customer service and prices – The policy was easy to set up, very friendly people to deal with when any issues arise. I will continue to use and recommend Real Insurance. I was able to get cover for only a month as there was a cross over between my settlements of approx a month and needed home insurance for a short period of time. Show details ·  1

Very Helpful – I spoke with Izzy she was very helpful as i had a few queries as this was my first house insurance. She was able to answer all my questions no matter how trivial and to be honest there were a few. Thank you Izzy for your help much appreciated Show details ·  1

Think twice before insure with Real Insurance as they're untrustworthy – Please beware! don't expect to get your claim approved, my claim was pre-approved then declined then approved but then construction was due to start a day before then got told it been withdrawn and got declined, now I can't even insure elsewhere due to my declined records. Show details

24% increase without any reason – Changed to Real home insurance a year or two ago and just received my updated policy for next year with a 24% increase with No claims or significant change to amount of insurance for the insured home. I rang to ask why was there a such a huge increase and the customer service kept me on line whilst she looked for the possible reason. What she was… Read more

really doing was looking for the 'script' that she was to read out if a customer complained. It was so corny and generic that it was embarrassing. It was full of generic rubbish like inflation [which has only been around 5%] or property value which only went up around 6%. I think their business model is to quote low for new customers and then apply unrealistic increases in the subsequent years with the hope that a percentage of people won't check. I'd love to see how these dodgy tactics compare to their company values and mission statements. Why does this industry still operate like they did in 60s and 70s? Don't you know that it's easier and more profitable to be honest and retain existing customers instead of churning and burning them.

Worst company to deal with when their customer dies!!!!! – I have just had to make another call to Real Insurance as no action has been taken on my request to cancel my Mum's Home Contents Insurance after she passed away. When I called the first time to advise of her passing and ask for the policy to be cancelled I was told they could not do this until I sent some documentation through. I sent the… Read more

documentation straight after the call. Six days later nothing has happened and they have taken a further monthly premium from her bank account. This is not ok. At the very least on that first call they should have ceased their direct debit. They have now taken money from a deceased person's account. I am sure that after being notified someone has passed away and asked to cancel her insurance it would not be legal to deduct money that she doesnt owe from a deceased person's account. Every other company I have called processed cancellations straight away and treated me with kindness and compassion. The way this company deals with grieving family members, the lack of action and the continued direct debit after death is disgusting. Its hard enough to deal with the death of my Mum and make all the calls and contacts let alone having to make multiple calls, send emails and be told that they are very busy and nothing I can do but wait for them to process my request when they get to their emails. I would not recommend this company to anyone if this is how they conduct their business I can only imagine the trouble their customers would have if they need to make a claim.

Thieves – Fees are exorbitant and no claims have been settled. Don't bother with them Show details

Real Insurance should not be in the insurance business – Submitted my claim in June 2022 by phone (online submission was not working) for my landlords insurance and still waiting for the funds . The incompetence from this company is mind blowing. Everytime you call it is over a 30 to 60 mins wait. The claim acceptance and payment confirmation was finally issued on 13th Sep 22. Did not receive the… Read more

funds as yet. Today I called to find out what is going on. They blamed it on an administrative error. I GIVE UP . Seriously they should not be in the insurance business.

Terrible management of claims and poor service – I've been with Real Insurance for Home and Contents, both vehicles (even pets in the past), however recent experiences have been abhorrent. Real, while once a great respected brand, enlists the services (or lack there of) to a company called AJ Grant, for the management of any assessments and repairs. Read online reviews for them too, and you'll… Read more

see how badly they're viewed by the public with many comments saying not to touch any insurance company who uses them for claims / repairs.

We've always found Real Insurance (Hollard) great when setting up policies, and taking our money, but sadly the very few times we've have had to claim its been an absolute nightmare, and not one I'd wish upon my worst enemy. Processes are unclear, service is almost non-existent and forget any itemisation, timings or guidance - its more a case of choose your own adventure, hold on for as long as you can and keep hoping for the best.

We, based in Camden, suffered damages to our property with floods approx. two years ago which were not managed, and repairs were not satisfactorily carried out, resulting in us forced to spend approx $24k on installing drains, two dehumidifiers (for a temp solution or so I thought), solar panels and fully ducted air conditioning to utilise dry mode for ongoing mould and humidity issues. The last couple of years we've had to run dehum's 24/7, not the temp solution we thought, which indicates sufficient work was not carried out to help us.

This year in Feb most will know we were hit again with further floods. Since Feb I have been contacting Real Insurance, virtually weekly, to plead for assistance in supporting us with mould, humidity issues and extensive damage to both inside and outside of our home. A few weeks ago they finally sent an assessor out from AJ Grant (after 5 months of trying!) and the guy sent spent a total of 11 minutes in our home to conclude that it was "a bit above (his) pay grade" and left. Since then, we've been fighting to sort out temporary living arrangements as we are now JUST TWO WEEKS AWAY from the due date of our third baby! And, we're still here living in this environment which has left us all with ongoing sicknesses and in distress.

If I shared all of the email correspondences you, like me, would be extremely frustrated. We are beyond distressed, wanting to be prepared for our babies arrival but instead pushing for guidance, timeframes and any sort of hope that this is finally being managed. We shouldn't have to fight to have people attend our home to help us, especially when it's hazardous to our health.

I've never in all of my life felt so insignificant, neglected or treated poorly by any business and this is beyond my wildest dreams. No communications unless we prompt for it, it seems its a choose your own adventure scenario but with no conclusion, leaving us hanging with the hope they will finally come through. Thank you to [Name Removed] who at least was the first to show us any sort of empathy for our predicament but this is definitely not how customers should be treated and they're now just words.

We've been approved for temp accommodation but this wasn't sorted so the place we wanted has now gone. And, even if we got into a place we have absolutely no idea when the assessment or any work to be carried out will take place, so once our money for the temp accommodation runs out we are back to square one.

What's happened to Real and where is the REAL experiences that used to be offered to customers? Clearly by the comments here I'm not the only one struggling with these breakdowns. What are you doing to fix these problems? And, how will you fix our issues to finally start taking care or us and so many others with similar stories here??

Unreal Insurance! – I claimed for a shower that leaked into the downstairs roof. They came out to investigate and concluded that they would not repair the shower and damage because it was the wrong type of leak! I don't care what type of leak it was and how would i know anyway not being a plumber? It's appauling that they can take your money but refuse to help you when there is a genuine problem! Show details

Useless – After numerous attempts to contact real insurance no one answers the phone. People on here promise someone will be in can't act but yet noone contacts you. Alot of talk and no action from this company. Don't get insurance from them you will be left in the dark about the whole process and completely ignored for weeks. Always saying they care about their customers but yet clearly don't. Show details

Absolute joke. Don't get insurance through this company – Our pergola was destroyed back in October because of the massive hailstorm. Real insurance have not been one bit helpful during the repair. First we were told it would be started on the 1st of January. The middle of January come around then we were informed trade'smen were on holidays so won't be done till end of march. We finally got someone out… Read more

to measure the sheets on pergola in Feb. He said 4 weeks and he will have the sheets ready. We'll it's now the middle of April! I have emailed them numerous times and the response is someone will get back to you. Well we are still waiting. Spent half an hour on hold at 830 this morning to then be put in the "someone will call you when it's your turn in the queue" it's now 1216pm and I'm still waiting. Now I have decided to call again and wait on hold because we would like know what is happening! Absolute joke customer communication

Worst Insurance Company – Happy to take your money each month but make it impossible to get your claim addressed. (I paid for premium Home & Contents Cover) Never made a Claim in my life before and this is how I am treated Lodged a Claim in February 2021 and it is still not settled / complete They do not respond to emails, they are in breach of the "Code of Conduct" of… Read more

which they are a member I have an ongoing Complaint with AFCA because of their breaches They must pay People on the "Feefo" Platform to write positive reviews. They are deceptive, evasive and encourage unconscionable business practices. Do not buy Policies from this Parent organization - THE HOLLARD INSURANCE COMPANY PTY LTD - or any of their subsidiary companies listed below: Ando ATL Insurance Group Australia Post Australian Seniors BizCover BOW WOW MEOW BUPA Club 4X4 FastCover Guardian Insurance HCF HIF Huddle Insurelink Insuret Kogan Insurance ListSure MiPet PetBarn Insurance Pet Insurance Australia Petinsurance.com.au Petmed Petsecure Petsure PrimePet Insurance Prosure Real Insurance RiskInsure RSPCA St George Underwriting Agency Velocity Velosure Woolworths

Friendly, professional and value for money – The quote process was easy to setup, staff were friendly and informative. The policy was very good value for money. I compared it to several other providers and it came out in front. Totally satisfied. Show details ·  1

Their customer service and internal systems are awful – We joined Real Insurance and were with them for 12 months. During the insurance period we had some rain damage occur, it was the first time we’d ever made a claim. The claim was approved and the repairs were done. Two months later we received a renewal notice and as expected the premium had increased, presumably due to the claim a few months… Read more

earlier.

However, upon checking the Renewal Notice we noticed that the claim wasn’t listed. We called up and asked why it wasn’t listed and we were told that their systems don’t transfer claim information across to renewal notices, and that it was up to us to tell Real Insurance that Real Insurance had approved a claim on our Real Insurance Policy (even the claim had occurred and been approved two months before the Renewal Notice was issued).

As a result our Premium increased a second time. I contacted them by email and all I got was silly responses. I asked for it to be escalated to a Manager however this never occurred.

Subsequently we moved our insurance to another Insurer at a cheaper rate with better coverage and reviews.

Very easy hassle free quote – It was very easy to set up my home & content policy. The home & content quote is reasonable and discounted for outright payment. The policy was sent via email for convenience. Show details ·  1

Avoid, look for a company that keeps better records – I was a policy holder from 2009, realised recently they had stopped taking direct debit payments a long time ago (my mistake for not constantly monitoring my credit card charges), took me nearly two weeks of phone calls and lodging complaints with Hollard (parent company) and getting a complaint file opened, they finally admitted that during… Read more

merging data in 2013 they had somehow completely dropped me off their database - the only thing that saved me was a hard copy I had of my Certificate of Insurance 2013 which proved I HAD held a policy. When they finally admitted their error, they offered to give me a new policy but would not give me the first month with no cost (so I could move to another insurance company as I was very unhappy, understandably). That was the icing on the cake, I moved to Woolworths, both car and Home and Contents and cancelled both my Real Insurance policies. As I told them, how do you just wipe a customer off your database, and what would have happened had I not had that hardcopy? I could have been financially wiped out if I'd had a major event like a house fire.

Good Value For Money – I received my premium renewal from my existing insurer with a 25% premium increase. I decided to check with Real Insurance and pleasantly surprised at the premium for a comparable policy Show details ·  1

Very Good Value, Easy To Do Online – My policy was good value, easy to do on line. Only just joined up so cannot give any feed back on the claim process. I consider the process was simple and we will find out how good this policy is when you go to make a claim. Show details ·  1

Decade long but disappointed customer – Increase in cost was disappointing. Contacted Help Desk and was referred to on-line to make changes because on-line is cheaper. Unable to change on-line, so got new quote. Now unsure if I have 1 or 2 policies on my home. Show details

brilliant – Great customer service, excellent product, i personaly have been with you for years, my mum is now a new customer No claim has ever been made, easily set up thanks  Show details ·  1

big savings – new policy, consultant was efficient, helpful and pleasant to deal with. Very significant saving on premium re previous insurer. The test will be if we ever have to make a claim. Show details ·  1

Untrustworthy – Purchased Home and Contents insurance and was the victim of a robbery whilst on holidays. The thieves took everything. We came home to a completely empty house. It took 3 months before we received any compensation and after 12 months we still had not been fully compensated. Every time I rang it was always a different person handling my claim who… Read more

didn’t know what was going on. I finally gave up and that’s what they want. Do not buy from these people because it’s Real Bad Insurance.

Thanks Real insurance – I was impressed with the customer service consultant. She was very patient and answered all my questions with clarity. The insurance policy is the best I’ve seen so far. I’ll recommend real insurance at anytime  Show details ·  1

Home and content insurance – I have car insurance with your organisation and am happy with the experience. Kindly advise why you refuse to insure my house and contents. The car is parked at the same address  Show details

Amazingly great service – Hi there I wanted to say amazingly great service and very personnel and great honest service even told me if I apply on line I will get a 20% discount fantastic to say the very least !!! And Brooke is amazingly great spoken and very patient!! Thanks and God bless you all  Show details ·  1

Awesome costumers service – Yes it was easy no claim was made i have been with this company for 5 years with two policies and now I have a 3rd one which is awesome  Show details ·  1

Good information and service – Good clear information. Good follow up with phone call during the whole process. Friendly service. Good product at a decent price. I don't know what else to say so I hope that you have a happy new year. Show details ·  1

Great Customer Service – Great value for money with multiple levels of cover available to suit all types of budgets,along with the friendly support of the customer service team. I have been with real insurance now for a number of years and I would highly recommend them to anyone. Show details ·  1

Beware of premium price increases – I was insured with Real for 4 years, only to sit down and do the maths to find my premiums increased by 106% with no claims. When my renewal arrived for the 5th year I wrote to Real asking for a more reasonable deal and explaining that there were competitors offering a better deal, they told me this was their final offer then forwarded me a… Read more

confirmation of cancellation.

Premium costs per year: 2017: $499.88 2018: $659.18 (32% increase) 2019: $751.46 (14% increase) 2020: $890.93 (19% increase) 2021: $1029.74 (16% increase)

I never made a claim with Real so I can't comment on their performance in that aspect, but due to their unreasonable price rises and unwillingness to work with a long term customer, I won't be dealing with them again.

It’s insurance not chocolate cake! – The new policy was price competitive, however on only one of the two products that suited my enquiry. In addition the customer service representative was excellent I believe her name was Erin.  Show details