Aussies urged to stay on top of home maintenance before holidaying this year

• Aussies are keen to make the most of summer, with one in three leaving their home vacant for up to a fortnight this season¹.
• Allianz research reveals that while Aussies are planning to rely on their neighbours to help while they’re away, home maintenance isn’t on the pre-holiday checklist². 
• Despite understanding that not doing regular home maintenance can cause mishaps or damage around the home³, they are unaware that the same accident in a vacant home is often more costly and takes longer to fix compared to one in an occupied home⁴.
• Allianz has partnered with carpenter and TV personality Scotty Cam to help Aussies better protect their homes against common, costly mishaps this summer. 

Summer has finally arrived, and many Aussies are keen to make the most of it, with new research from Allianz showing one in three Aussies (31%) will leave their home vacant for up to a fortnight this season. 

While away, Aussies are getting help from their neighbours to ensure that regular chores are still completed, relying on them to keep an eye on their property by collecting the mail, putting out bins or mowing the lawn (40%). 

However, ensuring their home is maintained didn’t make the pre-holiday checklist, with one in 10 Aussies admitting they are not planning on doing any home maintenance on their home⁵. Many are also unaware of the risks associated with not doing any home maintenance before heading on holidays, with one in three Aussies (36%) stating they are not aware that the same accident in a vacant home is often more costly and takes longer to fix compared to one in an occupied home.

In fact, Allianz claims data shows that January to March is the busiest time of year for Home and Landlord insurance claims (followed closely by the October to December⁶ period), and there has been a 12% increase in the cost of these claims (excluding catastrophe claims) over the past two years⁷.

To help Aussies understand the importance of ensuring their home is well maintained while on holiday, Allianz Australia has teamed up with carpenter and TV personality Scotty Cam to share tips on maintaining your home.

“Summer means trips to the beach, quality time with loved ones and some extra free time. Using some of this extra free time to do some home maintenance can save you time and heartache in the future. Taking small steps, such as checking waterproofing and flexi hoses, trimming trees, checking gutters or changing exhaust fans can help prevent incidents and ensure you can have a worry-free summer break,” says Scott Cam.

Startingly, only one in three Aussies who regularly perform home maintenance check for any signs of wear, leaks, or weak spots in their waterproofing (33%) and flexi hoses (33%) in the bathroom, laundry and kitchen. Not performing regular home maintenance increases the risk of something breaking, with Allianz claims data showing the number of claims relating to escape of water is up 10% in 2024 compared to 2023⁸. The total claims cost from flexi hoses was also over $19 million in 2023 alone⁹. 

This comes as the Allianz research reported one in three Aussies (35%) admit to only conducting home maintenance when something breaks or needs urgent attention. And while most Aussies prefer to hire someone to do home maintenance on their behalf (67%), over a third (37%) have started doing it themselves due to cost of living pressures.

The research also found that Aussie homeowners are aware that not doing regular home maintenance can cause mishaps or damage around the home (73%), cause health risks (67%), potentially lower the value of their property (64%) and cause their insurance claims to not be paid out in full (43%). 

Shez Ford, Chief General Manager, Consumer, Allianz Australia adds, “At Allianz, we know summer is a busy time, so it is normal for household-related matters to get overlooked. We’re working with Scotty Cam to help Aussies understand how to better maintain their home so they can enjoy their holiday break without the worry of costly, and in most cases, preventable mishaps. From our research, it’s good to see that Aussies understand the importance of home maintenance but just need some guidance on how to get started.

“The research also highlights that half of Australians who have Home or Contents Insurance do not review their policy before the summer months, so we’re encouraging Aussies to touch base with their insurer for a policy health check,” concludes Shez.

For more information on how to best maintain your home, visit our Summer holiday home safety tips article.

1. 31% of Aussie Homeowners are planning to leave their home vacant for up to a fortnight over summer
2. 7% of Aussie Homeowners have not planned any protection methods to help protect their home when they’re away
3. 73% of Aussie Homeowners are aware that not doing regular home maintenance can cause mishaps or damage around the home
4. 36% of Aussie Homeowners are not aware that the same accident in a vacant home is often more costly and takes longer to fix compared to one in an occupied home
5. 7% of Aussie Homeowners have not planned to do any home maintenance on their home before they go away
6. According to Allianz claims data, the highest number of claims [lodged] occurred in Jan-Mar 2023 (22,112 claims), followed by Oct-Dec 2023 (19,668)
7. According to Allianz claims data there is a 12% increase in cost of claims (excluding catastrophe claims) YoY ($10,231 in 2024 v $9,177 in 2023)
8. The volume of escape of water claims for contents is rising. 3,181 in 2024 vs 2,884 in 2023
9. The total claims cost from flexi hose claims in 2023 was over $19 million ($19,203,330)