BUDGET DIRECT
Budget Direct is Australia’s most awarded insurer with a well-earned reputation for consistently offering some of the lowest premiums across many of the market segments in which it competes. This year is no different and it has again taken the award for Insurer of the Year.
But it’s not just low prices that enable Budget Direct to stand out in an increasingly competitive market. It’s the emphasis the insurer places on its digital platforms.
Budget Direct is a market leader for having a clear and easy-to-navigate website that not only outlines the different types of insurances customers can purchase, but includes educational material to explain how each type of insurance works and even how to get a good deal when buying what it is you intend insuring.
A big advantage of Budget Direct’s strong focus on communicating directly with its customers, and especially potential customers, is that it’s easy to see the latest discount deals on offer.
Just as crucially, it’s easy to find the legal documents you might need so you can check the finer details in your policies, read the product disclosure statements or review the financial services guide.
Budget Direct is Australia’s fastest growing consumer insurer measured by premiums sales, which over the past four years have grown 45%pa. But every policyholder knows that the real test of their insurer is whether they will be there for you when you make a claim. Figures published by the insurance industry regulator, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), show that Budget Direct has one of the highest ratios of claims paid of any consumer insurer, averaging 93% over the past three years. This means that if you make a claim you can be pretty confident that, if it is fair, you’ll be okay.
Budget Direct gets thousands of positive consumer reviews and its market share keeps growing, all of which helps it win so many awards. Budget Direct is part of the Auto & General group, which also underwrites the insurance offered by Virgin Money, Qantas and ING. In second place is Suncorp, one of Australia’s biggest insurance groups, which last year paid out almost $9 billion in claims. Suncorp is the insurer behind other leading brands, such as AAMI, GIO, Shannons, Bingle, Apia and Vero.
In third place is Allianz, one of the biggest insurance brands in the world.