Westpac Jackpot!

Dear Scott

I just wanted to say thank you! I received a letter from Westpac today to say that in response to my ‘query’ they have cancelled my credit card repayment insurance and refunded $1,100 in premiums paid over the past four years. Woohoo! One giant leap towards paying off and cancelling my card altogether!

Fiona

Hi Fiona,Ka-ching!

Since I wrote my column a few weeks ago, I’ve had heaps of Barefooters tell me they’ve got thousands of dollars back.

And if you, dear reader, have been sold junk add-on insurance, head over to demandarefund.com and stake your claim.

Scott

St George Bank Swanns Around

Hi Scott,

I am having all sorts of problems trying to cancel the credit card insurance that was added to my St George credit card when I first took it out. I was told that, as I was a single mum, I would not get the card without it. It is just under $90 per month! I cancelled it over a month ago and they are still debiting my card. St George say it’s not them and to call Swann Insurance, who say it’s not them. In the meantime it has overdrawn my account. Please help.

Louise

Hi Louise,

The St George Bank website says: “Please note Credit Card Protect is no longer sold.”Do you know why they’ve stopped selling it?

It’s not because for years it was known in the industry as ‘junk insurance’ and was hard-sold to unsuspecting customers. That’s exactly why they sold it in the first place ‒ they made a fortune out of it!

No, the reason the banks stopped flogging it is because it got the Royal Commission treatment, and, as a result, banks and insurance companies could be looking at stumping up more than $1 billion in refunds.

The Consumer Action Law Centre has set up a free website that makes it easy to claim: demandarefund.com

Yet you don’t have time to wait.

I can’t imagine how distressing this must be for you. You’re a struggling single parent, and you’ve done the right thing, but still had your account has been overdrawn over Easter ... and then probably been hit with more fees!

And it sounds like they’re giving you the run-around: I mean, who cares about a lowly single mother, right?

So let’s you and I take this to the top.

Ross Miller is the General Manager of St George Bank.

Here’s an old party trick: when you mention a bank executive’s name in print, it pops up in their media tracking service. Which means this column will soon land on his desk.

So, Ross Miller, I think you should refund this single mother all the outrageously expensive premiums she’s paid, plus any overdrawn fees or penalties.

Over to you, Ross Miller of St George Bank.

Scott

Do I Need Renters Insurance?

Hi Scott,

I am a renter, and recently my new property agent mentioned contents insurance. I understand that the building is covered by the landlord, but I have never bothered with contents insurance before. I just had a quick google and it is a minefield! There is ‘contents insurance’, then there is ‘renters contents insurance’ ‒ I have no idea what the difference is and which one I should be looking at. Any advice?

Mardi

Hi Mardi,

Just so we’re clear, renters insurance (which is the same as contents insurance, just for renters) covers your personal contents at your property, and usually with an option to cover your personal effects when you’re out and about, whereas landlords insurance covers the building structure itself.

I did a few online comparisons for budget renters insurance, and the cost for insuring $20,000 worth of contents against fire, flood and theft ranged from $150 to $300 per year (though it may be different based on your own situation and what you want covered).

If you’re in a share house it gets a little trickier (you can’t insure individual rooms), but some policies allow you to detail the items you want to cover. If all your flatmates have expensive stuff like a laptops, fancy cameras, phones and jewellery, it may be worth you all chipping in for it.

Bottom line?

If you’re most expensive possession is a Bob Marley bong, perhaps you can pass on it. Otherwise, add up the cost of replacing everything and then run the sums.

Scott

Southern Cross Travel Insurance

Hi Scott,

This question is for my brother. After being diagnosed with serious bone cancer in March 2017, he proceeded to apply to his travel insurer -- Southern Cross Travel -- for a refund on his overseas trip, planned for April 2017. But Southern Cross have refused to pay up the $4,000. His doctors are at a loss as to why they won’t pay -- fairly cut and dried they thought. How damn sick do you need to be? Please help!

Nick

Hi Nick,

I read through Southern Cross’ Product Disclosure Statement.

It’s pretty clear: “This policy automatically includes cover … for actual and reasonable losses incurred by you because of an unexpected event, if you have to cancel or change the dates of your journey before leaving Australia.” And it details one of the ‘unexpected events’ as the “diagnosis of a terminal condition, or a condition requiring radiotherapy or chemotherapy”. They say they’ll pay up to $2,500 on a single trip.

Like your brother’s doctors say, it seems pretty cut and dried, so perhaps I’m missing something.

Or maybe it’s Southern Cross that’s missing something. Most big companies have sophisticated media tracking systems which alert them to when their names are mentioned in the media.

So, since this column is being published across the country, maybe they’ll pick it up.

Just in case, let’s throw in a few keywords: “Southern Cross Travel Insurance Fair Suck of The Sav”.

Let’s see if Southern Cross Travel Insurance reviews your brother’s case and, if he’s in the right, pays the claim.

Over to you, Southern Cross Travel Insurance.

Scott