Zurich Financial Services Australia (Zurich) will enter the personal home insurance market for the first time and expand its existing motor book through a broadened partnership with insurtech Honey Insurance (Honey), giving the Swiss-owned insurer a foothold in one of the country's most challenged general insurance lines.
From October 2026, Zurich will underwrite and manage claims for Honey's home, landlord and motor insurance policies. The products will continue to be distributed by Honey under its own brand and through key partnerships, including Bank of Queensland (BOQ).
The move carries weight beyond a single distribution deal. Home cover is the line most exposed to Australia's worsening natural-hazard bill and a well-capitalised global insurer choosing to expand into it signals appetite at a moment when incumbents are wrestling with affordability, capacity and volatile catastrophe losses. For brokers and underwriting agencies watching capacity in the household segment, a new backer entering the market is a development with competitive implications.
The proposition leans on Honey's technology to onboard customers in what the companies say is a matter of minutes, covering homes and vehicles against risks including severe weather, accidents and crime. The expanded arrangement builds directly on the pet insurance product Zurich and Honey launched together in March 2026, which is distributed through BOQ Group's Virgin Money brand.
Honey, founded in 2020, has raised more than $125 million from investors and positions itself as a technology-led personal lines provider across home, motor and pet insurance.
Alex Morgan (pictured), head of general insurance at Zurich, framed the expansion as a response to shifting consumer demand.
"Australians are increasingly seeking competitive and innovative solutions for the protection of their assets, particularly as the risk landscape continues to intensify," Morgan said. "Our partnership delivers a compelling proposition that draws upon Zurich's strong capital foundation and technical capability and Honey's digital distribution model, representing a clear opportunity to develop the customer experience and competitive offering in the Australian general insurance market."
Morgan also positioned the deal within Zurich's wider ambitions, describing the group as "Australia's only major composite insurer, with propositions across personal home, motor, pet, travel, landlord and life insurance."
The decision to scale into home cover lands against a backdrop of sustained strain in the household segment. Australian home insurance premiums have climbed 51 per cent in five years, according to analytics firm Finity, with the average rising from $1,940 in 2020 to $2,938 by October 2025 – growth driven by catastrophe losses, construction-cost inflation and reinsurance pricing.
Profitability has not followed. APRA data has shown the householders line in structural difficulty, with the class recording underwriting losses in several recent quarters despite steadily rising prices. The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) estimated in its March 2026 Insurance Climate Vulnerability Assessment that around one in seven Australian households are currently uninsured, a figure that could reach one in four by 2050 under its stress scenarios. The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has reported that extreme weather generated close to $3.5 billion in insured losses in 2025 alone.
Entering a line under this much pressure is a considered bet that scale, capital strength and digital efficiency can carve out sustainable margins where others are struggling.
David Krawitz, CEO at Honey Insurance, said the two businesses complemented one another.
"Zurich's underwriting depth and claims expertise is the ideal complement to Honey's digital platform and distribution reach. Together, we're well placed to keep delivering the kind of smart, seamless insurance experience Australian consumers deserve," Krawitz said.
"We're proud of what we've built with Zurich through our pet insurance partnership, and bringing that same approach to home, landlord and motor insurance is a natural next step for us," Krawitz said.
The home, landlord and motor products go live in October 2026.
