The results of RACV’s inaugural My Home survey are in! The survey shows that safety in the home rates the highest for Victorians, but many are not doing as much as they would like to keep their homes safe.
In late 2023, RACV invited homeowners, renters, and people who live with family or friends to have their say in a new online survey about their home.
Victorians were asked a series of questions about the safety of their homes, what’s important to them, and what they think homes of the future might look like. For example, what motivates them to keep their home safe? Have they ever done a job at home that was dangerous or resulted in injury? What recent changes they have made to their home, or plan to make in the future?
The survey was open to Victorian residents aged 18 and over, and 7,000 people took part. 73 per cent of participants live in metropolitan Melbourne and 27 per cent live in regional Victoria.
Some of the key insights from the survey are:
- Personal safety is most important for Victorians, rating significantly higher than housing affordability, ease of getting around, or proximity to services.
- Not all rental properties are safe enough, with some landlords taking too long to make urgent repairs.
- Of all participants, people over 70 feel safest in their homes but are often the most vulnerable to home safety incidents.
- Most Victorians expect future homes will be solar powered, but cost of living pressures are stopping many from making the switch to cleaner energy.
RACV Head of Trades, Kieran Davies, said home safety matters to Victorians but a range of factors including cost, time, and finding help to get the work done means people aren’t doing as much as they would like to keep their homes safe.
“Cost of living pressures are impacting home safety, with 41 per cent of participants saying doing tasks to keep their home safe are ‘too expensive’ making cost the top barrier,” Mr Davies said.
“29 per cent of homeowners also have difficulty finding someone to do jobs around their homes.
“There is also a high perception of safety at home amongst people over 70 but they are often the most vulnerable to home safety incidents such as trips and falls.
“Data from the Victorian Department of Health shows that 1 in 3 older people (aged 65+) experience a fall each year, and half of falls injuries that require hospitalisation occurred in the home.
“The survey showed that nearly half of renters needed a repair that required immediate attention. However, when they made the request, nearly half of these renters had to wait more than a week or had to follow up more than once.
“More needs to be done to raise awareness amongst landlords about the rental minimum standards and compliance requirements to make homes safe for renters.
“22 per cent of renters indicated that they had made a request to their rental provider to upgrade an appliance or make an energy efficiency upgrade. 53 per cent of those renters indicated that one or more upgrades have been made.
“Cost of living pressures are also stopping many Victorians from making the switch to cleaner energy. Around half of homeowners indicate that cost is a barrier to converting from gas to electricity or getting solar installed,” Mr Davies said.
RACV is sharing the results to create awareness about home safety and provide practical tips on how people can make their homes safer.
“We will also share the results with government to inform them about what safety in the home means to Victorians, and how we can work together to make people feel safer,” Mr Davies said.
The survey is part of RACV’s Have Your Say series and includes the RACV My Country Road and My Melbourne Road surveys.
Full survey results can be found in the RACV My Home survey storybook, available to download at racv.com.au/haveyoursay
-ENDS-
Further information
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The information provided is general advice only. Before making any decisions please consider your own circumstances and the Product Disclosure Statement and Target Market Determinations. For copies, visit racv.com.au. As distributor, RACV Insurance Services Pty Ltd AFS Licence No. 230039 receives commission for each policy sold or renewed. Products issued by Insurance Manufacturers of Australia Pty Ltd ABN 93 004 208 084 AFS Licence No. 227678.
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