A new survey revealing what Australians value the most has highlighted that we’re a society not too hung up on material things.
Compare the Market has released research showing that one in two Australians — or 52 per cent — would consider their family as the most important aspect of their life.
A further 18 per cent indicated their most valuable possession was their own life.
Just 13 per cent considered their property to be their most important and valuable priority, while 5 per cent volunteered that their ability to go on holidays was of utmost importance to their life.
Pets (3 per cent), a car (3 per cent), having a social life (2 per cent) and having a job (2 per cent) rounded out the eight preferences in terms of value.
The high value placed on family members and on an individual’s own life by survey respondents was subject to closer scrutiny by the survey, which also considered attitudes to life insurance and income protection.
Nearly half of respondents, or 46 per cent, said they did not have life insurance for cost reasons.
A further 30 per cent revealed they didn’t think they actually needed it.
It was a similar story for income protection, where 37 per cent of respondents considered such protection “not a necessity”, while 28 per cent cited costs as a barrier.
A further 9 per cent did not have such cover because they didn’t actually understand how it worked.
Compare the Market conceded that “without a proper safety net in place, most people can’t survive on their own if they suddenly found themselves out of a job”.
It highlighted how being insured with life insurance and income protection “could make all the difference for family members” who may be spared the expense of ongoing living costs like mortgage repayments or school fees.