Frequently Asked Questions
Funeral Insurance FAQ's
Click here for more general funeral insurance information or to receive no obligation quotes by email or post
Who are some of the main funeral insurers?
Pinnacle Life, Cigna Life, AA Life, Dorchester Life and Fidelity Life are some of the most well known providers. Some credit unions and other insurers also provide some options
What age do you have to be to get cover?
Age 16 to 85
Do premiums ever change once the policy is taken out?
The main funeral insurers (such as those above) maintain the same premiums in the future, so they do not increase as you get older
Will I be asked any health questions?
No, at worst you are asked if you are a smoker for premium quoting purposes
Is it easy to arrange funeral insurance?
Typically very easy, there are online options, one page application forms and telephone options. So there is no reason not to apply.
If I purchase and then change my mind can I cancel?
You can cancel your policy at any time. Most insurers also include a freelook period of the first 14 or 30 days so if you can cancel in that time if you decide not to proceed
How do I know who might be best for me?
Insurance Helpline are funeral insurance experts. If you would like to complete our no obligation enquiry form we will email or post all the information, including quotes, you could ever want. Then we can assist to arrange cover, with no cost for our service on request.
Who owns who (and who is who) in the insurance market?
IAG: Owns State and NZI, wants to buy AMI
AMI: Locally owned, founded in Christchurch in 1926
Vero: Owned by Suncorp, previously Royal and Sun Alliance
Tower: Originally Governement Life Insurance
Lumley: Owned by ASX listed Wesfarmers
FMG: Rural, homeowner insurance mainly
Allianz: Subsidiary of global business
AA Insurance: Suncorp Metway / NZ Automobile Association
ASB: Has Sovereign, New Zealand's leading life insurer
ANZ/National: New Zealand's largest bank, One Path owner
Westpac: 1.2 million New Zealand customers, 11.8 million globally
Source: IAG's Commerce Commission application to buy AMI, competitor analysis
Health Insurance for older people, is it worth continuing?
Absolutely, health insurance is worthwhile for people of all ages. The reason this question is usually asked is that health insurance premiums for those aged 60 plus (in particular) can be deemed very expensive especially when you are on a fixed income. And recently due to high claim costs the standard premiums have been rising each year at a rate higher than inflation, so this and the age increases become more noticeable each year.
For those in the 60 plus age bracket, where budget contraints play a major part in your health insurance decision, we recommend Hospital and Surgical cover only with a $1000 excess. This keeps the premium at the lowest possible while still providing cover against the bigger expenses.
Who is a good recommendation for house, car and contents insurance?
We find that, generally, the insurance companies that mainly market directly provide customers with the best overall option of premium cost and cover. These companies include;
Tower Insurance
AMI Insurance
AA Insurance
State Insurance
Insurance Brokers, as a rule, cannot arrnage your cover with these companies. They can however insure you with the likes of Vero, IAG, Lumley or similar but their premiums will often be higher for you.
Those who use an Insurance Broker to arrange domestic insurance normally do so for the convenience of having the broker do all the running around and providing an ongoing customer service to you. This is usually helpful for higher worth customers. Of course, this will normally come at a cost with higer premiums but those who require full service will normally be happy to pay for this.
However, the likes of Life Insurance, Trauma Insurance and Health Insurance is best arranged via Insurance Brokers as many of the main insurers providing that type of cover only market insurance through the broker network.
Who are the leading Funeral Insurance providers in New Zealand?
Cigna Life, Pinnacle Life, Dorchester Life, AA Life and Fidelity Life are amongst the 5 most well regarded and successful Funeral Insurance companies in New Zealand
Cover can be arranged from ages 10-85 and for cover amounts from $3000 to $25000 through these insurers. Ask us who may be the best insurer for you.
Dental Insurance - to include or not include in your Health Insurance?
A significant number of people enquire about having Dental Insurance but few actually purchase it due to the relatively high premium compared with the policy coverage. Policy limits are often capped at $500 per person per policy year so this is only going to cover day to day expenses such as a filling here and there, in the main.
Not all insurers provide this cover either and in all cases with the mainstream insurers it is an add-on to standard Hospital and Surgical (and Specialists extension) so you cannot have this cover by itself.
Dental Insurance however does appeal to those who may be regular visitors to the Dentist and who spend around the $500 per year mark, they may find the convenience of paying a small amount monthly so they can later claim for a visit worth while.
Why the difference in premium with some online Life Insurance quotes?
All New Zealand Life Insurance companies have standard premium rates that they set. These are like 'retail' premiums. So, typically all quotes commence at this level regardless of who may be distributing the insurance.
Many Insurance Brokers quote standard rates in all cases. However some brokers / advisors who specialise in online sales may offer a discount from the standard rate as the purchaser is effectively doing much of the work themselves eg considering how much cover they want, obtaining quotes online, completing online applications and generally taking more of the responsibility of the process.
However, some just offer a discount for the first year, if you are considering enquiring / buying online always looks for the offers where the discount applies for the duration of the insurance, not just in year 1.
Funeral Insurance things to note when selecting the best policy
The standard Funeral Insurance policies all are guaranteed acceptance with no health questions asked, the premiums will never alter after the policy commences and the funds are paid to the beneficiary of your choice within 24-72 hours of claim notification.
Beware of funeral insurance policies that have an expiry date, ie at a certain age cover stops or where premiums increase as you get older.
Is it cheaper to use the services of an Insurance Broker or buy direct from insurers?
For the likes of Life Insurance, Trauma Insurance, Income Insurance, Mortgage Insurance and Health Insurance a significant proportion of sales are made via Insurance Brokers. In fact many major 'risk' insurers do not even sell directly to the public. Insurance Brokers generally deal with a range of insurers and can therefore promote numerous options that may be suitable. They act for the customer and can also assist at claim time in many cases.
There is no extra cost to the purchaser, if a product is available from an insurer directly then it would cost exactly the same if it was provided by an Insurance Broker.
With most domestic insurance such as House, Contents or Car insurance sold directly by the likes of AA, State, AMI, Tower or the banks their products are generally outside those available through brokers. Brokers tend to promote domestic insurances through the likes of NZI, Lumley, Vero and the like.
Do Insurance Helpline Insurance Brokers all have disclosure documents?
A disclosure document is available on request from all the Insurance Helpline Insurance Brokers / Advisors. Please ask at any time if you would like to see this document as it details the credentials of the advisor, who they act for, the way they are renumerated and other important information.
Are the Insurance Helpline Advisors qualified to provide advice?
All Insurance Advisors affiliated to the Insurance Helpline meet the appropriate regulatory requirements such as being Registered or Authorised for the products they will be providing advice on. The advisors are all members of either the Insite Group Ltd or Auckland Mobile Consultants Ltd and hold the appropriate accreditation with all insurers they act for.
Are the Insurance Helpline services free?
There is never a cost to use the Insurance Helpline services. If we assist you to arrange a new policy with any of our panel of insurers they will pay us a commission or referral fee.