Insurance in New Zealand: an overview
As with insurance worldwide, it pays to shop around. There are a number of companies and banks in New Zealand that offer comprehensive insurance for most areas of your life, including house, contents, life, car and health.
Insurance helps to guard against uncertainty. According to the Insurance Council of New Zealand (ICNZ) burglary, vandalism and vehicle-related crime have resulted in insurance claims of more than a billion dollars since 1999, and natural disasters and weather related claims have totaled nearly 650 million (adjusted) in the same period.
House and contents insurance
This normally covers all the domestic buildings on your property, including the house, garage and fences, right down to the swimming pool.
Accidental damage is the most common type of cover and you will get the option to go with an indemnity policy or a replacement policy. You can insure a property under a defined risk policy, such as fire or burglary; however, most insurance companies will only allow this type of policy for a holiday home or rental accommodation.
There are a number of older-style houses in New Zealand and you might like to look at an open-ended replacement cover, which will basically replace your house irrespective of the cost. If, on the other hand, you have stipulated an exact amount, you could go for a sum-insured replacement cover which will replace your house to the exact amount you've insured it for.
Indemnity cover will give you insurance cover up to the current sale value of your house. This cover works more cheaply than many of the other types of insurance because you are not paying the cost of a new product.
Contents insurance is exactly what it says – insurance for the contents of your house. This will cover your belongings when they are within your home or temporarily moved elsewhere in the country. These policies come with either replacement or indemnity cover.
The Insurance Council of New Zealand warns that many building owners in New Zealand are under-insured given the rise of building replacement costs over the last two years due to rising labour, compliance and material costs. The ICNZ recommends that building owners don’t rely on out of date valuations, and instead obtain annual insurance valuations for any home or building owned in New Zealand.
Unlike in many other countries, your home insurance policy in New Zealand includes a levy that goes directly to the Earthquake Commission (a government agency that provides earthquake cover). The levy that is paid will cover your house and contents against earthquake, natural landslip, volcanic eruption, hydro-thermal activity and tsunamis, and it will also cover residential land for storm or flood damage. See EQCover for full details.
Car insurance
It is definitely worth shopping around for the best car insurance coverage, as quotes can vary greatly in price from one insurer to the next. If you have a clean driving record with your insurer in your home country, bring your records with you to New Zealand as you may be able to claim a “no claims” discount.
New Zealand law does not require car owners to hold comprehensive care insurance, but beware of the cost of replacing your vehicle or someone else’s if you are not prepared ahead of time with a car insurance plan.
Heath insurance
Private health insurance is not a necessity in New Zealand as there is a public health plan < http://www.workingin-newzealand.com/info/611 > subsidised by the government. However, many New Zealand residents choose the supplement what they receive from the public health system with more comprehensive and timely care through private insurance. Obtaining private health insurance will not exclude you from using any of New Zealand’s public health benefits.
Where do I look?
There are many companies in New Zealand that offer insurance, and it is up to each individual to find the one best suited to his or her needs and financial abilities. Consumer.org.nz offers heavily researched information on some of the least expensive insurance plans available in New Zealand for paying members. Below is a list of some of the most popular insurance companies in New Zealand:
