Guides to life insurance
The long-form explainers: how the whole system works, how insurers price risk, what a policy wording actually says, and how to get cover without overpaying for it.
33 guides in this section
Start here
- The complete guide to life insuranceA plain-English guide to life insurance in NZ — what it covers, how much you need, what it costs, how underwriting works and how claims get paid.
- Life insurance jargon, explainedA plain-English glossary of New Zealand life insurance terms — sum insured, stepped, level, indemnity, loadings, offsets, evidence limits and the rest.
- How insurers price riskWhy the same person gets materially different life insurance prices from different NZ insurers — mortality tables, reinsurance, and how loadings are set.
- How to read a policy wordingA practical guide to reading a New Zealand policy wording — where the definitions live, what to search for, and the five clauses to read before you sign.
- When to review your coverThe life events that make New Zealand life insurance cover go out of date, what to check at each one, and a simple review cadence that works.
- Insurance through your employerHow group life and group income protection work in New Zealand — what they cover, why they end with the job, and why they should never be your only cover.
- Insurance and your mortgage adviserWhy insurance gets discussed at mortgage settlement in New Zealand, what is good and bad about that timing, and the questions worth asking before you sign.
- What changed in insurance regulationHow New Zealand insurance regulation works now — RBNZ prudential supervision, FMA conduct rules, CoFI since March 2025, FAP licensing and free dispute schemes.
Getting cover
- Do I need life insurance?A straight test for whether you need life insurance in New Zealand, worked through by household type, plus what cover you may already have without knowing.
- How to buy life insuranceA step-by-step guide to buying life insurance in New Zealand — the decisions in order, the three routes to market, and the mistakes that cost the most.
- The life insurance application processWhat happens after you apply for life insurance in New Zealand — each stage of underwriting, how long it takes, and what causes the delays.
- Talking to a life insurance adviserWhat happens when you talk to a licensed New Zealand insurance adviser — the advice process, what you are entitled to be told, and how to prepare.
- Finding an insurance adviser you can checkHow to find and check a New Zealand insurance adviser — the Financial Service Providers Register, FAP licences, disclosure, and the questions to ask first.
- Getting your insurance reviewedWhat a proper insurance review looks at in New Zealand, when it is worth doing, what it costs you, and how to tell a review from a sales conversation.
- Is life insurance worth it?An honest look at whether life insurance is worth paying for in New Zealand — who it works for, who it does not, and how to judge the trade properly.
Quotes and comparison
- Life insurance quotes: how to get a useful oneHow life insurance quotes work in New Zealand, why an online figure is an estimate rather than a price, and what turns a quote into an offer of cover.
- How to compare life insurance properlyHow to compare life insurance in New Zealand on the things that decide a claim — definitions, premium structure and underwriting appetite, not just price.
- Getting a quick life insurance quoteHow to get a life insurance quote quickly in New Zealand, what information you need, and the difference between a fast quote and fast cover.
- The best life insurance is not the cheapestThere is no single best life insurer in New Zealand. What there is: insurers that are best for a particular age, health history, occupation or claim need.
- Cheap life insurance, and what it costs you laterCheap life insurance in NZ — which savings are real, which are just a narrower definition or a vanishing discount, and how to compare like with like.
- Life insurance deals and offersFirst-year discounts, cashbacks and promotions on New Zealand life insurance — what they are worth, what they cost later, and how to judge one honestly.
- Buying life insurance onlineBuying life insurance online in New Zealand — what the online-only products do well, what they leave out, and when the convenience costs more than it saves.
Medicals and acceptance
- Life insurance with no medicalWhat “no medical” life insurance really means in New Zealand — no nurse visit is not the same as no health questions, and evidence limits decide which you get.
- Life insurance without a medical examWhen a New Zealand life insurance application needs a medical exam, what the exam involves, how to prepare, and what happens if you would rather not have one.
- Life insurance with no health questionsCover with no health questions exists in NZ, mostly as funeral insurance. It is expensive, it stands you down two years, and is rarely the right answer.
- Instant life insurance: quote yes, cover noA life insurance quote can be instant. Cover cannot. What actually happens fast in New Zealand, and how interim accidental death cover fills the gap.
Working out the numbers
- How to calculate your life insurance needHow to calculate how much life insurance you need in New Zealand — the exact arithmetic, step by step, with a worked example you can follow on paper.
- How to calculate your income protection benefitHow to size an income protection benefit in New Zealand — the arithmetic behind the monthly figure, waiting periods, offsets and a worked example.
- How to calculate your mortgage protection coverHow to size mortgage protection cover in New Zealand — repayment cover versus lump sum life cover, the arithmetic, and a worked example on paper.
- How to work out what a funeral will costHow to work out what a funeral will cost in New Zealand — the components, the ones people forget, and a worked example you can price with real quotes.
Changing or leaving a policy
- Switching life insurance without losing coverHow to switch life insurance in New Zealand without losing cover — the one rule that matters, re-underwriting risk, and when switching is genuinely right.
- Cancelling life insurance: what you loseHow to cancel life insurance in New Zealand, what you get back (usually nothing), cooling-off rights, and the alternatives worth trying when money is tight.
- Life insurance after 50: what is still availableLife insurance after 50 in New Zealand — what changes in price and underwriting, why level premiums matter more, and what cover is still worth buying.
Not sure what cover you actually need?
That is the question an adviser is there to answer. Tell us your situation and a licensed New Zealand adviser will compare the market and come back with a written recommendation — including where you can cut cover you do not need.
No cost to you and no obligation. General information only — not personalised financial advice.
Whole-of-market comparison
Advisers quote across the major New Zealand insurers rather than one product range.
Registered advisers
Your enquiry goes to Registered Financial Service Providers, not to a call centre.
No cost to you
The insurer pays the adviser. You pay the same premium either way.
Cover sized to your life
A good adviser will tell you when you are over-insured, not just sell you more.