Sleep apnoea and insurance underwriting

Underwriters look at sleep apnoea as a treatable condition where the key question is whether it is actually being treated. A diagnosis with a documented treatment regime that is being used consistently is a very different file from a diagnosis where treatment was recommended and nothing further appears in the notes. Machine compliance data, where it exists, is sometimes requested.

The other consistent feature is that it is assessed alongside build. The two frequently appear together, and insurers rate the combination rather than each in isolation, which is why a documented change in build often improves this assessment as well.

The questions are practical and focused on what has happened since the diagnosis.

• When and how the diagnosis was made, including whether a sleep study was done.
• What treatment was recommended, and whether you use it.
• How consistently treatment is used, where a device produces usage data.
• Whether daytime symptoms are recorded, including any effect on driving.
• Your height and weight, which are assessed alongside.
• Your occupation, particularly where driving or machinery is involved.

Evidence commonly requested

• A GP or specialist report covering the diagnosis and treatment.
• Sleep study results where available.
• Sometimes device compliance data.

What underwriters look at over time is consistent documented use of treatment, resolution of recorded daytime symptoms, and any change in build. Because both the treatment record and the build measurement are objective, this is a condition where a review request several years later has something concrete to rest on.

These are the details that decide whether the cover does what you expected. Read them before you compare on price.

• That untreated or unmonitored sleep apnoea usually rates worse than a treated and documented case.
• That device usage data may be requested, so an accurate answer about compliance matters.
• That build is rated alongside and often drives more of the outcome than the apnoea itself.
• That driving and machinery occupations attract extra questions on income protection and TPD.
• That a diagnosis with no follow-up in the notes is read conservatively.

Every New Zealand insurer writes applications involving sleep apnoea to its own wording, and the words are where the money is. Two policies that look identical on price can pay very differently when it matters. Closing that gap is the entire job of an adviser.

• Insurers differ on how much weight they give to compliance evidence, which is worth knowing before applying.
• An adviser can present the treatment record and any usage data up front.
• Where build is the larger factor, an adviser can advise on which insurer’s table is most favourable.
• A rating applied before treatment was established is a reasonable candidate for later review.

There are three ways to buy life cover in New Zealand, and they are not equivalent. You can buy direct from one insurer, which means you see one product range and one underwriting appetite. You can buy through your bank, which usually means a single insurer’s product sold under the bank’s brand, often with narrower definitions. Or you can go through an adviser, who quotes several insurers at once and is required to put your interests first.

The premium you pay is the same either way. Insurers build adviser commission into their pricing whether or not an adviser is involved, so going direct does not get you a discount — it just removes the person whose job is to argue your corner at application and at claim time.

• An adviser can see which insurer is currently taking your health history on standard terms, and which one will load or exclude it.
• An adviser can structure cover across two insurers if that produces a better outcome than putting everything with one.
• An adviser handles the underwriting back-and-forth, and is the person who chases the claim when a family is least able to.
• An adviser has to document why the recommendation suits you, which is a written record you can hold them to.

We are a referral service, not an insurer. We do not quote premiums and we do not sell policies. What we do is put you in front of one licensed New Zealand adviser who can compare the market properly.

1. 1

   You tell us what you are looking at

   The form takes about a minute. Nobody asks for your medical history on a web form — that conversation happens with the adviser, properly, and only once you have decided to proceed.

2. 2

   An adviser calls you

   A licensed New Zealand adviser talks through your situation: who depends on you, what you owe, what you already have in place, and what you are actually worried about.

3. 3

   They compare the market

   The adviser quotes across the major insurers, checks which of them will take your health history on the best terms, and puts the options side by side in writing.

4. 4

   You decide, in your own time

   There is no obligation and no cost to you. If the answer is that you already have enough cover, a good adviser will tell you that.