$1.5 billion in claims paid, FSC says

New Zealand life insurers paid out a total of $1.49 billion in claims in the year to March, the Financial Services Council says.

Tuesday, May 12th 2020, 2:40PM

Just under 40% of those were term life policies.

FSC chief executive Richard Klipin said that was a $200 million increase compared to the previous year.

New Zealanders were paying a total of $2.71 billion in annual insurance premiums.

Klipin said the numbers pre-dated most of the impact of Covid-19 but the pandemic reinforced the importance of having adequate insurance cover.

"The 2020 spotlight shows a small reduction in the number of insurance contracts in place from 3.99 million to 3.93 million.

"This is concerning as we know from the Gambling on Life research released by the FSC earlier this year that New Zealanders are underinsured across the board when it came to loss of life, job or serious illness.

“There is a clear challenge for us as an industry to continue to work with Kiwis to ensure they understand the need for adequate insurance cover and are protected should the unthinkable happen.

"The Covid-19 pandemic is a reminder of how important the responsibility of our members to build, manage and protect the financial resilience of New Zealanders through good times and bad is."

He said the statistics showed that the industry was well placed to support New Zealanders through challenging times ahead.

Tags: FSC insurance Insurance Advisers

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