Changes to the cost of home insurance from October 2022
Some important changes will affect what you pay for home and landlord insurance.
The two changes are:
-
Earthquake Commission cover (EQC)
-
We explain these changes below:
Changes to Earthquake Commission cover
From 1 October, all New Zealand homeowners will be affected by the Government’s Earthquake Commission (EQC) changes, which are intended to keep insurance affordable in high seismic regions:
- EQC cover increase
The natural disaster cover you receive from the government is doubling from a cap of $172,500 to $345,000 per dwelling. Your insurer pays for the repair or rebuild costs when the natural disaster damage exceeds this cap. - EQC levy increase
For most homes, the levy is increasing from $345 per year to $552. Some homes will not see the full levy increase due to their lower insured value. Your home insurance spend includes this EQC levy, which we collect on behalf of EQC. - EQC changes affect everyone
All insurers have to implement this change. Homeowners throughout New Zealand (regardless of their insurer) will be affected by this change when they start or renew a home insurance policy from October 2022.
This means that the new levy will be applied when your home or landlord insurance policy next renews (either annually or monthly). This is an increase of up to $207 per year or $46 per month.
* all figures referred to in this email include GST
Learn more about what the EQC is and how it works
Your insurance spend is made up of both government levies (EQC, Fire & Emergency NZ) and insurer premium. The insurer premium is what we use to pay claims.
We insure thousands of houses in every region of New Zealand. Due to an increase in risk posed by natural disasters and weather events, we have needed to raise the insurer premium.
This means that at your next policy anniversary, after 1 October 2022, your home or landlord insurance cost will change.
Learn more about why premiums increase
Together, as homeowners we buy insurance to get comfort and protection should something go wrong – it’s that simple.
Protection does, however, come at a cost. We’ve spent the last 12 years using our technology to keep premiums down, and we are not letting up.
We are homeowners too and when it comes to insurance, getting responsive cover for the right price is the most important thing. That’s exactly why we exist.
We’ve always been on a mission to provide easy, value for money insurance with exceptional claims service – and that’s what we will continue to do.