Written by Henry Smith · Reviewed by Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver — licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931) · Last updated 2026-10-20

$50,000 life insurance for seniors

Momentum Life's Quick Life offers $50,000 as its minimum with no health questions, but it accepts New Zealanders aged only 18 to 65. After 65 there is no Momentum route to $50,000: its Funeral Insurance accepts ages 40 to 75 and is capped at $30,000 per person. Other insurers sell $50,000 or more with health questions, up to the ages they publish, and acceptance is their decision.

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See your price in about a minute, then apply online with Momentum Life. Guaranteed acceptance, no health questions, no medical exams.

Funeral cover See your price Ages 40–75 · $3k–$30k Life cover See your price Ages 18–65 · $50k–$300k

Want more cover or have questions? Talk to an adviser

Funeral cover: Only accidental death is covered for the first 2 years. Total premiums can add up to more than the cover, and it may not meet the whole cost of a funeral.

Life cover: Conditions you already have aren't covered for the first 2 years (premiums refunded instead). Suicide isn't covered for the first 2 years, and a few conditions can be excluded permanently.

Insurer: Momentum Life Limited. Financial strength rating B (Fair) from AM Best, affirmed 11 February 2026; B ratings sit in AM Best's 'vulnerable' range. The rating scale is available for inspection at every Momentum Life office in New Zealand. What this means

Already have cover? Keep it. New cover won't pay for a condition you already have in its first 2 years.

Opens Momentum Life's online application; its guidance only covers eligibility. QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner. Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver may receive a commission if you buy. General information, not advice.

In short

Quick Life covers $50,000 to $300,000 for ages 18 to 65, with 3% yearly increases to age 75. If your true age at the start was over 65, the policy is void and premiums are refunded.
Momentum's Funeral Insurance goes to 75 but pays $3,000 to $30,000 only, so it cannot make up $50,000.
FDANZ's 2026 report puts an average cremation funeral at $11,700 and a burial at $14,300, so $50,000 is a larger sum than most funerals need. The rest depends on your estate and who relies on you.
Seniors over 65 can look at cover with health questions from NZ Seniors Life, Golden Insurance and others, or at self-funding.

Is $50,000 enough life insurance for a senior?

It depends on what the money is for, and QuoteHub cannot tell you that. A $50,000 benefit is a lump sum paid to the policy owner or nominated beneficiary. It can cover a funeral with money left over, but it is not sized to replace an income or clear a large mortgage. The next section tests it against sourced costs.

What can $50,000 pay for? A worksheet

The funeral figures are FDANZ's averages from its 2026 industry report (a member survey of 2025 prices). The other lines are blank because they are yours.

Line	Example amount	Source or note
Funeral: cremation, 50 guests	$11,700	FDANZ 2026 report
Or funeral: burial, 50 guests	$14,300	FDANZ 2026 report
Or cremation with no service	$4,700	FDANZ 2026 report
Probate court fee, if needed	$275	Ministry of Justice; a lawyer's fee is extra
Debts in your name alone	Your figure	Paid from the estate
Money a partner needs for the first months	Your figure	Your own estimate

On an example basis, $50,000 less the $11,700 cremation average leaves $38,300. That leftover only matters if you have debts, a partner or others who would use it. If you have none of these, a smaller amount or a funeral-only product may do the job. The funeral cover amount calculator and the funeral cost calculator will help you test your own figures. The Work and Income Funeral Grant maximum is $2,697.43 and has its own tests; see paying for a funeral.

Can seniors get $50,000 life cover without medical questions?

Only up to 65, and only from Momentum among the products we checked. Quick Life says it automatically accepts New Zealand residents aged 18 to 65 with "no health questions or medical exams". We found no guaranteed-acceptance life product from another insurer that covers $50,000 for someone over 65. Greenwich Life's QuickCover Life is $50,000 to $200,000 but is open to ages 21 to 60, and cover may run to 65.

The guaranteed-acceptance funeral products stop at $30,000 (Momentum, NZ Seniors, OneChoice, Chubb Life and AA Life). To compare their ages and early windows, see seniors funeral insurance and the over 50 guaranteed acceptance page.

Momentum Quick Life: eligibility and the age 65 cutoff

Quick Life is Momentum Life's guaranteed acceptance life cover, issued by Momentum Life Limited. Its terms:

Ages 18 to 65, living in NZ and an NZ or Australian citizen, a permanent resident visa holder, or on a work visa with 6 months or more in NZ.
$50,000 to $300,000 per life insured, rising 3% each policy anniversary until age 75 or a $500,000 cap per person. You can opt out of an increase in any year.
Stepped premiums that are re-set each year for age, gender and smoking status and generally rise, then fixed from 75 for the rest of the policy's life.
At 75, $20,000 of the benefit becomes free, and you can elect a free $20,000 funeral benefit or continue Quick Life with the free component.
For the first 2 years, pre-existing conditions and suicide are excluded. Accidental death and new conditions are covered. If death is from a pre-existing condition in the first 24 months and no claim is payable, premiums are refunded.
Always excluded: alcohol or drug effects, war, terrorism, criminal activity and listed dangerous jobs or pastimes.
Pays on terminal illness expected to lead to death within 12 months, confirmed by an approved practitioner; this ends cover for that person.

An example of the indexation, by our arithmetic: a $50,000 benefit rising 3% a year is about $57,960 after five years and about $67,200 after ten, with the premium rising too. The premium also steps up as you age, so a policy bought at 60 costs more each year until 75. Momentum publishes no price for Quick Life and QuoteHub's Premium Index covers ages 25 to 65 only, so this page gives none.

Momentum Life Limited has a financial strength rating of B (Fair) from A.M. Best, affirmed on 11 February 2026. That sits in A.M. Best's "vulnerable" range on Momentum's own table, and the rating is not a recommendation; see its financial strength page. Guaranteed acceptance suits people who might be declined elsewhere, but a healthy person can usually get more cover for less through fully underwritten cover from an adviser. Read the Quick Life page for the full terms.

Alternatives if you need $50,000 over 65

Option	Published ages and amounts	How you are assessed
NZ Seniors Life (issued by Pinnacle Life)	Ages 45 to 79; $10,000 to $200,000; cover to 85	Eight health questions by phone
Golden Insurance	Ages 40 to 80; amounts depend on age	Health and lifestyle questions; a waiting period may apply
Fidelity Life, life cover	Ages 16 to 75; no expiry age	Full application
Momentum Funeral Insurance	Ages 40 to 75; $3,000 to $30,000	Guaranteed acceptance; accident-only for 24 months

Sources: NZ Seniors, Golden Insurance and Fidelity Life, read in October 2026. These are published limits, not offers. Insurers decide who they accept, and your health decides terms. A licensed adviser can ask insurers on your behalf; see life insurance over 75. Another route is to set money aside or use a prepaid plan; funeral insurance versus a prepaid funeral compares them.

Stepped premiums versus fixed costs

Quick Life premiums are stepped until 75 and then fixed. Momentum's Funeral Insurance premiums are level each year until the 89th birthday, then stop, though Momentum can change the rate for everyone on the plan for a change in tax or law or for claims experience, on 30 days' written notice. Total premiums on a funeral policy can end up larger than the benefit, and the benefit may not cover the whole funeral. For the structures, see stepped versus level premiums.

Using QuoteHub to set up a policy

If you are 65 or younger, the buttons on this page lead to Momentum's online quote for Quick Life and Funeral Insurance. If you are older than 65, Quick Life is not open to you, so please do not apply. See the funeral insurance cost page for what is available at your age.

Advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). This page is general information, not advice. QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner, and Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver may receive a commission on Momentum products; see how we are paid. Last reviewed 20 October 2026.

Frequently asked questions

Can a 70-year-old get $50,000 of life insurance in NZ?

Not from Momentum. Some insurers sell cover with health questions at 70, and acceptance is their decision.

What is the minimum Quick Life cover?

$50,000, up to a maximum of $300,000 at the start, with 3% increases to 75.

Does Quick Life cover a pre-existing condition?

Not for the first 2 years. After that it is covered, except a few specific conditions that can be permanently excluded in your policy schedule.

References

Momentum Life: Quick Life Insurance Policy Wording (November 2025), retrieved 17 October 2026
Momentum Life: Funeral Insurance Policy Wording (17 August 2023), retrieved 17 October 2026
Momentum Life: Financial strength, retrieved 20 October 2026
FDANZ: 2026 New Zealand Funeral Industry Trends Report (PDF), retrieved 20 October 2026
Work and Income: Funeral Grant (updated 24 June 2026), retrieved 20 October 2026
Ministry of Justice: Probate information and guidance, retrieved 20 October 2026
NZ Seniors: Life insurance, retrieved 17 October 2026
Golden Insurance: Life insurance, retrieved 20 October 2026
Fidelity Life: Life cover, retrieved 20 October 2026
Greenwich Life: QuickCover, retrieved 20 October 2026