Return-of-premium claims in seniors life insurance
Seniors life insurance in New Zealand does not give your premiums back because you outlived the policy. Premiums are refunded only in set cases: inside a free-look period, or after a death in an early window that the policy does not cover. Momentum's Funeral Insurance refunds all premiums for a non-accidental death in the first 24 months.
In short
- A refund after an early death is a consequence of an exclusion. The policy pays nothing for that death, so it returns what you paid. It is not a bonus.
- Momentum's Funeral Insurance refunds all premiums for a death from any cause other than an accident in the first 24 months. Quick Life refunds premiums for a pre-existing-condition death in the first 24 months when no claim is payable.
- NZ Seniors and OneChoice use a 12-month window and do not refund premiums for another cause in it.
- Cancel after the free look and no premiums come back on either Momentum product. Quick Life's wording adds that it builds no cash or surrender value.
"Return of premium" in seniors life insurance is a phrase with two meanings, and the gap between them is where people get misled. In one meaning it is a feature that pays back your premiums if you outlive a term, a savings-style benefit, and we found no funeral or guaranteed-acceptance policy in New Zealand that has it. In the other, which is what New Zealand funeral and guaranteed-acceptance policies actually contain, it is a refund of premiums when you die in an early period that the policy does not cover. The first is a savings-style benefit. The second is a rule about what is excluded. Policies sold to New Zealanders in their 50s to 70s contain the second kind, and some contain neither. The sections below say which promise is real, what triggers it, and what it is worth. For the broader map across all life cover, see life insurance premium refunds.
The "money back" claims, decoded
| What you may read | What it usually means | Where it is true (insurers' own documents) |
|---|---|---|
| "Get a full refund if you change your mind" | A free-look period | Momentum Funeral Insurance and Quick Life: 30 days, if no claim has been made; AIA: 15 days from receiving the policy document. In each case the period comes from the policy wording |
| "Premiums refunded if you die in the first 24 months" | Refund after an early non-accidental death | Momentum Funeral Insurance (all premiums since the cover start date); AA Life and Chubb Life (100%); Greenwich Life's Funeral Plan (100%) |
| "Premiums refunded if death is from a pre-existing condition" | Quick Life's early exclusion | Momentum Quick Life, first 24 months, when no claim is payable |
| "Premiums stop when you have paid the benefit" | A cap on total premiums | Greenwich Life's Funeral Plan, which says premiums stop as soon as the total paid equals the benefit |
| "Cash out your cover" | A payout while you are alive | NZ Seniors, which describes an Early Cash Out Option from 85 at 75% of cover |
| "Get your money back if you do not claim" | A savings or return-of-premium product | None of the funeral or guaranteed-acceptance products we read. See return of premium life insurance for older savings-style policies |
NZ Seniors and OneChoice are the contrast. NZ Seniors' own comparison table records "No" against a premium refund for a non-accident death in the early period, and OneChoice says "You can't get a refund on premiums after the cooling-off period" (NZ Seniors; OneChoice, read 20 October 2026). Their accident-only window is 12 months, shorter than Momentum's 24. A policy with the shorter window and no refund is not worse in every case, because less time is restricted, but you should know which one you have.
How the 24-month rule works in practice
Take Momentum's Funeral Insurance. The wording divides cover into two periods.
| When the death happens | What the wording says | What is paid |
|---|---|---|
| Within 24 months, caused by an accident, and within 90 days of the accident | Accidental death | The benefit, tripled: 3 times the benefit |
| Within 24 months, from illness or any other cause | Death other than accidental death | No benefit; all premiums paid for that person since the cover start date are refunded |
| After 24 months, any cause | Death from any cause | The benefit |
Illustration with made-up numbers: a person with a $10,000 benefit dies of illness in month 14. No benefit is paid and the premiums paid over those 14 months come back. If the same person dies in month 30, the $10,000 benefit is paid. The refund is made to the account associated with the policy (Momentum Life: Funeral Insurance Policy Wording). An increase in cover or a person added starts a new 24-month window for the increase or person.
Quick Life differs. For the first 2 years accidental death and new conditions are covered, and pre-existing conditions and suicide are excluded. If death is from a pre-existing condition in the first 24 months and no claim is payable, premiums are refunded; for suicide the wording states no refund. After the first 2 years the policy covers pre-existing conditions except specific ones that can be permanently excluded in the policy schedule (Momentum Life: Quick Life Insurance Policy Wording). Our page on the first 24 months of funeral insurance works through more cases.
Why a refund is not an investment
A refund returns premiums paid for cover that, for that death, never paid out. It is not a payout, a maturity bonus or a share of any pool. Cover that pays out only on death gives nothing back if you cancel or outlive it: Quick Life says it "does not build up any cash or surrender value", and Funeral Insurance says cancelling outside the 30 days means no refund of premiums. Funeral Insurance is not a savings plan either. Its wording says total premiums could exceed the benefit, and Momentum's premiums run until the 89th birthday. Our page on common mistakes with seniors life insurance covers an Ombudsman case on exactly that point.
What happens to premiums if you cancel after the free look?
You lose them. Momentum's Funeral Insurance wording says that outside the 30-day free look there is no refund of premiums, and Quick Life says it cannot refund premiums already paid after 30 days. If you stop paying, Momentum can cancel a policy unpaid for over a month, and re-applying for Quick Life restarts the two-year period with no refund of earlier premiums. See cancelling or changing life insurance.
Can total premiums pass the benefit?
Yes, and that is true whether or not a refund clause applies, because the refund covers only an early death. Premiums on Momentum's Funeral Insurance run to the 89th birthday, so the arithmetic matters the later you start. The funeral insurance break-even calculator takes your quote and shows the years to break even, and is funeral insurance worth it sets the alternatives alongside. The cost side is in seniors life insurance cost.
When a savings account or underwritten cover may suit better
- Savings. Money set aside in an account you do not touch is not restricted by an early window and is yours if you do not need it. It does not pay a funeral if you die in month one with nothing saved.
- Underwritten cover. A healthy person can usually get more cover for less through an adviser. Underwritten policies have their own terms and exclusions, those depend on your health, and acceptance is the insurer's decision.
- Prepaid funeral plans. Now For Them says it is "not a savings or investment product", pays no interest and currently charges no fees (FDANZ).
Read seniors life insurance options for the full list and the Momentum Funeral Cover page for the plan.
Who we are
General information, not advice. Advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner and Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver may receive a commission if you buy through our link; see how we are paid and the disclosure. Momentum Life Limited's financial strength rating from A.M. Best is B (Fair), affirmed 11 February 2026; Momentum's own table calls B "Vulnerable" (financial strength). A rating is an opinion, not a recommendation. A complaint about a Momentum policy goes to Momentum first, then to the Insurance and Financial Services Ombudsman Scheme (IFSO). Last updated 20 October 2026. The buttons on this page open Momentum's own online quote; the Funeral Insurance window is 24 months and the Quick Life window is 2 years.
Frequently asked questions
Does seniors life insurance refund your money if you do not claim?
No. Neither Momentum product returns premiums for outliving a window or a term, and Quick Life builds no cash or surrender value. Refunds apply only to an early death the policy does not cover, or to the free look.
What is the senior life insurance that pays you back?
No New Zealand funeral or guaranteed-acceptance policy we read pays you back for not claiming. Some pay back premiums when an early death is not covered, and NZ Seniors describes an Early Cash Out Option from 85.
Are premiums returned if I die within the first 24 months?
On Momentum's Funeral Insurance, yes for a death other than an accident. An accidental death (within 90 days of the accident) pays triple the benefit instead. Other insurers differ, so read the wording.
References
- Momentum Life: Funeral Insurance Policy Wording (17 August 2023), retrieved 17 October 2026
- Momentum Life: Quick Life Insurance Policy Wording (November 2025), retrieved 17 October 2026
- Momentum Life: Financial strength, retrieved 20 October 2026
- NZ Seniors: Funeral insurance, product page and policy documents, retrieved 17 and 20 October 2026
- OneChoice: Funeral insurance, retrieved 20 October 2026
- AA Life: Funeral cover, retrieved 20 October 2026
- Chubb: Funeral cover, retrieved 20 October 2026
- Greenwich Life: The Funeral Plan, retrieved 20 October 2026
- AIA Living umbrella policy wording v8, retrieved 20 October 2026
- FDANZ: Now For Them, retrieved 20 October 2026
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