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

Seniors life insurance in New Zealand

Seniors life insurance in New Zealand is not one product. It is three: fully underwritten cover, cover with a few health questions, and guaranteed-acceptance cover with none. Age decides which are open. The highest entry ages we found run from 65 for Momentum Life's Quick Life to 80 for Chubb Life's funeral cover and Golden Insurance.

In short

Seniors life insurance is life cover that a New Zealander takes out in their 50s, 60s or 70s, and it comes in three forms that differ in how the insurer assesses you. Fully underwritten cover asks for your full health history, sometimes with tests, and prices the risk individually. Cover with a few health questions asks a short set of questions, often by phone, and the insurer can accept, load or decline. Guaranteed-acceptance cover asks no health questions at all, and the products we read restrict what they pay in the first one to two years. No form is better in general. A healthy 58-year-old and a 74-year-old with several conditions are choosing between different lists, and the lists shrink with every birthday.

The three kinds of cover

Kind How you are assessed Examples with published entry ages The trade-off
Fully underwritten life cover Full health and lifestyle history through an adviser; records or tests can be asked for AIA Living Life Cover 10 to 70; Chubb Assurance Extra Life Cover 10 to 70; Fidelity Life 16 to 75 Wider choice of amounts and terms, but the insurer can load, exclude, postpone or decline, and every answer must be complete
Life cover with health questions A short set of questions, not a full medical NZ Seniors Life 45 to 79 (eight health questions by phone); Golden Insurance 40 to 80 (health and lifestyle questions) Quicker, but acceptance is the insurer's call, and Golden Insurance says a waiting period may apply
Guaranteed-acceptance cover No health questions Momentum Quick Life 18 to 65; Momentum Funeral Insurance 40 to 75 Cover in place without questions, but the first two years are restricted and total premiums can pass the benefit

Sources: AIA, the Chubb brochure, Fidelity Life, NZ Seniors, Golden Insurance and Momentum's two policy wordings, all read between 17 and 20 October 2026.

Guaranteed-acceptance funeral cover from other insurers is a fourth column in practice, and our page on seniors funeral insurance sets out NZ Seniors, OneChoice, AA Life and Chubb Life in detail.

What is open at each age

Read the table as a map of published entry ages as at 20 October 2026, not a list of offers. Compared: AIA, Chubb Life and Fidelity Life for underwritten cover; NZ Seniors Life and Golden Insurance for cover with health questions; Momentum Life for guaranteed acceptance, with other funeral products in the last column. Not every NZ insurer is included. Partners Life and Asteron Life are not shown because we could not read an entry-age table for either. This is one adviser team's reading of the insurers' own pages, not a score.

Age Underwritten life Life with health questions Guaranteed-acceptance life Guaranteed-acceptance funeral cover
50 to 59 AIA, Chubb Life, Fidelity Life NZ Seniors Life, Golden Insurance Momentum Quick Life, Greenwich QuickCover Life (to 60) Momentum (from 40), NZ Seniors and OneChoice, AA Life, Chubb Life
60 to 65 AIA, Chubb Life, Fidelity Life NZ Seniors Life, Golden Insurance Momentum Quick Life (to 65) Same as above
66 to 70 AIA, Chubb Life, Fidelity Life NZ Seniors Life, Golden Insurance None found Momentum, NZ Seniors and OneChoice, AA Life, Chubb Life
71 to 75 Fidelity Life NZ Seniors Life, Golden Insurance None found Momentum (to 75), NZ Seniors and OneChoice, AA Life, Chubb Life
76 to 79 None found NZ Seniors Life, Golden Insurance None found NZ Seniors and OneChoice, AA Life, Chubb Life
80 None found Golden Insurance None found Chubb Life
Over 80 None found None found None found None found

Greenwich Life's QuickCover Life is the only other guaranteed-acceptance life product we found, and it takes ages 21 to 60. Two more funeral products sit outside the table: Greenwich Life's Funeral Plan takes 30 to 70 and Unity takes 18 to 75. Entry ages move, so confirm with the insurer or an adviser before you plan around one. For the older end, read life insurance over 75, and for the 66 to 70 band, life insurance over 70.

What changes at 65, 70 and 75

Three doors close for new applicants in quick succession.

Existing policies carry on. Cover that has no expiry age, as Fidelity says of its life cover and Chubb says of Assurance Extra Life Cover, keeps going after the entry age has passed.

Guaranteed acceptance or underwritten: what you give up each way

Underwritten cover costs you effort and risk. You answer in full, and an incomplete answer can cost a claim: the Insurance and Financial Services Ombudsman (IFSO) has published cases where insurers reduced or avoided claims for non-disclosure (IFSO). In return, an insurer that can see your history can price it. Asteron says that where a person has an existing condition it can usually still offer cover, by adding a stand-down period, raising the premium, or excluding the condition permanently or for a set time (Asteron). That is one insurer describing its approach, not a promise about anyone's application.

Guaranteed acceptance costs you time and coverage. Momentum's Funeral Insurance pays only for accidental death in the first 24 months (death within 90 days of the accident); any other death in that window pays no benefit and all premiums for that person are refunded. Quick Life excludes pre-existing conditions and suicide for the first 2 years. A healthy person can usually get more cover for less with fully underwritten cover through an adviser, while guaranteed acceptance suits someone who would be declined or heavily loaded, or who wants cover in place without questions. Our page on how guaranteed acceptance works and the guaranteed acceptance hub go further.

Premiums after 65: stepped, level and fixed

Stepped premiums are recalculated each year for your age. The Financial Markets Authority says cheaper policies at the start can cost more over time and that most premiums rise each year with age or inflation (FMA). A level premium starts higher and is held for a set period. Quick Life premiums are stepped each year until 75 and are then fixed; Funeral Insurance premiums are set each year until the 89th birthday, then stop, and Momentum can change the rate for everyone on a plan on 30 days' notice for a change in law or claims experience. Our cost page covers the drivers, including an Ombudsman case where a "level" premium later converted to a rate for age, and the level premium explainer covers how long premiums run.

Funeral-sized cover or life-sized cover

Funeral Insurance pays a fixed benefit of $3,000 to $30,000 towards costs. Funeral bills vary with the choices made, so the benefit may or may not meet a given bill; the FDANZ averages are on the cover amounts page. Funeral Insurance is not a savings plan: total premiums can end up larger than the benefit. If you still owe a mortgage or someone relies on your income, a funeral-sized benefit will not do that job, and choosing a cover amount sets out how to size the need. Mistakes to avoid are covered in common mistakes with seniors life insurance.

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 our disclosure. Momentum Life Limited has an A.M. Best financial strength rating of B (Fair), affirmed 11 February 2026, and Momentum's own table puts B in its "Vulnerable" range; see its financial strength page. A rating is an opinion, not a recommendation. Momentum's complaints go first to Momentum, then to IFSO. Last updated 20 October 2026. The buttons on this page open Momentum's own online quote, and you can read the Quick Life and Funeral Cover plan pages first.

Frequently asked questions

What is the oldest age you can take out life insurance in NZ?

The highest entry age we found for life cover is 80 (Golden Insurance, with health and lifestyle questions). Guaranteed-acceptance funeral cover is published to 79 by NZ Seniors, OneChoice and AA Life, and to 80 by Chubb Life. Momentum Life takes no new applicants over 75.

Can I get life insurance at 70 without a medical?

Guaranteed acceptance asks no health questions. Momentum's Funeral Insurance is open at 70 and pays only for accidental death for the first 24 months. Quick Life is closed above 65. Other cover at 70 involves health questions.

Does life insurance for seniors pay out on natural causes?

Cover that pays for death from any cause does so subject to its terms. Momentum's Funeral Insurance pays for death from any cause after 24 months, and Quick Life does after the first 2 years, with listed exclusions.

References

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