nib funeral cover: product and policy-benefit checks

Written by Henry Smith · Reviewed by Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931) · Updated 2026-10-20 · Reviewed quarterly, when the underlying data is restated.

Financial advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). QuoteHub is a trading name.

nib does not offer standalone funeral insurance that we could find. Its life insurance, called Life and Living Insurance, is issued by nib nz limited and includes a complimentary Funeral Expenses payment of $15,000 on death or terminal illness. It exists only while you hold other nib cover, and acceptance depends on health and lifestyle answers.

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

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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.

Two different nib products

nib is best known in New Zealand for health insurance. Life and Living Insurance is a separate product. nib's own page says "nib nz limited issues and underwrites Life & Living Insurance products" and "is solely responsible for claims under the cover" (nib: Life and living insurance). That page does not mention funeral cover at all. The only place we found a funeral payment is the Life & Living wording, which has a short section headed Funeral Expenses cover (nib: Life & Living Insurance Cover wording).

We did not review nib's health insurance documents for death benefits, so if you hold a health policy, check your own documents rather than assuming either way. Our nib life insurance guide covers the life product, and the page on Kiwibank funeral insurance covers the bank referral route to the same cover. On its financial advice and strength page, nib states an S&P Global Ratings financial strength rating of A (Strong) for nib nz limited (nib: Financial advice and strength).

The Funeral Expenses clause, step by step

Read in the order a claim would run, the wording says:

It is a feature. "Funeral Expenses cover – this is complimentary to help with funeral expenses. Whichever cover you've chosen, you'll get a lump sum payment of $15,000" on death or on a terminal illness diagnosis with death expected within 12 months.
It needs other cover. It is provided "only while at least one of the other types of cover under the insurance agreement is in place".
Terminal illness has a test. The prognosis is 12 months even with the best treatment available in New Zealand, and two appropriate medical specialists must confirm it. The specialists cannot be you, the person insured, or an immediate family member or business partner.
Who is paid. The policy owner or the estate, unless a beneficiary named in the schedule is alive at the time of payment, in which case the beneficiary is paid.
It can be clawed back. The payment "doesn't guarantee acceptance of a Life cover claim". If nib later declines the Life cover claim or avoids the agreement, you or the estate must repay within 30 days of being asked, and nib may require a beneficiary to agree to the same condition.
It does not grow. nib automatically increases other covers each year, by at least 1% and no more than 7%, but says the Funeral Expenses amount "will remain at a single payment of $15,000".
Exclusions. Nothing is paid for intentional self-inflicted harm within 13 months of the start or re-start date, or for an event excluded by a special term in the schedule.

What paying the funeral amount does to your other cover

This is the detail most pages miss. The wording says Serious Illness Trauma cover, Income Protection Illness cover and Redundancy cover each end when nib pays the Funeral Expenses cover benefit. Funeral Expenses cover itself ends when nib pays a death or terminal illness claim, pays a funeral expenses claim, either side cancels, or all other cover ends.

If the payment is triggered by a terminal illness diagnosis, the living cover you hold may therefore stop before death. That may be acceptable if the payment and any Life cover claim are what you need, but you should know it before you rely on both. Ask nib or a licensed adviser how the pieces interact for your own policy.

What it costs and who can have it

You pay for the Life or Living cover, not for a funeral product. nib's wording says premiums "will usually increase each year" as the person insured grows older, and nib can change premium rates on at least 60 days' notice. To add or increase Life cover the person insured must be 18 to 70; living covers are 18 to 60. Life cover ends on the anniversary of the start date after the person insured turns 100. nib's cover is underwritten: it relies on what you tell it when deciding whether to provide cover and on what terms, and it can add special terms or cancel or avoid a policy for incorrect or incomplete information.

nib publishes no premium for this cover. If you want life or trauma cover anyway, the $15,000 comes with it. If funeral money is all you want, the fair comparison is the cost of the whole underwritten policy against the cost of a funeral policy, using real quotes for the same person.

nib compared with guaranteed-acceptance funeral insurance

	nib Life and Living with Funeral Expenses	Momentum Life Funeral Insurance
Issuer	nib nz limited	Momentum Life Limited
Health questions	Yes	None
Funeral amount	$15,000 payment, not indexed	$3,000 to $30,000 you choose
Standalone	No, needs other nib cover	Yes
Early-years limit	13-month self-harm exclusion	First 24 months pay only for accidental death; any other death refunds all premiums for that person
Premiums	Usually rise each year	Fixed each year to the 89th birthday, then none
Ages to start	Life cover 18 to 70	40 to 75
Rating	S&P A (Strong), as nib publishes it	A.M. Best B (Fair)

S&P and A.M. Best use different scales, so an A from one is not the same grade as a B from the other. Momentum's B (Fair) is in the "Vulnerable" band on the table on its financial strength page. Its Funeral Insurance takes New Zealanders aged 40 to 75 and no new applicants over 75. As with any funeral policy, the premiums paid can add up to more than the benefit, and the benefit may not cover the whole funeral. The Momentum Life Funeral Cover page has the plan's terms.

A note on "nib funeral grant"

People sometimes search for a funeral grant from nib. The funeral grant in New Zealand is a Work and Income payment with a maximum of $2,697.43 on the page as read on 20 October 2026. It is income and asset tested, and prepaid funeral cover can affect whether you get it (Work and Income: Funeral Grant). It is not paid by nib or any insurer. Our funeral grant guide explains how to apply.

How to claim

nib's wording says to phone 0800 555 642 as soon as possible and to notify any claim within six months of when you first became entitled to claim. It may ask for medical information, and it can decline a claim if delay in providing information adds up to six months or more. If a complaint is not resolved, the free Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman (IFSO) is on 0800 888 202.

Where to get advice

The buttons on this page open Momentum Life's online application, which is one option, not the only one. For a decision between underwritten cover such as nib's and guaranteed-acceptance funeral cover, see is funeral insurance worth it and what funeral insurance is, then ask a licensed adviser to compare them on your own details. QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner and Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver may receive a commission if you buy a Momentum policy; see how we are paid. Advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). Back to the funeral insurance hub.