No-medical life cover options over 80

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.

In New Zealand, no insurer we checked publishes guaranteed acceptance cover for a new applicant over 80. Momentum Life's Funeral Insurance stops at 75 and its Quick Life at 65. The highest guaranteed-acceptance entry age we found was 80, for Chubb Life's funeral cover. Over 80, planning a funeral usually means existing policies, savings and grants rather than a new policy.

"Guaranteed acceptance" means cover issued without health questions. It is a statement about the application, not about availability: an insurer can ask no health questions and still set its entry ages low. That is what has happened here. The funeral cover that remains is small, and every product we checked limits the early months to accidental death. Underwritten life cover, where an insurer asks health questions, also thins out: Fidelity Life's life cover stops at 75, NZ Seniors Life at 79 and Golden Insurance at 80. This page therefore does not offer a Momentum application, and its purpose is to say plainly what is and is not available, and what else can help. We last checked these limits on 20 October 2026.

Entry ages, side by side

Product	Entry ages	Notes
Momentum Funeral Insurance	40 to 75	Not open over 75
Momentum Quick Life	18 to 65	Not open over 65
NZ Seniors and OneChoice funeral cover	18 to 79	Accident-only for the first 12 months
AA Life Funeral Cover	50 to 79	Accident-only for 24 months
Chubb Life Funeral Cover	50 to 80	Accident-only for 24 months; the highest guaranteed-acceptance entry age we found
Golden Insurance	40 to 80	Health and lifestyle questions

Entry ages come from each insurer's own pages. They can change without notice, so check the provider's page for the day you apply. For the age band just below, see guaranteed acceptance life insurance over 75. The funeral-specific view is on funeral insurance over 80.

If you are arranging cover for a parent or grandparent, the age rule applies to the person insured, not to whoever owns the policy. An adult child can own a Momentum Funeral Insurance policy on a parent, but the parent must be inside the 40 to 75 entry ages.

If you already have a policy

An existing policy does not stop at 80. For Momentum:

Funeral Insurance. Premiums are fixed each year until the 89th birthday, then stop; cover continues for life. Momentum can change the rate for everyone on a plan for a change in tax or other law, or claims experience, on 30 days' notice. The benefit is paid to the policy owner, then the nominated beneficiary, then the executor (Momentum FAQs).
Quick Life. Premiums rise each year until 75 and are then fixed. At 75, $20,000 of the benefit becomes free: the policyholder can elect a free $20,000 funeral benefit or continue with the free component. The 3% yearly increase stops at 75.

Momentum's A.M. Best financial strength rating is B (Fair); see its financial strength page. Momentum says approved Funeral claims are usually paid within 24 to 48 hours of approval, which counts from approval, not from the death. Other insurers' terms are in their own wordings, which a family can ask for.

What the family can do with the money side

These routes exist whether or not there is a policy.

Bank money. The bank can release money from the deceased's account to pay for the funeral, without waiting for probate (govt.nz). Under section 65(2) of the Administration Act 1969, banks and others may pay up to $40,000 (from 24 September 2025) to listed relatives or beneficiaries without administration. Section 65(3) lets them pay funeral expenses only where no one has applied under section 65(2).
Work and Income Funeral Grant. Up to $2,697.43, income tested only where the deceased was a partner or child, and asset tested. If the deceased was not your partner or child, their assets are deducted from the expenses. A prepaid funeral account counts as an asset, and prepaid funeral cover can stop you getting the grant. There is no time limit to apply (Work and Income). Try our Funeral Grant checker or read the grant guide.
ACC, if the death was caused by a covered injury. Up to $8,236.40 for funeral and memorial costs; Work and Income pays no Funeral Grant where an ACC funeral grant is payable (ACC).
Veterans' Affairs. One-off funeral help for a veteran with qualifying operational service or a service-related death; a grant from ACC, NZDF or Work and Income is taken into account (Veterans' Affairs).
Council. A council running a cemetery or crematorium may, and on a Justice's order must, bury or cremate a person who left too little where relatives cannot pay (Burial and Cremation Act 1964 s49).

FDANZ's analysis of Work and Income data found about 4,900 grants paid a year, averaging about 90% of the maximum. FDANZ's 2026 report puts a full funeral with 50 guests at an average $11,700 for cremation and $14,300 for burial, so the grant often covers part of the cost, and the gap is the family's to plan for. FDANZ also found that 74% of deaths had no pre-arrangement or pre-payment.

Papers to gather now

Whatever the funding, the practical steps are the same, and they can be done years in advance:

Where the will, any enduring power of attorney and policy documents are kept, and who knows.
Each policy's insurer, number and owner, and the nominated beneficiary.
Your wishes for burial or cremation, in a form the executor can find.
Bank accounts the family may need to approach, and any prepaid funeral plan.

Our when someone dies guide walks through the steps after a death.

When to see an adviser

A licensed adviser can confirm whether any insurer would currently consider an applicant of your age, explain premiums and the early window, and compare insurance with prepaid or self-funding. They cannot make an insurer accept you. Advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). The funeral insurance hub holds the comparison, and the guaranteed acceptance hub holds the other age bands. For the longer estate view, read life insurance over 80.

Adviser's view

We found no insurer that publishes guaranteed acceptance cover for a new applicant over 80, and Chubb Life's funeral cover, which stops at 80, was the highest guaranteed-acceptance entry age we found. That does not leave a family without options: existing policies keep running, the bank can release money for a funeral, and there are grants. A licensed adviser can check your situation, but cannot create cover that no insurer sells.

Henry Smith, Financial Adviser (FSP1010699). General information, not personalised financial advice.

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Cite this page QuoteHub NZ (2026). Life Insurance Over 80 With No Medical Exam NZ. www.quotehub.co.nz/guaranteed-acceptance/guaranteed-acceptance-life-insurance-over-80-nz. Updated 2026-10-20.