How guaranteed acceptance life insurance works

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.

Guaranteed acceptance life insurance accepts you on age, residency and a few basic details, with no health questions or medical exam. Cover starts on the acceptance date, but there is an early period. Momentum Life's Quick Life excludes pre-existing conditions and suicide for two years, and its Funeral Insurance pays only for accidental death for 24 months.

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

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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.

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.

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.

Guaranteed acceptance is an insurance policy where the insurer agrees to cover you before assessing your health, as long as you meet its age and residency rules. Because it takes on that risk unseen, it limits what it pays early on. Under Momentum Life's Quick Life, accidental death and conditions that first appear after the policy starts are covered from the start, and a pre-existing condition or suicide in the first two years is not. Under Funeral Insurance, only accidental death within 90 days of the accident is covered in the first 24 months; any other death pays no benefit and all premiums for that person are refunded. This page follows the process in order. What the term means is on what is guaranteed acceptance.

The timeline at a glance

Stage	What happens
1. Eligibility	Age band, New Zealand residency, and for Quick Life Momentum's site states a terminal illness rule
2. Application	You give names, age, gender, smoking status, the amount, who owns the policy and who is paid
3. Acceptance	Cover starts on the acceptance date shown on your policy schedule; a 30-day free look begins
4. Early period	Quick Life: two years of exclusions. Funeral Insurance: 24 months, accidental death only
5. Each anniversary	Quick Life: premium recalculated, cover up 3% unless you opt out. Funeral: premium unchanged
6. After the early period	Quick Life: pre-existing conditions covered, except any permanent exclusions in your schedule. Funeral: death from any cause
7. Claim	A form, a death certificate and any information Momentum reasonably needs; payment to the beneficiary

Stage 1: eligibility

Quick Life accepts New Zealand residents aged 18 to 65. Funeral Insurance accepts New Zealanders aged 40 to 75. Residency means a New Zealand or Australian citizen, or a permanent resident visa holder; a temporary work visa holder qualifies after 6 months in New Zealand for Quick Life, or 12 continuous months for Funeral Insurance. If the true age at the start turns out to be over 65, a Quick Life policy is void from the start and all premiums are refunded (Quick Life policy wording, p13).

One rule is not in the wording. Momentum's Quick Life page says the cover is not available to applicants diagnosed with a terminal illness, or in palliative or hospice care (Momentum Life: Quick Life). We do not know how the application checks it. If that is your situation, a licensed adviser can tell you what else is open.

Stage 2: what you provide

You do not answer health questions. Quick Life prices the cover from age, gender, smoking status and the amount you choose (Quick Life policy wording, p11). You also name the owner, the person covered and a beneficiary. Funeral Insurance can cover you or a partner or relative, up to four people on one policy, and the owner must be a natural person; a funeral director or charity cannot be named as the beneficiary.

"No health questions" does not mean you can say anything. Momentum relies on the accuracy of what you give it. If your age or smoking status was misstated and the correct premium is higher, the benefit is adjusted to match what the premium would have bought; if the correct premium is lower, the difference is refunded. Deliberately false information lets Momentum treat the policy as if it never existed.

Stage 3: acceptance and the free look

Cover begins on the acceptance date on the policy schedule. For 30 days you can cancel for a full refund if no claim has been made. Quick Life counts the 30 days from the policy start date; Funeral Insurance counts from the acceptance date. After that you can cancel at any time on 30 days' notice, but premiums already paid are not refunded.

Stage 4: the early period

This is the part that decides most claims.

	Quick Life	Funeral Insurance
Length	2 years	24 months
Covered	Accidental death; death from conditions that first arise after the policy starts	Accidental death within 90 days of the accident
Not covered	Death or terminal illness linked to a pre-existing condition; suicide, attempted suicide or intentional self-harm	Death from any other cause
Premiums	Refunded if death is from a pre-existing condition in the first 24 months and no claim is payable; the wording does not state a refund for suicide	All premiums paid for that person are refunded

A pre-existing medical condition in Quick Life means any illness, condition or symptoms in the 2 years before the policy started, including treatment, advice, symptoms noticed even if undiagnosed, and what you would reasonably have been aware of. The wording adds very high blood pressure, cholesterol over 7.0, a BMI over 40 and complications related to diabetes (Quick Life policy wording, p17). Funeral Insurance has no pre-existing condition clause and no separate suicide clause; the 24-month rule is its only early restriction.

The clock restarts in some cases. For Quick Life, the two years begin again if you reinstate a cancelled policy, if you cancel and rejoin, and for the extra amount if you raise your cover yourself, though not for the automatic 3% increase. For Funeral Insurance, an increase or an added person starts a new 24 months for that increase or person.

Not every provider handles the early period the same way. OneChoice states you cannot get a refund of premiums after the cooling-off period, and NZ Seniors and OneChoice use a 12-month accident-only window. Read each wording (NZ Seniors, OneChoice).

Stage 5: what changes each year

Quick Life runs one year at a time. Each anniversary Momentum recalculates the premium for age, gender and smoking status, and premiums generally rise as you get older until they are fixed from age 75. Cover also rises by 3% unless you opt out, up to $500,000 per person or age 75. Funeral Insurance premiums stay the same each year until the 89th birthday, then stop; cover continues for life. These are features of each product, not options you pick. Our stepped versus level premiums guide explains the difference.

For either product, Momentum can change premiums for everyone on the same offer if tax or other law changes or claims experience differs significantly from expected, with 30 days' written notice. Total premiums can end up larger than the benefit, and Funeral Insurance's benefit may not cover a whole funeral.

Stage 6: after the early period

After two years, Quick Life covers pre-existing conditions "except some specific conditions" that can be permanently excluded and are listed in your policy schedule. The general wording does not list them, so read your schedule when it arrives. Always excluded, at any time, are deaths caused by alcohol or drug effects (unless a prescribed drug was taken as instructed), war, terrorism, criminal activity, and the dangerous jobs or pastimes the wording lists, such as working 40 metres underwater or professional sport. After 24 months, Funeral Insurance pays on death from any cause.

Stage 7: making a claim

To claim, contact Momentum Life on 0800 108 108 or at [email protected]; a form can be downloaded or sent. The claimant supplies proof of the claim, which can include a death certificate and a form completed by the treating medical practitioner. Quick Life may also ask about the person's occupation, lifestyle or activities, because the exclusions for dangerous jobs and pastimes are tested at claim time, not at application. The policy must be active and premiums up to date.

Once a claim is approved, payment is usually made within 48 hours for Quick Life and within 24 to 48 hours for Funeral Insurance. The clock starts at approval, not at the death. Payment goes to the nominated beneficiary; if none is listed, to the policy owner or the owner's estate or executor. If you disagree with a decision, Momentum's complaints process leads to the free Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman Scheme (IFSO), whose assessment is binding on Momentum if you accept it.

When to ask a licensed adviser first

Ask before you apply if you are in good health, because cover with health questions often gives more cover and can cost less if you are accepted on standard terms. Ask too if you expect to claim within two years, if you want more than $300,000, or if you are replacing existing cover: keep the old policy running until the new one is in force. See guaranteed acceptance versus full medical and waiting periods for more, or try the eligibility checker.

Where to get advice

Before you apply, note the insurer's rating: A.M. Best rates Momentum Life B (Fair), affirmed on 11 February 2026, and Momentum's own table puts that grade in its "Vulnerable" range; see its financial strength page. The buttons on this page lead to Momentum's online application for Quick Life or Funeral Insurance. 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).