Life insurance options for autistic adults in NZ

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.

Autism is not an automatic barrier to life insurance in New Zealand. With cover that asks health questions, an insurer assesses the individual, including any co-existing conditions. Momentum Life's Quick Life (ages 18 to 65) and Funeral Insurance (ages 40 to 75) ask no health questions, but each restricts what is paid in the first two years.

Get a quote and apply online today

See your price in about a minute, then apply online with Momentum Life. Guaranteed acceptance, no health questions, no medical exams.

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

Want more than $300k or have questions? Talk to an adviser

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.

Healthify describes autism as a difference in development that affects communication, social skills and behaviour, and says a child will have strengths in some areas and challenges in others (Healthify: autism). The same page says there is little information on how common autism is in Aotearoa. That matters for insurance because there is no published NZ underwriting rule for autism. We found no insurer that sets out a loading, a waiting time or an exclusion for it, and we do not invent one. Because no autism-specific rule is published, an application is assessed on the answers given, the records that support them and any other condition. What follows is what you can verify, written so that it does not treat autism as a high-risk medical disorder.

How an insurer assesses an application with health questions

Asteron Life says that with an existing condition it can usually still offer cover, sometimes with a stand-down, a higher premium, or an exclusion, and that people with past health issues may benefit from a fully underwritten product tailored to their circumstances (Asteron Life). Applied to autism, that means:

The diagnosis alone is one piece of information. What an underwriter weighs beyond it is not published for autism. Be ready to say when you were diagnosed and who by.
Co-existing conditions are assessed on their own terms. Healthify notes that anxiety or depression can develop, particularly at times of stress or change (it says this of older children and teens). Whatever your age, a mental health condition you have is assessed on its own terms, and the insurer will want to know. See insurance and mental health in NZ.
Records and support arrangements may be asked about. We found no insurer document that lists these questions for autism, so ask your adviser what a given insurer wants before you apply.

Answer every question accurately. IFSO says insureds must disclose all material information, and a policy can be avoided or reduced after a claim if something material was left out (IFSO). From 15 November 2027 (not yet in force) the Contracts of Insurance Act 2024 replaces that with a duty to take reasonable care not to make a misrepresentation (Contracts of Insurance Act 2024, s 13). If a family member or support person helps you complete the form, the answers are still yours, so go through them together.

Quick Life: eligibility, age limits and pre-existing rules

Quick Life is guaranteed-acceptance life cover from Momentum Life Limited, for $50,000 to $300,000 per person, with no health questions or medical exam (Quick Life policy wording, November 2025).

Ages: 18 to 65.
Residency: an NZ or Australian citizen, a permanent resident visa holder, or on a work visa with 6 months or more in New Zealand.
First 2 years: pre-existing conditions and suicide are excluded. A pre-existing condition is any illness, condition or symptoms in the 2 years before the policy started, including anything you had treatment or advice for. Momentum refunds premiums when a death from a pre-existing condition in the first 24 months leaves no claim payable.
The wording does not mention autism. A claim is judged on the cause of death. We cannot say how Momentum would treat any particular history.
Premiums rise each year until 75, and total premiums can exceed the benefit.
Always excluded: deaths from alcohol or drug effects, war, terrorism and criminal activity, and dangerous jobs or pastimes listed in the wording, such as handling explosives or professional sport.

See the two-year exclusion explained, and guaranteed acceptance versus full medical for the comparison with cover that asks questions.

Who can own the policy

This is the part that differs for some autistic adults. The owner controls the policy, pays the premiums and can cancel it. Quick Life's wording says the owner is usually the person insured, but an immediate family member, limited to parents or siblings, can own it with each insured person's consent. Funeral Insurance is different: it allows any "relative" of the owner to be insured, which includes a parent, grandparent, sibling, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece or child, so an adult child can own a policy on a parent (Funeral Insurance policy wording, 17 August 2023). The owner must be a natural person, and benefits cannot be paid to a company or charity.

If you rely on family to manage money or paperwork, decide in advance who owns the policy and who is named to receive the benefit. We cannot advise on legal arrangements such as powers of attorney; a lawyer or licensed adviser can.

Funeral Insurance: ages 40 to 75

Momentum Life's Funeral Insurance is for New Zealanders aged 40 to 75, with benefits of $3,000 to $30,000 and no health questions. For the first 24 months only an accidental death pays (death within 90 days of the accident); any other death returns all premiums for that person. After that, death from any cause pays. Total premiums can exceed the benefit and the benefit may not cover the whole funeral. See the Funeral Insurance page and funeral insurance.

If you searched for a particular situation

You may have arrived searching for cover for a construction worker, a stay-at-home parent or a single parent with autism. Quick Life's price is set from age, gender, smoking status and the amount of cover, and its wording does not ask your occupation when you apply. It does exclude deaths from the dangerous jobs and pastimes it lists, so read that list if your work involves, for example, explosives or deep diving. No part of the wording we read treats a stay-at-home parent or single parent differently; the cover amount is your choice within $50,000 to $300,000. How much you need depends on your debts, dependants and income, which a licensed adviser can work through with you.

Choosing a route

If you...	Consider
are healthy, want more than $300,000, or want to compare insurers	A licensed adviser and cover with health questions
want cover in place without being assessed, aged 18 to 65	Quick Life, knowing the 2-year rules
want a modest sum towards funeral costs, aged 40 to 75	Funeral Insurance, knowing the 24-month rule
have been declined	Options after a decline

A healthy person can usually get more cover for less with fully underwritten cover through an adviser. Momentum Life Limited is rated B (Fair) by A.M. Best, which is in the agency's "Vulnerable" range on Momentum's own table (Momentum: financial strength). The buttons on this page go to Momentum's online quote; QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner (how we are paid).