Life insurance options with bipolar disorder 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.

Yes, people with bipolar disorder can apply for life insurance in New Zealand. With cover that asks health questions, the insurer decides on your history and no insurer publishes the result in advance. Momentum Life's Quick Life accepts ages 18 to 65 without health questions, but for 2 years excludes pre-existing conditions and suicide, with premiums refunded for a pre-existing-condition death.

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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.

Healthify describes bipolar disorder as "a mood disorder in which you experience extreme high moods (mania) and extreme low moods (depression)", and says most people learn to manage it and get on with life (Healthify: bipolar disorder). Insurers see it differently from a clinical description: they ask what was diagnosed, how it is treated, and what has happened over time, then price or restrict the risk. We found no NZ insurer that publishes bipolar-specific terms, so this page cannot tell you whether an underwritten application would be accepted, loaded, excluded, postponed or declined. What it can do is set out the rules you can verify, because the two-year terms of guaranteed-acceptance cover matter more with this condition than most.

How underwritten insurers assess bipolar disorder

For any pre-existing condition, Asteron Life says it can usually still offer cover, but may add a stand-down, raise the premium, or exclude the condition permanently or for a set time (Asteron Life). That is the published framework. Beyond it, nothing is stated for bipolar disorder: no loading percentage, no waiting period, no list of what an underwriter prefers to see.

What you should expect, as general process rather than a promise:

Questions about your diagnosis and treatment. Have your diagnosis date, current medicines and the name of your treating doctor ready.
Possible requests for records. Asteron Life says fully underwritten cover bought through an adviser can involve records and tests.
A decision that can be less than a decline. See the outcome list in what to do after a decline.

We do not describe medication stability, work history or time since an episode as factors insurers weigh, because no insurer we found says so for bipolar disorder. An adviser can ask insurers on your behalf which they would want to see.

Disclose accurately

IFSO says insureds must disclose all material information. In one published case an insurer avoided a policy after a claim over undisclosed depression, stress and other past conditions, and IFSO did not uphold the complaint (IFSO case study). From 15 November 2027 (not yet in force) the Contracts of Insurance Act 2024 sets a duty to take reasonable care not to make a misrepresentation, and remedies become proportionate to what the insurer would have done had it known (Contracts of Insurance Act 2024). Until then, answer every question in full. On a policy with health questions, leaving out a diagnosis can cost the family the claim; on a guaranteed-acceptance policy there are no health questions to answer, but the exclusions below still apply.

How Quick Life treats bipolar disorder

Quick Life is Momentum Life Limited's guaranteed-acceptance life cover for ages 18 to 65, $50,000 to $300,000 per person, with no health questions or medical exam (Quick Life policy wording, November 2025). In the first 2 years of the policy:

Pre-existing conditions are excluded. The wording defines them as any illness, condition or symptoms in the 2 years before the policy started, including anything you had treatment or advice for. Bipolar disorder under treatment would be expected to fall inside that definition. A death directly or indirectly related to it pays no benefit, and premiums are refunded if no claim is payable.
Suicide and intentional self-harm are excluded, "regardless of your mental state". No premium refund is stated for a suicide in this period.
Accidental death is covered, and so are conditions that start after cover begins.

After 2 years the pre-existing exclusion and the suicide exclusion in the wording no longer apply. The exceptions are specific conditions that can be permanently excluded and are listed in the policy schedule, and the always-excluded causes: alcohol or drug effects, war, terrorism, criminal activity and dangerous jobs or pastimes listed in the wording. Premiums are stepped, rising each year until 75, and may add up to more than the benefit. See the two-year exclusion and the suicide clause. Reinstating a cancelled policy or increasing cover starts a new 2-year period for that part.

Momentum's website says Quick Life is not available to applicants diagnosed with a terminal illness or in palliative or hospice care (Momentum: Quick Life).

Funeral Insurance and the 24-month rule

Momentum Life's Funeral Insurance takes no health questions and is open to New Zealanders aged 40 to 75, for $3,000 to $30,000 (Funeral Insurance policy wording, 17 August 2023). It has no pre-existing-condition clause and no separate suicide clause. Its only early restriction is that for the first 24 months only an accidental death (within 90 days of an accident that was unintentional, external and not self-inflicted) pays. Any other death, which includes a suicide, refunds all premiums for that person. From month 25 a 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.

Underwritten versus guaranteed acceptance, with bipolar disorder in mind

	Cover with health questions	Quick Life
Can health lead to a decline?	Yes	No: acceptance is guaranteed within the age and residency rules
Early period	Per insurer; none published for bipolar disorder	2 years: pre-existing conditions and suicide excluded
Amount	Higher amounts available	$50,000 to $300,000 per person
Disclosure risk	A material omission can lead to the policy being avoided or the claim reduced	None to disclose; exclusions apply regardless

A healthy person can usually get more cover for less with fully underwritten cover through an adviser. Whether that is open to you is something only insurers can say. See guaranteed acceptance versus full medical and our pages on depression and pre-existing conditions.

Questions people ask

I'm 52 and have had bipolar disorder most of my life. Would that be an issue for a straightforward over-50s policy? It depends on the policy. A fully underwritten policy will ask about it. Momentum's Quick Life (18 to 65) and Funeral Insurance (40 to 75) are both open at 52 and ask no health questions, but each has the early-period limits above. Neither uses an "over 50s" label in the wording we read; each simply has its own age band.

Will a suicide be covered? Under Quick Life, not in the first 2 years. Under Funeral Insurance, not in the first 24 months (the death is not accidental), and after that the wording we read has no suicide clause. Other insurers' rules differ; Fidelity and Chubb use 13 months, as their wordings state.

Does the diagnosis have to be disclosed on Quick Life? There are no health questions, so there is nothing to answer. The exclusions still apply to a related death.

Momentum Life Limited is rated B (Fair) by A.M. Best, in the agency's "Vulnerable" range on Momentum's own table (Momentum: financial strength). If you are in distress, you can call or text 1737 any time, free (1737). The buttons on this page go to Momentum's online quote; QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner (how we are paid).