Life and funeral insurance after a dementia diagnosis

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.

A person diagnosed with dementia is not asked health questions by guaranteed-acceptance cover, so a diagnosis is not a bar if they meet the age and residency rules. Whether they can take part in an application is a separate question, covered below. Momentum's Funeral Insurance takes ages 40 to 75 and Quick Life 18 to 65, and neither takes new applicants over those ages. Both restrict what they pay in the first two years, so a dementia-related death in that time pays no benefit.

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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.

This page is for the person with a diagnosis and for the people helping them. It looks at what the products do, what the early periods mean when a condition progresses, and the ownership and capacity questions that come up. Its sibling page, funeral cover for a parent with dementia, goes deeper on an adult child acting for a parent. Here the question is the wider one: which cover, if any, makes sense after a diagnosis.

Which products are open, by age

Age	Momentum Quick Life (life cover)	Momentum Funeral Insurance
Under 40	18 to 65: open	Not open
40 to 65	Open: $50,000 to $300,000	Open: $3,000 to $30,000
66 to 75	Not open	Open
Over 75	Not open	Not open

Quick Life's age range is 18 to 65 and Funeral Insurance's is 40 to 75 (Momentum Life: Quick Life policy wording, Funeral Insurance policy wording). Early-onset dementia means some people are diagnosed within these bands. Anyone over 75 should not expect a Momentum offer; see funeral insurance over 75 and the options listed there.

Underwritten life cover

Cover with health questions asks about your health and decides case by case. No New Zealand insurer publishes terms for dementia, and QuoteHub has not found any, so we cannot say what an insurer would offer. A diagnosis has to be disclosed on an application, and a policy bought on incomplete answers may not pay (IFSO). A licensed adviser can ask insurers for you, and may tell you honestly that a particular product is closed.

What the early periods do to a dementia claim

Quick Life excludes pre-existing medical conditions and suicide for the first two years. Any illness, condition or symptoms in the 2 years before the policy started, including anything you had treatment, advice or a diagnosis for, is pre-existing. A dementia diagnosis is inside that. If the person dies of a pre-existing condition in the first 24 months and no claim is payable, premiums are refunded. After that, pre-existing conditions are covered, except any specific conditions the policy schedule permanently excludes. Momentum's website says Quick Life is not available to someone diagnosed with a terminal illness or in palliative or hospice care (Momentum Life). Premiums are stepped and rise each year, and total premiums can exceed the benefit.

Funeral Insurance has no pre-existing-condition clause, but in the first 24 months it pays only for accidental death within 90 days of the accident. Death from any other cause in that time pays nothing and all premiums for that person are refunded. After 24 months it pays on death from any cause, with no terminal illness benefit. Dementia is a progressive condition, so the 24 months matter. Here is an illustration with invented numbers: a 72-year-old with early dementia takes $10,000 of cover and pays premiums for 20 months. If the death is from illness, no benefit is paid and the premiums are returned. A death from an accident (such as a fall) within 90 days of the accident would pay three times the benefit, $30,000. After month 24, death from illness would pay $10,000 and accidental death within 90 days of the accident would pay $30,000. The benefit is a fixed amount towards funeral costs, may not cover the whole funeral, and total premiums over a long life can exceed it.

Capacity, ownership and who can act

The age limits are the clear part. Who may take out and own the policy is less clear, and QuoteHub cannot give legal advice. These are the sourced points.

Funeral Insurance can be owned by a relative. The wording says a single policy covers "You or a Partner/Relative" of the owner, and a Relative includes a parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece or child of the owner, who must be a New Zealander. The owner must be a natural person and a New Zealander. So an adult child can own a policy on a parent aged 40 to 75. The wording does not set out what is needed where the person insured lacks capacity, and we have not found Momentum's practice. Ask Momentum directly before assuming anything.
Quick Life ownership is narrower. It may be owned by the insured's immediate family, limited to parents or siblings, with the consent of each person insured. A child owning for a parent is not listed.
An enduring power of attorney (EPA) lets a chosen person manage property or personal care if the donor loses capacity. A property EPA can run while the donor is capable or only once they are not, and later loss of capacity does not cancel it. It ends on the donor's death (govt.nz). Whether an attorney can take out insurance for the donor is a question for a lawyer; we found no source that says. See power of attorney.
Without an EPA, the Ministry of Justice says the person or another person can ask the Family Court to appoint a welfare guardian or a property manager (Ministry of Justice). It is not a quick process.

Misuse is a real risk for older people. The Elder Abuse Response Service is on 0800 32 668 65, free and open 24 hours (Office for Seniors). A policy should be taken out for the person's benefit, with them involved as far as they are able.

Other ways to plan

If cover is closed or unsuitable, planning for the cost may do the job. A prepaid funeral trust is one route, and Public Trust says the first $10,000 is exempt from the Residential Care Subsidy asset test (Public Trust); see rest home funeral cover and funeral insurance for parents. Our seniors funeral insurance guide compares the insurers that sell to older people.

Momentum Life's A.M. Best rating is B (Fair), in what Momentum's financial strength page calls the "Vulnerable" range. Advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner, and Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver may receive a commission if you buy through the buttons on this page, which are for people within the age ranges above; see how we are paid. Start from the guaranteed acceptance hub or read about Momentum's Funeral Cover.

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.

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

Want more cover or have questions? Talk to an adviser

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.

Already have cover? Keep it. New cover won't pay for a condition you already have in its first 2 years.

Adviser's view

Guaranteed-acceptance funeral cover is the one product that asks no health questions and is open to many people aged 40 to 75, but it pays only for accidents in its first 24 months, so dementia-related deaths in that time return premiums. Over 75 Momentum accepts no one new. Capacity and ownership are the hard part, and they are a legal question to settle with a lawyer, not a form to fill in.

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

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Cite this page QuoteHub NZ (2026). Life Insurance With Dementia NZ: Options and Limits. www.quotehub.co.nz/guaranteed-acceptance/life-insurance-with-dementia-nz. Updated 2026-10-20.