What does guaranteed acceptance life insurance mean?

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 is cover where the insurer accepts you without asking about your health, as long as you meet its age and residency rules. It does not mean a claim is guaranteed to be paid. Both Momentum Life products limit what is paid early: Funeral Insurance pays only for accidents in its first 24 months, and Quick Life excludes pre-existing conditions and suicide for its first 2 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.

Guaranteed acceptance is a rule about who the insurer takes on, not a rule about which claims it pays. In an ordinary policy, the insurer reads your health answers and decides whether to accept you, at what price and with which exclusions. With guaranteed acceptance, that decision is made in advance for everyone in the age band, and the price is set from simple facts such as age, gender, smoking status and the amount of cover (Quick Life's premiums use those four). Because the insurer cannot screen out higher-risk applicants, it protects itself by limiting what it pays in the early years. That trade is the product: easy entry, restricted early cover. You still confirm basic facts, so "no health questions" is the accurate phrase, not "no questions at all".

Three meanings of "guaranteed"

Search results and adverts use the word freely. It helps to keep three meanings apart.

What "guaranteed" might mean	Is it true of Momentum Life's products?
You are accepted	Yes, if you meet the age and residency rules. Funeral Insurance accepts New Zealanders aged 40 to 75; Quick Life accepts 18 to 65.
The price will not change	No. Funeral Insurance premiums are fixed each year until the 89th birthday. Quick Life premiums rise each year until 75 and are then fixed. Momentum can change premiums for everyone on an offer, on 30 days' notice, for a change in law or for claims experience.
Every claim will be paid	No. Payment depends on the cause of death, the date and the policy terms.

If you see a phrase that sounds like a promise of payment, read the policy wording and the early-period rules. A policy that was accepted without health questions is still a contract with exclusions.

What the early period does

Quick Life works in two stages (Momentum Life: Quick Life Policy Wording, November 2025). In the first 2 years it covers accidental death and new conditions that arise after the policy starts. Pre-existing conditions and suicide are not covered. If someone dies from a pre-existing condition within the first 24 months and no claim is payable, premiums are refunded. After 2 years pre-existing conditions are covered, except for specific conditions that can be permanently excluded in the policy schedule. Our page on the two-year exclusion reads the clauses in full.

Funeral Insurance is different (Momentum Life: Funeral Insurance Policy Wording, 17 August 2023). In the first 24 months it pays only if death is the direct result of an accident and happens within 90 days of it. Any other death in that window pays no benefit, and all premiums for that person are refunded. After 24 months it pays for death from any cause. It has no pre-existing condition clause.

A 24-month window and a 2-year window are the same length, but they do different jobs. Do not carry the rule of one over to the other.

Is guaranteed life insurance legitimate?

It is a regulated product like any other life policy, and the right questions are about terms and the insurer, not about whether it is real.

The insurer is licensed. Momentum Life Limited (FSP472286) is licensed by the Reserve Bank as a life insurer and underwrites its own products (Momentum Life: Financial strength).
Its rating is B (Fair). A.M. Best's rating is B (Fair), affirmed on 11 February 2026. Momentum's own table groups B in its "Vulnerable" range. A rating is an opinion of an insurer's ability to pay claims, not a recommendation.
There is an independent complaints route. Both wordings name the Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman (IFSO), a free service whose decision is binding on Momentum.
Premiums can exceed the payout. Both wordings say so. In an IFSO funeral insurance case, a 2010 policy for $20,000 charged premiums to age 90 with no warning that they could pass the sum insured; the insurer refunded all premiums, and IFSO's write-up says "It is not a savings product" (IFSO: Funeral insurance case).

Who it is designed for, and who it is not

Guaranteed acceptance tends to suit people who:

have been declined, or offered cover only with heavy loadings or long exclusions, because of a health condition;
want cover in place without answering health questions;
are in the age band: 40 to 75 for Funeral Insurance, 18 to 65 for Quick Life.

Eligibility also depends on residency. Funeral Insurance needs a New Zealand resident who is a New Zealand or Australian citizen, a permanent resident visa holder, or in New Zealand continuously for at least 12 months on a valid temporary work visa. Quick Life needs a New Zealand or Australian citizen, a permanent resident visa holder, or a temporary work visa holder who has been in New Zealand 6 months or more. Momentum's website adds that Quick Life is not available to applicants diagnosed with a terminal illness or in palliative or hospice care.

It is usually a weaker fit if you are healthy. A healthy person can often get more cover for less with fully underwritten cover through a licensed adviser, with no blanket early exclusion for conditions the insurer has accepted. Get a quote on both before deciding. Our guide to guaranteed acceptance versus full medical sets the two side by side, and how guaranteed acceptance works follows the process from application to claim.

How fast claims are paid

Both wordings give a speed after approval, not after death. Funeral Insurance says payment is "usually within 24 – 48 hours of approval", and Quick Life says payment is usually made within 48 hours once a claim is approved. Approval depends on the documents Momentum needs, so the clock starts later than the date of death.

Before you apply

The buttons on this page open Momentum Life's online application. 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). The product pages are Quick Life and Funeral Cover, and the topic hub is guaranteed acceptance. If you are asking whether it is worth it, see is guaranteed life insurance worth it.

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

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 guarantees one thing: an insurer will take you on if you meet its age and residency rules, without asking about your health. It does not guarantee a claim will be paid, and both Momentum Life products restrict what is paid in the first two years. It is a fair answer if you cannot get cover elsewhere, and a poorer one if you can.

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

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Cite this page QuoteHub NZ (2026). What Is Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance NZ?. www.quotehub.co.nz/guaranteed-acceptance/what-is-guaranteed-acceptance-nz. Updated 2026-10-20.

References

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