How to make a Momentum Life insurance claim
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.
To claim on a Momentum Life policy, call 0800 108 108 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm) or email [email protected]. A Claims Manager explains the process and provides the forms, which you return with a death certificate and any other proof Momentum asks for. Whether a benefit is payable depends on the policy's terms, including its early-cover rules.
If you are dealing with a death right now, take this page one step at a time. There is no need to do everything today. The guide for when someone dies lists the other tasks and which are urgent.
Who can claim and who is paid
Under the Funeral Insurance wording, the policy owner, a nominated beneficiary or the executor can make a claim. Momentum's FAQs say a nominated beneficiary or legal representative can claim. Benefits are paid in New Zealand dollars, and the wordings differ on who receives them:
- Funeral Insurance: to the policy owner; if the policy owner has died, to the beneficiary or beneficiaries they nominated; if none were nominated, to the policy owner or the executor of the policy owner's estate.
- Quick Life: for a deceased life insured, to the nominated beneficiary if one is listed, and otherwise to the policy owner or their estate. For a terminal illness benefit the wording says the payment goes to the policy owner or the nominated beneficiary.
The policy schedule shows the owner and the beneficiary. The owner and the person insured are not always the same person, for example when an adult child owns a Funeral Insurance policy on a parent.
A beneficiary must be a person. Momentum's Funeral Insurance wording says it cannot pay a benefit directly to a company, charity or other organisation, so it cannot pay a funeral director. A family may need to arrange payment of the funeral account first and receive the benefit afterwards. For the other work that follows a death, see the guide for when someone dies.
Step by step
- Find the policy. Look for the policy schedule or the emails Momentum sent. It says whether the policy is Funeral Insurance or Quick Life, the start date, the benefit and the owner. A policy bought before 14 March 2018 was issued by Fidelity Life Assurance Company Limited, not Momentum, so ask Momentum who handles the claim (Momentum's FAQs name Fidelity as the insurer but do not say who handles claims).
- Contact the claims team. Phone 0800 108 108 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm NZST) or email [email protected] to say a claim is being made. A Claims Manager is assigned.
- Get the forms. Momentum's claims page lists five: Funeral Benefit, Life and Accidental Death, Accidental Serious Injury, Terminal Illness and Trauma Benefit. Both wordings say a form can be downloaded from momentumlife.co.nz or sent to you. Use the form that matches the type of claim, and ask the claims team if you are unsure which.
- Complete and return them. Momentum's claims page says to return the completed forms with the necessary documents by mail or email: [email protected], or Claims Manager, Momentum Life, PO Box 90136, Victoria St West, Auckland 1142.
- Assessment. Momentum assesses the claim, and its claims page says valid claims are paid "without unnecessary delay". The page sets no timeframe for assessment.
- Payment. Once a claim is approved, Funeral Insurance wording says payment is usually made within 24 to 48 hours, and Quick Life wording says within 48 hours. The clock starts at approval, not at the death.
The documents the wordings list
Momentum's claims page does not list required documents. The wordings do, in general terms. The Funeral Insurance wording says the claimant provides proof "to our satisfaction", and both wordings say Momentum can ask for more.
| Claim | What the wording says may be needed |
|---|---|
| Funeral Insurance, death | A form completed by a medical practitioner (Momentum supplies it); any other medical or other information Momentum reasonably requires, including tests or results; and the appropriate certification, for example a death certificate or a specialist's confirmed diagnosis of death. The claimant supplies proof at their own expense |
| Quick Life, death | A form completed by the treating medical practitioner or specialist; test results or other documents relevant to the claim; a death certificate or a registered specialist's confirmation; and details of the person's occupation, lifestyle or activities if relevant. Momentum covers the cost of additional tests or information it directly requests |
| Quick Life, terminal illness | The same kinds of document, with the diagnosis confirmed by a medical practitioner Momentum approves. Momentum can ask for an independent second opinion at its cost, and that opinion is final |
Neither wording lists a will, probate or identification documents. If Momentum asks for them, it will say so. The policy must be active, and every premium due must be paid, at the time of the event; the Funeral Insurance wording says Momentum will not pay a claim unless all premiums due have been paid and the policy has not been cancelled.
Information given to Momentum must be true, correct and complete. Under the Funeral Insurance wording, incomplete or misleading information can lead Momentum to decline a claim, cancel the policy or reduce the benefit, and a fraudulent failure can lead it to treat the policy as never having existed.
The death certificate
An official New Zealand death certificate costs $35 and most people receive it within one to two weeks (govt.nz: Get a death certificate). Momentum does not say whether it will accept a different form of proof in the meantime, so ask the claims team which version it needs and when. More is in our death certificate guide.
How the early-cover rules affect a claim
These are the rules that most often decide whether a benefit is paid. Check the policy start date first.
Funeral Insurance: the first 24 months. For the first 24 months from the start of cover, Momentum pays only if the person dies as a direct result of an accident and the death happens within 90 days of the accident. For a death from any other cause in that period, no benefit is paid, and all premiums paid for that person are refunded to the account associated with the policy. After 24 months, a benefit is paid for death from any cause. Accidental death pays three times the benefit, at any time, where death happens within 90 days of the accident. There is no terminal illness benefit.
Quick Life: the first 2 years. In the first 2 years, Quick Life does not pay for death or terminal illness related to a pre-existing condition, or to suicide or intentional self-harm. If the person dies from a pre-existing condition in the first 24 months and there is no claim to pay, premiums are refunded. Accidental death and conditions that arose after the policy started are covered. Pre-existing means something treated, advised on or noticed (even if undiagnosed) in the 2 years before the start, and includes named markers such as very high blood pressure, cholesterol over 7.0, a BMI over 40 or diabetes complications. After 2 years, pre-existing conditions are covered except specific conditions that can be permanently excluded and are listed in the policy schedule.
Quick Life: exclusions at any time. The wording excludes death or terminal illness caused by the effects of alcohol or drugs (unless a prescribed drug was taken exactly as instructed), war, insurrection or terrorism, criminal activity, and a dangerous job or pastime as defined in the wording, such as handling explosives, working 40 metres underwater, driving or riding faster than 130 km/h (outside commercial flights), professional sport or active armed-forces duty.
Terminal illness (Quick Life only). The benefit is for an illness expected to lead to death within 12 months. If it is paid, cover for that person ends.
A benefit is not guaranteed in advance, and these pages cannot tell you how a particular claim will go. The side-by-side detail is on Momentum Life benefits.
The benefit and the funeral bill
A Funeral Insurance benefit is a fixed sum of $3,000 to $30,000 towards costs, and the wording warns that it may not cover the whole funeral. The Work and Income Funeral Grant has a maximum of $2,697.43 and is tested on income and assets; Work and Income says prepaid funeral cover can stop you getting it (Work and Income: Funeral Grant, page updated 24 June 2026). Our funeral grant guide sets out the tests.
If a claim is declined or you disagree
Ask Momentum in writing for the reason and which part of the wording it relies on. If you disagree, you can complain; the steps are on the Momentum complaints page, and an unresolved complaint can go to the free IFSO ombudsman scheme. Momentum publishes no claims statistics, so we cannot say how often claims are paid or declined.
About Momentum Life
Momentum Life Limited has a financial strength rating of B (Fair) from A.M. Best, and Momentum's own scale files that grade under "Vulnerable". Its solvency ratio was 107% at 30 June 2026 (Momentum Life: Financial strength). See the rating explained. A rating does not address how an insurer handles claims.
Where to go next
If you are here to look at cover rather than to claim, 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. Funeral Insurance premiums can add up to more than the benefit, and it is not a savings plan. Back to the Momentum Life page or our general page on claiming funeral insurance.
Adviser's view
Start with a phone call or email to Momentum's claims team, who send the forms. Expect to supply a death certificate and a medical practitioner's form. Whether a benefit is paid depends on the policy, in particular the first 24 months of Funeral Insurance and the first 2 years of Quick Life, so check the policy schedule early.
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Cite this page QuoteHub NZ (2026). Momentum Life Claims NZ: Forms and Policy Requirements. www.quotehub.co.nz/life-insurance/momentum-life/claims. Updated 2026-10-20.
References
- Momentum Life: Claims
- Momentum Life: FAQs
- Momentum Life: Funeral Insurance Policy Wording (PDF, issue date 17 August 2023)
- Momentum Life: Quick Life Insurance Policy Wording (PDF, November 2025)
- Momentum Life: Financial strength
- govt.nz: Get a death certificate
- Work and Income: Funeral Grant
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