Nearly one in every ten homeowners has let their home insurance policy lapse due to high costs, according to a new study by Consumer NZ.
The consumer body found that 8% of NZ homeowners have let their policy expire, blaming soaring premium costs.
More than two-thirds of respondents in Consumer NZ’s latest insurance satisfaction survey were concerned about the cost of house insurance, the study found.
“This continues a pattern we started to see last year. We urge New Zealanders to review their current level of cover, and shop around,” said Rebecca Styles, investigative team leader at Consumer NZ.
The survey claimed that over the past 10 years, house insurance has increased 97%, while contents insurance has gone up 48%.
“Wellington has been the hardest hit with premium price increases for a standard house up 29% from this time last year. It was followed by Auckland up 26%.
“For a large house, premium prices rose most in Auckland up 28% followed by Hamilton on 24%. Dunedin also had increases for standard and large house premiums, up 12% and 9%, respectively,” Styles added.
Styles told consumers that the cost of reinsurance, extreme weather events and increased use of risk-based pricing on individual properties were all factors in the rate rises.
“Given the more frequent and extreme weather events Aotearoa is experiencing, and their related claims, the cost of insuring properties has gone up, and these costs are being passed onto consumers,” she added.
Styles said customers were finding it difficult to compare insurance providers.
“Our surveying shows time and time again that it’s difficult to compare insurance providers to find the best deal. Now, to make things trickier many insurers won’t provide online quotes without a risk assessment of the property.”
