Everyone likes to save money and get a good deal on their insurance. And if you’re the sort to shop before you buy, read up on reviews and check out ways you can save before making a big purchase you’re probably wondering how to do the same for insurance. The average New Zealand household will after all spend over $100,000 on insurance over our lifetime. If you save 10-20% on your insurance over this period, you could have $10,000-$20,000 more in your pockets.
Unfortunately, getting a good deal on insurance isn’t usually as easy - until now with Quashed! We’ve put together this guide to help you get ahead of the game with some handy pointers on how to save money on insurance without compromising on cover.
We’re pretty good at helping New Zealanders save money on their insurance. You can read more about us on the Stuff.co.nz, Interest.co.nz, and even Fair Go. Read on to learn more about the ways you can save money on your insurance or sign up to Quashed and start saving today.
How much money can you save on your insurance
In 2023, based on our Market Scan findings - here is what you can expect to save on your House, Contents and Car insurance policies:
For the average household with two cars, a house and contents insurance policy, you could be saving $1,153 a year. To compare and find out how you can save on your insurance today, try Market Scan - it’s free to get started.
Read on to find out the different ways to help you save money on your insurance below.
2023 Market Scan Data | Average Premiums | Average Savings |
|---|---|---|
Car insurance | $943.00 | $247.00 |
Contents insurance | $761.00 | $244.00 |
House insurance | $2,193.00 | $415.00 |
The average Kiwi household can save
$2,023.79 a year by shopping their insurance!
Find out how your renewal prices stack up against other options out there!
Loyalty tax
You’ll probably have come across the phrase “loyalty tax” before. This idea comes from those ads you continuously see of insurers offering discounts to new customers only. By sticking with the same insurer you often miss out on these deals to save money on your insurance and could end up paying more over the long term!
This isn’t always the case, but it's worth keeping in mind. If you see your insurer running an ad for a new-joiner discount, you can try phoning your company to ask for this discount. Alternatively, you can shop around and see if there are better deals or policies for you from other insurance companies. Scott Pape, the Barefoot Investor, recommends doing this annually (you can read more about him in our guide to the Barefoot Investor here).
A great way to check if you’re being slammed with a loyalty tax is with Market Scan! You can use our Market Scan tool to compare your insurance against other current market offers to check if you’re still getting a good deal. If you’re in the market for a new cover after picking up a new car, house, or simply have contents you want to cover, Market Scan works great as it presents you with multiple quotes and a side by side comparison of policy benefits making it easy to compare insurance policies. Did we mention it’s super easy and quick (it takes under 5 minutes and you only need to fill up your information once) with Market Scan.
Don’t over-insure
…But also don’t underinsure. The more you’re insured for, the more you pay. So only insure for what you need. Simple, right? Okay, maybe this one isn’t quite as simple as it sounds. But it's probably a good idea to check how much cover you have and check that you’re not insured for more than you need.
There are a number of online tools to help you calculate the value of your contents, such as Sum Insured or Quashed’s very own Contents calculator that prompts you of valuables you may have and a simple way to add it all up. If you’re looking to value your vehicle, browse second-hand listings and try some free online tools such as Trade Me’s tool.
If you’re still stuck on this, you can sign up for free and jump into Quashed to help you better understand how it all works and help you with different options that are available on the market. It’s quick, easy and free to start learning how picking the right sum insured amount can help you save money on your insurance.
Shop smarter with Quashed
Insurance just got way easier with Quashed. Compare, shop and track all your insurance in one place.
Picking your excess
An excess essentially determines how much you need to pay when you make a claim on your policy. Say your policy has an excess of $300, and you make a claim for $2,000. This means you have to foot the first $300 of this bill, and your policy claim covers the remaining $1,700.
By opting for a higher excess you can save a significant amount of money on your insurance, anything from 5%-50%. If you have the rainy-day savings to cover a higher excess, it could be worth it in the long run.
To see how much you can save on your insurance by increasing your excess amount, simply use Quashed for free and drop off your existing policies then click on Insurance Check Up. It’ll simply show you how much increasing your excess from $500 to $1,000 or $1,500 might be. And, you might be surprised to see how much you could be saving – especially if you add it all up across multiple insurance policies and the years you’ll have a policy for.
Pick the right policy
This might seem obvious but it is not necessarily as straightforward as you might expect. Picking the right policy is essential if you want the best bang for your buck. But this doesn’t mean picking the cheapest policy, it means making an informed decision taking into account policy benefits that are more relevant or important to you.
Quashed’s Market Scan is perfect for this. Allowing you to compare features of the insurance cover as well as price! Scroll down the list of policy details and ask yourself which ones are valuable to you, and are they worth paying more for? Look out for any differences in benefits that explain the differences in premiums between policies.
Some insurers will offer policies with all the bells and whistles whilst others will have these as add-ons. This is great if you’re after a no-thrills policy, but the cost of these could add up if you’re looking for something with all the features.
For example, one car insurer might cover you for lost or stolen car keys but another may not. Another example could be one house insurer might provide $20,000 to cover accommodation costs if you are not able to live in your house after it is damaged whereas another may cover you for $50,000. This could mean the difference between you being fully covered or having to top up on accommodation costs while your house is being repaired or rebuild.
Picking the right policy might seem like a no-brainer, but it can be forgotten by many of us. It is helpful to sit down and ask yourself what you need from a policy and go from there. Market Scan helps make it easy to compare policies so you know how they will cover you and your valuables.
Check if you’re already covered
This probably doesn’t apply to big policies such as house, contents or vehicle. But when taking out a policy, check that you’re not already covered. A good place to start is by rereading your employment contract. Life, Health or even Income Protection insurance cover provided by employers is fairly commonplace nowadays. Avoid doubling up so you can save money on your insurance.
Another common source of coverage is your credit card. Many premium credit cards offer travel insurance or Purchase Warranty insurance as long as you pay using your card. Check with your card to see if you are covered and read up on the policy details. You can easily do this on Quashed by selecting the credit card you have and we show you the insurance benefits that come with your card.
Insurance is increasingly being used as an additional benefit, whether it's from your employer or bank, so check to see if you have any coverage before taking out a new policy so you don’t end up with more insurance than you need and can claim for - saving you more money on your insurance.
Some other money-saving tips
Some other helpful tips to save on your premiums include:
Paying annually on your insurance policy upfront usually works out to be 10-15% cheaper than making regular payments over the year
Consider bundling your insurance policies with one insurer to get additional discounts, but only if it makes sense! (you can check out our tips on bundling here – it’s not always cheaper)
Market Scan quotes are direct from insurers
So you won’t pay more with Quashed
Conclusion
Getting a good deal on insurance doesn’t have to be complicated, but it sure can feel like it sometimes. But by getting insurance savvy, knowing your alternatives and what levers to pull can help you keep the cost down. Whether it's dodging the loyalty tax, adjusting your excess or checking you’re not over insured, there are loads of great ways to save! But the important thing is to make this a regular habit. Sit down once or twice a year and re-evaluate your insurance and check you’re still getting a deal.
Ready to put these tips to practice? Jump into Get your free Quashed account and use our Market Scan feature to easily compare insurance policies and prices and see how much you can start saving.
