New Zealand: More than one in three Kiwis cannot afford insurance
Source: Asia Insurance Review | Jul 2019
Being unable to afford the premiums is the reason cited most by New Zealanders who are uninsured or under-insured, according to a survey commissioned by the non-profit association, the Financial Services Council (FSC).
The FSC, in its study titled ‘Risking Everything’, says that from a list of possible reasons, those who did not have insurance or had inadequate cover were asked the reasons for their choice. Their main reasons (representing 5% or more of all responses) are shown in Table 1 below.
The research looked at New Zealanders’ attitudes to financial risk and how they protect their wealth should the worst happen. The findings are that although most Kiwis are aware of their financial risks, they aren’t doing much about it, said FSC CEO Richard Klipin. He said, “The majority of New Zealanders have not considered the risk of ‘protecting me’, with just 20% of respondents saying they had considered a risk of lost income due to illness or serious injury.
“Over 50% of Kiwis said that they disliked having to think about impact of financial risk, and when they do think about it, almost half (43%) then forget about them.”
This is the first piece of independent research on New Zealanders’ attitudes to financial risk commissioned by the FSC. A survey was conducted on a nationally representative sample of New Zealanders aged 18 years and older. The sample was 2,061 respondents, distributed throughout New Zealand. A