Want to be covered for ‘everything’ ? – then be prepared to pay the price
December 12th, 2009There has never been an insurance policy created that covers every single eventuality.
But if you look at the our new insurance product score you can see that the most comprehensive home policy we reviewed for the widest range of features and cover was NZI’s new Echelon policy with an 84% score. Interestingly the second best product was also an NZI product, the Supersurance policy.
Our premium comparisons for most profiles also show the NZI Echelon policy as either the most expensive of the policies or within the top three.
So it would seem there is a correlation between the cover provided and the price charged.
The features in the Echelon product are outstanding. It provides a range of benefits not seen in other policies including features such as ’sustainability cover’ (provides new sustainability products in your home up to $15000 following rebuilding after a total loss), and ‘rent protection’ following eviction of tenants for non-payment, as examples.
Many of these features are what I would describe as cosmetic however – nice to have but certainly not essential.
Every product has this type of cosmetic cover, but this NZI policy seems to have more than most. Undoubtedly they are great features if you have a specific need for them, but in most cases if you had the option of choosing such cover for the additional premium then I wonder if you would include it.
Its pricing reflects the feature loading and for house insurance a basic policy protecting you for major events, owners liability, top up cover for earthquake, etc. is probably all you need.
Other alternatives with a trimmed down range of features and lower premium will appeal to many. In one specific profile* the most expensive cover is $878 (NZI Echelon) and the lowest is $505 (AMI Premier Cover) or State’s Home Essential’s cover for $535.94. It’s pretty hard to see the real value in the extra frills for an additional 70% of premium or some $373.
* All comparisons in this story are indicative only, and relate to the Auckland suburb of Browns Bay. You can see all profiles here.
Tags: AMI, Echelon, Essentials, house insurance, insurance, John Grant, NZI, Premier, State, Supersurance
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