Ways to keep a funeral insurance policy up-to-date

Published on Wed Feb 5 2020 in Money

Thinking about topics like death and dying is often difficult. However, with the cost of funerals in New Zealand going up, many people are looking for ways to help their family with this expense.

If you’ve already taken out a funeral insurance policy to help pay for your funeral, you might feel like that’s now behind you and your policy doesn’t need any more attention. However, regularly making sure your details are up-to-date could help claim time go smoothly when your family is ready to make one.

Here are 5 easy ways to keep your funeral insurance policy up-to-date:

1. Check your contact details

When was the last time you checked what contact details we have on file? An old email address or phone number might mean that you’re missing important information from us, including your policy documents and missed payment reminders.

If you’ve changed any of your contact details (such as email address, phone number or postal address), our Customer Care team can update these for you. We can also double check that the details we have are correct if you haven’t heard from us in a while. 

2. Check your payment details

New debit card? You’re probably updating payment details for lots of bills. Remember to add your funeral insurance to that list.

Updating your payment details could help avoid payment problems in the future. You can also switch to direct debit to make things even simpler. That way, you won’t need to worry about updating this info the next time your card expires.

3. Let us know if your name changes 

Have you changed your name since taking out your policy? Whether you’ve married, divorced or changed it for another reason, give us a call.

When a claim is made, we ask for documents that help prove your identity (such as a drivers licence or birth certificate). Your family’s claim could be delayed if the ID we receive doesn’t match the name on your policy. Letting us know if your name has changed could make things easier and faster.

4. Let us know if you’ve quit smoking

Were you a smoker when you first took out cover? If you’ve quit since then, we’d like to congratulate you and see if we can lower your premiums.

Once you’ve been smoke-free for at least 12 months, you might qualify for a lower premium rate. Fill out the “Non-Smoking Declaration Questionnaire” and return it to Customer Care. We’ll review your policy to see if you are eligible for lower premiums. 

5. Check your beneficiary

A beneficiary is the person who will receive money when we pay a claim on your policy. You can pick more than one beneficiary and choose how much of your cover amount they each should get.

Things can change, and you may want to check who your beneficiaries are. You can add or remove someone at any time, as well as update how much money you’d like them to receive. This can be done by filling out the “Nomination of Beneficiaries” form and returning it to Customer Care.

It may be easy to forget about your funeral insurance policy, but a quick review every now and then could be a big help when your family needs to make a claim. You may want to set a calendar reminder to check it every six months, once a year or whatever works for you. After you’ve updated your funeral insurance, set aside some time to tell your family you have a policy. That way, they’ll know who to contact when it comes time to make a claim.

Our Customer Care team is happy to help you update your funeral insurance policy. Call us on 0800 108 108 to get started.

 

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About Author: Momentum Life is a leading provider of Life insurance and Funeral insurance in New Zealand. 

The content provided in this article is for information purposes only. The information is of a general nature and does not constitute financial advice or other professional advice. To the extent that any of the content constitutes financial advice, it is limited to Momentum Life products only and does not consider your specific financial needs or goals. You should consider whether the information is appropriate for you and seek independent professional advice, if required.

All product information is correct at the time this article was published. For current product information, please visit the Momentum Life website.