FMG: Kiwi Consumer’s No. 1 Choice for Home & Contents Insurance

It was a wild, wet and woolly start to the year, as destructive weather events wrecked havoc across vast swathes of the country. And, for many, the only thing that prevented the catastrophe turning into financial ruin was home and contents insurance.

Regardless of whether you live in an area prone to natural disasters, or one more susceptible to man-made risk and human transgressions, adequate insurance cover for your most valued possessions is essential.

Even before this year’s extreme weather events, home and contents insurance premiums were on the rise. This was due, in part, to the changes to the Earthquake Commission levy, but also because of insurance companies’ reassessment of their customers’ risk profiles. And you can be sure that further premium rises are on the cards.

But when was the last time you reviewed your home and contents insurance? While it’s easy to just renew your policies each year, if you set and forget your home and contents cover, you might not be with an insurance company that delivers its customers the best value for money, customer service and all-round customers satisfaction.

So, if you’re not up-to-date with the finer details of your home and contents cover, it’s probably time to check how your insurer stacks up compared to other providers in the market. And that’s where Canstar can help.

As part of our mission to inform consumers of the best NZ has to offer, each year we ask home and contents policy holders to rate their satisfaction with their insurers.

This year, Canstar canvassed the opinions of 2531 New Zealanders who pay for home and contents insurance, and asked them to rate their insurers across a range of categories, to measure and track their levels of customer satisfaction.

To decide which home and contents insurance provider offers the best level of customer satisfaction, each was rated across the following categories:

• Overall Satisfaction
• Communication
• Comprehensiveness of Cover
• Cost
• Customer Service
• Value for Money

Coming out on top is FMG, the clear winner of Canstar’s 2023 award for Most Satisfied Customers | Home and Contents Insurance.

This is the second year in a row that FMG has taken out our Customer Satisfaction Award, and the fourth time in five years the insurer has been rated the nation’s best by its many happy customers.

And, once again, FMG heads our awards table with a near perfect set of scores: 5-Star perfection across all categories, except a great 4-Star rating for cost.

It’s worth noting that out of the 12 insurers judged in this year’s award, FMG is the only provider to earn any 5-Star ratings at all.

FMG Rated No.1 By Kiwi Insurance Customers

What’s covered by FMG’s Home Policy?

FMG’s home insurance policy covers more than just your house. It also covers additional structures, including garages, sheds, gates, fences, patios and driveways. Benefits include:

• Full coverage in the event of a natural disaster
• Full coverage in the event of a terrorism attack
• Fire-fighting equipment will be replenished, up to $5000
• Limited cover of up to $5000 for gradual damage from leaking internal plumbing
• Free replacement of locks and keys if they are damaged, lost, stolen or duplicated without your consent
• Repair or replacement of retaining walls, up to $50,000
• Removal of debris, up to $1000

What’s covered by FMG’s Contents Policy?

• Hearing aids, glasses or dentures. Up to $5000, or higher agreed value for loss of hearing aids, prescription glasses and dentures
• Cover for your legal liability for injury to others and loss of their property
• If you can’t find a replacement item for a furniture pair or set, FMG will cover replacement of the full set
• If you choose not to repair or replace a computer or cellphone, or if it is more than three years old, FMG will pay present day value up to $5000

The policy covers your personal effects if they’re damaged or destroyed, as well as covers your legal liability, including you as a tenant, if you accidentally damage someone else’s property, or injure somebody.

Optional benefits

You can choose to purchase of the following optional benefit:

• Cover for up to $5000 for accidental loss for contents related to your lifestyle block operations, including machinery and equipment, stores and harvested product

Wherever you live in New Zealand, if you’re not happy with your current provider and are looking for a new insurer that delivers great Customer Service and Value for Money, why not consider changing your policies to FMG, the winner of Canstar’s 2023 award for Most Satisfied Consumers | Home and Contents Insurance.

For more details on FMG’s win, just click on the button below:

Home & Contents Insurance Most Satisfied Customers Award

About the author of this page

This report was written by Canstar’s Editor, Bruce Pitchers. Bruce has three decades’ experience as a journalist and has worked for major media companies in the UK and Australasia, including ACP, Bauer Media Group, Fairfax, Pacific Magazines, News Corp and TVNZ. Prior to Canstar, he worked as a freelancer, including for The Australian Financial Review, the NZ Financial Markets Authority, and for real estate companies on both sides of the Tasman.