Critical Illness Cover
Trauma Insurance
Pays a lump sum if you're diagnosed with a serious illness such as cancer, heart attack, or stroke. Use the money for medical bills, mortgage payments, or recovery time.
Why Trauma Insurance Is Essential in New Zealand
Serious illness doesn't just affect your health — it affects your finances. Treatment costs, time off work, mortgage payments, and lifestyle adjustments all continue while you recover. ACC covers accidents, but not illness. Health insurance covers medical bills, but not the financial impact of being unable to work. Trauma insurance bridges this gap by providing a tax-free lump sum when you need it most. One in three New Zealanders will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime, and heart disease remains the leading cause of death. Trauma cover provides the financial safety net that lets you focus on recovery.
What We Cover
Our trauma insurance advice covers the full range of critical illness conditions available in the NZ market.
Cover Types
Who Is This For?
Why Exclusive Insurance Services?
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What Insurers Typically Need
Information an insurer may require
Underwriters generally ask for the following when quoting or renewing this class of risk. Being ready with accurate information usually improves outcomes on price and wording.
Age, gender, smoking status and occupation
Personal medical history: cardiovascular, oncology, neurological, mental health
Family medical history — particularly first-degree relatives
Alcohol, recreational drug use and hazardous pursuits
Existing life, trauma and income-protection cover in force
Sum insured aligned to mortgage, treatment costs and recovery / income replacement
When Something Happens
Claims considerations
We help manage the claims process from notification through to settlement, coordinating with you, the insurer and other parties involved and advocating for your interests throughout. Things that commonly affect a claim in this area:
Trauma is generally paid on diagnosis meeting the medical definition in the policy — precise wording of the definition matters (severity, permanence, imaging findings).
Some conditions carry a survival period (e.g. 14 days) before the benefit is payable; documentation from the treating specialist is central.
Partial payments and multi-condition options mean a single event may not exhaust the whole benefit; check what remains for future events.
Non-disclosure at application is the most common reason for a declined trauma claim — full disclosure at underwriting protects the payout.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between health insurance and trauma insurance?
Health insurance pays for medical treatment costs (hospital, specialists, tests). Trauma insurance pays a lump sum directly to you upon diagnosis of a covered condition — you can use the money for anything, not just medical bills. Many people need both.
How much trauma cover do I need?
We recommend enough to cover your mortgage, 12-24 months of income, and additional medical costs not covered by health insurance. For most NZ families, this is $100,000-$500,000 depending on circumstances.
Is trauma insurance expensive?
Trauma premiums depend on your age, health, smoking status, and cover level. A healthy 35-year-old non-smoker might pay $40-$80/month for $200,000 of cover. We compare across insurers to find a competitive rate.
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About this page
Reviewed by Adi Sehgal
Verified adviserDirector & Principal Adviser
This page is general information about the class of cover. Actual cover, terms, premiums, limits, exclusions and eligibility vary by insurer, policy wording, underwriting decision and individual client circumstances. Nothing on this page constitutes personalised financial advice.