Insurance, KiwiSaver, and money. In plain English.
Short, useful articles from the Smiths advisers — the same notes we share with clients when something changes in the NZ market or a common question comes up.
How to Read a KiwiSaver Fund Update in NZ (2026): A Section-by-Section Guide
Every KiwiSaver fund publishes a standardised quarterly update. Here is how to read the asset mix, fees, returns versus index, top-ten holdings and buy/sell spread — and what the update leaves out.
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How to Calculate Your Home's Sum Insured in NZ (2025): The Rebuild Cost Method
How to calculate your house sum insured in NZ using rebuild cost, demolition, professional fees and an inflation buffer — and how to check whether your current figure leaves you underinsured.
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How a Trauma Insurance Claim Actually Gets Paid in NZ (2026): Definitions, Severity and Timing
What trauma (critical illness) cover really pays for in NZ, how the policy definition and severity threshold decide your claim, and why some payouts are partial, delayed or declined.
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What Happens to a Couple's Income When One Partner Dies (NZ, 2026): The Retirement Income Drop
When one partner dies, household NZ Super drops to a single rate and their KiwiSaver goes to the estate, not automatically to the survivor. A plain NZ adviser guide to the income drop and how to protect against it.
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Income Protection When You Change Jobs or Go Self-Employed in NZ (2026): Keeping Your Cover Valid
Change jobs or go self-employed in NZ and your income protection may not work the way you expect. Here is what occupation class, pay changes, wait periods and ACC mean for keeping your cover valid.
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Why Income Protection Claims Get Declined in NZ (2026): The Real Reasons and How to Avoid Them
Most income protection claims in NZ are paid. The ones that aren't usually fail for a handful of avoidable reasons — non-disclosure, definitions, exclusions, evidence and offsets. Here is each one, and how to give your claim the best chance.
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Income Protection for Commission and Variable Income in NZ (2026): Proving Earnings That Move
Commission, bonuses and seasonal pay make income protection harder to get right. Here is how insurers average a moving income, why agreed value matters, and what records prove a claim.
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Income Protection for Contractors in NZ 2026: Filling the Gap ACC Leaves Behind
ACC covers accidents, not illness. For NZ contractors that means no income if you get sick. Here is how income protection fills the gap and works alongside ACC CoverPlus Extra.
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Indexation and CPI Increases on Income Protection in NZ (2026): Keeping Your Cover Worth Something
Every year your insurer offers a CPI increase to your income protection benefit. Here's what indexation does, what it costs, what happens if you keep declining it, and how to think about your next letter.
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Income Protection for Mental Health and Stress Claims in NZ (2026): What's Covered and What's Excluded
Does income protection cover mental health, stress, anxiety or burnout in NZ? A plain guide to what insurers pay, the exclusions and sub-limits to watch, why ACC rarely helps, and how a mental-health claim is assessed.
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Income Protection Occupation Classes in NZ (2026): Why Your Job Sets Your Premium and Cover
Occupation class is one of the biggest things that sets your income protection premium and terms. Here is how NZ insurers grade jobs from professional to heavy manual, why riskier work costs more, and how ACC fits in.
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Income Protection Offset Clauses in NZ (2026): How ACC and Other Income Cut Your Payout
Offset (integration) clauses can quietly cut your income protection payout when ACC, sick pay or other cover already pays. Here is how they work in 2026, why ACC at 80% can leave little for the insurer, and what to check in your wording.
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Income Protection vs Mortgage Protection NZ (2026): Which Actually Guards Your Home?
Income protection can be set to cover up to 115% of your mortgage; mortgage protection guards the repayment itself. Here is which one actually protects your NZ home if you cannot work.
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Income Protection vs Mortgage Repayment Holiday in NZ (2026): The Trap of Relying on Your Bank Instead
A mortgage repayment holiday pauses your payments but not your debt. Here is why a repayment holiday is a deferral rather than income cover, how capitalised interest grows your loan, and how income protection actually replaces income while you recover.
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Income Protection vs Savings Buffer in NZ (2026)
Should you buy income protection or self-insure with a savings buffer? This guide models the wait-period vs buffer trade-off, where each one fails, and the hybrid most Kiwis choose.
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Income Protection Wait Period vs Benefit Period in NZ (2026): The Trade-off That Sets Your Premium
The wait period and the benefit period are the two levers that decide what your income protection costs. Here's how each one works, how they price your cover, and how to pick a combination that fits your savings and your situation.
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Independent vs Tied Financial Adviser NZ: Why Where Advice Comes From Changes What You're Sold
What 'independent' really means in NZ advice, how to spot a tied or bank adviser, and why an adviser's product range changes what you can be recommended, especially for insurance and KiwiSaver.
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Inflation and Underinsurance in NZ 2026: Why Your House Sum Insured Falls Behind Each Year
Why NZ house sum insured falls behind in 2026 — construction-cost inflation, the lag in CPI-based indexation, the shortfall it can leave at claim time, and the annual review that keeps your cover honest.
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Inflation and Real KiwiSaver Returns in NZ (2026): What Your Money Actually Earns
A positive return is not always a real gain. With inflation at 3.0%, here is how to work out your real, after-inflation KiwiSaver return and the hurdle each fund type has to clear.
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Inflation and Retirement in NZ (2026): Why Your Nest Egg Has to Keep Growing
Inflation erodes a 25-year retirement. At 4% a year, a fixed $50,000 income buys roughly half as much by year 18. Here is why all-cash at 65 is risky and how to keep your KiwiSaver growing.
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Insurance Commission Clawback in NZ: Why Your Adviser May Push Back on Switching Cover
A clawback means your adviser repays part of their upfront commission if you cancel cover early — usually within two years. Here is how that window quietly shapes whether switching your policy is actually in your interest.
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Insurance After Separation NZ (2026): Rebuilding Cover on One Income
When a household splits, two incomes become one and a shared insurance plan stops fitting. Here is how a NZ adviser thinks about restructuring life, income protection, trauma and health cover after a separation — without accidentally leaving yourself exposed.
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Insurance Loadings and Exclusions in NZ (2025): What They Mean and Can You Get Them Removed?
A loading raises your premium; an exclusion carves out a condition. Here is what each does to your cover, what commonly triggers them in NZ, when they can be reviewed, and how an adviser shops a non-standard offer across insurers.
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How to Insure a Sole Trader in NZ: The Whole Cover Picture
A sole trader has unlimited personal liability, no employer cover and no sick leave. Here is the full NZ cover map, in priority order: personal risk first, then ACC, then business cover and KiwiSaver.
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