As a Kiwi, if you’re self-employed or an employee, you have a level of income protection in the event of an accident at work. However, the key word in the acronymn ACC, is of course accident. What happens when you can’t work because of a health condition? Who protects your income?

Private insurance and ACC work very differently. With ACC you are only covered for up to 80% of your lost earnings if you’re out of work due to an accidental injury. By comparison, private income insurance offers coverage if you are unable to work due to an accident or an illness. This is an important difference to note as according to statistics, the chances of a male aged between 18 and 65 years suffering a critical illness or a permanent or temporary disability is 30% (25% for a female). (quotemonster tables stats, need link).

Compare Now!

Terms of Benefits

In terms of benefit maximums should you make an accident claim, ACC will limit any ongoing income replacement payments to 80% of your delcared income. This is generally not an issue for those in an employed PAYE situation. However, if you are self-employed this can become tricky as you need to prove your loss of earnings through recent business account information and your declared income – so if you have been covering a large portion of business expenses to minimise your tax obligations, you may find yourself qualifying for a much smaller ACC payment than what you would actually need to continue maintaining your standard of living. Also bear in mind that any benefit paid by ACC is taxable.

Benefit Maximums for Private Income Protection

In terms of benefit maximums for private income protection, you may be limited to up to 75% of your income depending upon whether you select an agreed or indemnity value product. In short, an agreed value product provides a smaller benefit but is non-taxable, wheres as an indemnity benefit is usually a larger amount but is taxable (you can read more about the diffferences here). Although at first glance the benefit maximum appear less than the 80% offered by ACC, it is important to consider that with private income protection there is the ability to structure your cover in such a way that should you claim due to an accident, you would receive an payout from both ACC and your private insurer. And more importantly, remember that ACC provides cover only in the event of an accident, private income protection provides cover should you not be able to work due to an accident or an illness.

Due to the nature of income protection and the countless options that are available, it is important to ensure you are making the most of any cover you have, this includes ensuring it is tailored to meet your employment siuation and your budget. With access to experts on all things income protection, we can help with comparions and price indications, offer you tips for consideration and also point you in the right direction to ensure you have the right cover for the right situation.  

Important: All information on this site is of a general nature only. When you compare or complete the assessment online, we will connect you with an advisor who can give you advice at no charge. All advisers who are authorised to use this site, for their marketing purposes, are authorised financial advisers. A full list of advisers and what they can advise on is listed here under our terms & conditions of this site usage.

Rowena Williams
Rowena Williams
1704751072
Quick and easy, actually listen to what I wanted and didn’t try and push anything else on to me
Kezza S
Kezza S
1701478361
Well knowledgeable and prompt when responding to queries
Nathan Walraven
Nathan Walraven
1701049931
Maggie Silva
Maggie Silva
1699935650
At first I was skeptical but after doing a little reasearch on The Mortgage and Insurance Shop, there was nothing but positive reviews.Blake really went above and beyond to provide me with as many costs/quotes that suited my financial situation. He provided all the information I needed and explained everything, he made sure I was covered in all the areas I needed and provided great support. He's super knowledgeable and very efficient.I highly recommend Blake, he's amazing!
Blake really helped me understand how the Insurance scene works in New Zealand. The service was prompt and to the point. Would absolutely recommend him to all who need to make informed choices.
Hayley Evans is highly recommended broker, very professional communication excellent Hayley was able to help what I wanted I would recommend Hayley to others. My only regret was I did not do this sooner. Talahiva Riggs
Killian O'Neill
Killian O'Neill
1696285719
Very helpful and knowledgeable
Darryl Karp
Darryl Karp
1695961379
Easy to deal with and got the right insurance, thanks Hayley
Yvette .B
Yvette .B
1694394130
Nicole was a great help and had lots of knowledge.I did not feel rushed and was given options, that at the end of the day was my decision.Very happy with how everything worked out and highly recommend!
Julie Pannell
Julie Pannell
1691894714
Great service and follow up 💯
Ben Watson
Ben Watson
1691631426
Hayley was professional and accommodating to everything we requested. She helped with multiple revisions to our insurance quotes and was easy to get hold of and quick to respond. It's great having that personal assistance when dealing with multiple policies etc. Thanks
Jodie Oleary
Jodie Oleary
1690591240
Awesome service! Highly recommended! Caring and friendly, made every step so easy and stressfree! Go Hayley!!!!! Thanks for all your help!!!!
Jason de Vink
Jason de Vink
1689645245
Blake was very knowledgeable and easy to deal with, definitely recommended!
Braeden Pomana
Braeden Pomana
1689332142
Hayley was a breeze and lovely to deal with highly recomend
Cairo Warner
Cairo Warner
1689057779
Being a super busy person I had tried to get life insurance in the past and put it on the back burner because of how much time it took up. My partner got a hold of these guys and I had Hayley contact me. Hayley was absolutely amazing to work with. She would call me and tell me in layman’s terms what I needed to do. Thank you heaps Hayley!!!
js_loader

Compare Now!