The Funeral Plan
Death is one of the few predictable things in our lives. Another is that putting off planning for it won t prevent it or make it any easier on those you leave behind. Funerals don t come cheap. Depending on the type of send-off you want, $8,000 to $10,000 is about the average cost in metropolitan areas but it isn t difficult to spend a great deal more than this for a large or bespoke service. And the funeral home will need to be paid within a week or two, however long it takes to settle your estate or for any life insurance you have to pay out. Having to front up with the thousands needed is the last thing your family should have to worry about at a difficult time. You could set money aside but a funeral insurance policy is a smarter solution providing the necessary funds when they re needed without having to tie up thousands in a pre-paid funeral or nest egg account, and without affecting your eligibility for subsidy for long term residential care. The Funeral Plan is a purpose designed policy that will sit alongside any insurance cover you already have, providing up to $20,000 to take care of funeral costs and related expenses. The money is paid out very quickly, usually within 48 hours of notification, and can be used however you or your family choose. But what makes the Funeral Plan really stand out is the great value proposition: you ll never pay more in premiums than you get back in cover. This brochure is intended to provide a summary of the features and benefits of The Funeral Plan. For full details please refer to the policy document, a copy of which is available on request by calling 0800 666 004.
Simple cover The Greenwich Funeral Plan is a straight forward policy that pays out on your death, regardless of how much premium you ve paid. The money can be paid directly to a person of your choice, so it is able to be accessed quickly and can be used however it is needed. If you would prefer not to nominate a beneficiary, or if we are unable to pay the person you have nominated, the money will be paid to your estate. Guaranteed acceptance Anyone aged 30 to 70 can enrol in the Funeral Plan. Acceptance is guaranteed regardless of your medical history and any medical problems you already have will be covered after the initial two year period. Once your policy is in place there is no age limit either. Provided your premiums are up to date you can keep the policy as long as you want, so you ll know that the cover will be there when it s needed. Guaranteed premiums You choose the amount of cover you want, from $5,000 to $20,000 (or any amount in between). The premium you pay is set at the time you enrol and is then guaranteed not to increase as you get older, even if your health deteriorates. So you ll always know how much to budget for and the policy won t suddenly become too expensive to maintain. Have a look at the current rate table to see how much the cover you want will cost, or you can call us on 0800 666 004 for a quote. Never pay more than you re covered for - Guaranteed Many of the funeral insurance policies available in New Zealand continue to charge premiums until you die, so unless you die within a few years of taking out the policy, it is very likely you will end up paying more in premiums than you are insured for. Have a look at the table over the page for more details about the long term cost of some competitor products. With the Greenwich Funeral Plan you ll never pay more in premiums than you get back in cover. Your premiums stop as soon as the total paid equals your funeral benefit and cover then continues, free of charge, until the benefit is paid out. Guaranteed.
Benefit payout or 100% refund Because your acceptance is guaranteed, cover is provided in two stages. For the first two years the funeral benefit is paid out only in the event of accidental death but 100% of all premiums paid for your policy will be refunded if you die from any other cause during this time. After two years you are covered for death by any cause, no exclusions and no exceptions. What isn t covered? The only events not covered are death by illness or disease during the first two years and suicide or attempted suicide in the first two years. In both cases however the policy will still pay out the full premium refund. After two years you are covered for death by any cause, no exceptions. However you choose to enrol it s a very simple process because acceptance is guaranteed for anyone aged 30 to 70. Money back guarantee Your cover starts as soon as your completed application is received and you ll be sent a policy document within a few days. If you then decide the cover isn t exactly what you want, you can cancel the policy within the first 30 days and any premiums paid will be refunded in full. There is no minimum cover term so you can cancel your policy whenever you wish, but after the 30 day money back period only unused quarterly or annual premium will be refunded. Apply now it s easy To secure your Funeral Plan policy either complete an application form and return it to Greenwich, at PO Box 1232 Auckland City 1140 or you can call us on 0800 666 004 to enrol over the phone. Additional application forms can be downloaded at www.funeralinsuranceservices.co.nz
How much will that policy really cost in the long run? Most funeral plans available in New Zealand have level premiums based on your age at entry and have similar terms and conditions. There can however be a significant difference in the long term cost of the different plans. The chart below compares the cost of the Greenwich policy with several others that are available online, promoted on TV or offered to customer groups. The example used is a male non smoker aged 55 who purchases a $10,000 policy. At this age he can be expected to survive until age 81 so we have calculated the total he will have paid for the different policies by the time he is 75, 81 and 90. $20,000 $15,000 $10,000 $5,000 0 Greenwich Funeral Plan Pinnacle Funeral Cover AA Life Funeral Cover State ValuePlus Funeral Insurance Cigna Funeral Plan Premiums for the Greenwich policy would stop just before the customer turned 75; as soon as the total he had paid equalled his funeral benefit. Premiums for the Pinnacle policy continue until age 85 and to age 90 for AA Life but there is no cut-off point for the State and CIGNA plans; the customer would have to continue to pay in order for the cover to continue. This means that unless he dies well before his life expectancy of 81, with all of these other plans our example person will pay significantly more in premium than his policy is actually worth. Product information and premium values have been sourced from www.pinnaclelife.co.nz/funeral-insurance.aspx, http://www.aa.co.nz/insurance/ life-insurance/life-insurance-policies/funeral-cover-insurance/, www.state.co.nz/personal-insurance/life-insurance/pages/valueplus-funeral. aspx and www.cigna.co.nz/net/insurance/funeral-plan.aspx on 2/2/12. Premium values for State ValuePlus sourced from the State Life call centre on 2/2/12. Life expectancy for a male aged 55 sourced from Period Life Tables 2005-2007, Department of Statistics.
Greenwich Greenwich is a business division of DPL Insurance Ltd. DPL Insurance Limited is a licensed insurer under the Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Act 2010. For more information, and details on our Financial Strength Rating and Solvency Calculation, please visit www.dplinsurance.co.nz Contact Us PO Box 1232 Auckland City 1140 T: 0800 666 004 E: info@funeralinsuranceservices.co.nz www.funeralinsuranceservices.co.nz DPL-7.1-1A-022015/022015