MediCover Specialist partners
nib
nib provides value for money and affordable health cover to more than one million people across the Tasman.
With over 60 years' experience, today nib is a truly Trans-Tasman business that offers innovative products and services, and greater value for our customers.
As the second largest health insurer in New Zealand, we provide a range of health insurance options for Kiwis and their families, as well as for New Zealand companies who want health insurance for their employees.
To help people afford healthcare when and where needed with world class products and services.
Southern Cross Health Society
Southern Cross Health Society is New Zealand's leading health insurer. Today more than 843,000 New Zealanders are protected by our policies.
In the year ending 30 June 2009, we paid for more than half a billion dollars in healthcare services for New Zealanders, funding 150,000 elective surgical procedures in the process, and paying more claims than any other health insurer.
Southern Cross is a not-for-profit organisation, run entirely for the benefit of our members (policyholders). Any surpluses are reinvested to ensure the affordability of future premiums and to develop product and services for our members. We have no shareholders or overseas owners, which gives us a competitive advantage and point of difference in the market.
Southern Cross Health Society has a range of plans to suit different life stages and budgets. From major medical cover to comprehensive plans, members choose a level that suits their needs.
Southern Cross Health Society pays out more claims than any other health insurer, which proves that we are delivering exceptional service and value to our members. On average, for every $1 we’ve received in premiums, we’ve paid 88 cents back in claims over the last five years (ended 30 June 2009).
We regularly review our health insurance plans to ensure benefits are relevant to the healthcare needs of New Zealanders. Needs change over time, so our plans evolve as necessary. For example, a private radiotherapy benefit (also known as radiation therapy) was recently introduced to applicable Southern Cross Health Society policies to address a growing need.
We are in a strong financial position, with an A+ (Strong) financial strength rating given by Standard & Poor’s (Australia) Pty Limited on 21 February 2010. This rating indicates an organisation’s ability to pay out claims.
The rating scale is:
AAA (Extremely Strong)
BBB (Good)
CCC (Very Weak)
AA (Very Strong)
BB (Marginal)
CC (Extremely Weak)
|A (Strong)
B (Weak)
R (Regulatory Action)
Plus (+) or minus (–) signs following ratings from ‘AA’ to ‘CCC’ show relative standing within the major categories. Full details of the rating scale are available for inspection at our offices. Standard & Poor’s (Australia) Pty Limited is an approved agency under the Insurance Companies (Ratings and Inspections) Act 1994.
Affiliated Provider network
Southern Cross is the only health insurer in New Zealand with an Affiliated Provider network. The 250+ medical professionals and health facilities within this extensive network provide Southern Cross members with services at agreed prices.
Our Affiliated Providers also make life easier for members by organising prior approval and submitting invoices directly to Southern Cross.
OnePath
OnePath is one of New Zealand’s leading providers of insurance. Our policies are designed to ensure you, your family and your business enjoy comprehensive cover – giving you the peace of mind you deserve.
OnePath insurance solutions include:
- Personal insurance such as Life, Trauma Cover and Income Covers.
- Business insurance covering shareholder protection, loan repayment protection and key person protection.
- Medical insurance such as cover for major medical expenses and specialist costs.
We’ve been paying claims for over 12 years and throughout that time we have remained committed to our philosophy of doing what’s right by our customers every time. That means we look for ways to pay claims – not how to get out of paying claims.
OnePath Life has operated in New Zealand since 2001 when Club Life opened its doors for business.
In 2003 ING New Zealand, a joint venture with ANZ Bank New Zealand Limited, completed its acquisitiontransition from fund manager to financial services provide r,of acquiring Club Life – subsequently renaming the company ING Life.
Since 2009, we have been fully owned by ANZ. We rebranded to become OnePath Life in 2010. A company of ANZ.
OnePath is fully owned by ANZ Bank New Zealand Limited, part of the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited. With a history stretching back more than 175 years, ANZ operates in 32 markets globally and is among the world’s top 50 banks. ANZ is one of the top four banks in Australia, and is the largest banking group in New Zealand and the Pacific.
Sovereign
Since opening our doors in 1989, we’ve grown into New Zealand’s largest life insurance company, providing personal and business insurance, health insurance, home loan, investment and superannuation products to more than 650,000 customers.
Right from the start, Sovereign was different. We introduced the New Zealand market to a new style of life insurance company, being the first to sell life insurance exclusively through financial advisers. This provided our clients with expert advice, maximum choice and personalised service.
Taking the lead is what we encourage our customers to do in their own lives, and what we practise ourselves. A passion for innovation and continuous improvement drives our business, and sets us apart. If there’s a better way of doing things, for our customers, our staff, and our community, we try to find it.
Our vision – ‘Beyond the expected...™’ – demands that we have a plan; not only for the next few years but also for generations to come.
We’ve embraced sustainability as a guiding principle that will help us prepare for the future and the challenges that we’ll face as an employer, an insurer and a member of the community in which we do business.
We’re excited about our sustainability journey and having our customers and community join us along the way. To find out more, click on the links below.
Partners Life
Research consistently identifies chronic underinsurance within the New Zealand market which creates an opportunity for significant growth given the right products, distribution and communication strategies. Roy Morgan 2013 figures show that although 83.9% of New Zealanders over 14 years of age have some type of insurance, only 39% have life and/or risk protection. Additionally, many who do have some life insurance do not have enough. Partners Life is confident it has the right products and the best distribution channels to reach the underinsured businesses and families in New Zealand.
The current regulatory environment introduced in 2010 places increased responsibility and accountability on the shoulders of advisers to prove they have given their clients the ‘best advice’ specific to their requirements. By providing advisers with access to market leading products at competitive prices Partners Life gives them the confidence that they can deliver the best results for their customers.
The recent GFC resulted in increased awareness and concern amongst New Zealanders about the long-term financial security of their families and businesses. This increased consumer focus on financial protection created an opportunity for substantial growth for Partners Life as we met the needs of these customers.
In addition to these unique market circumstances, historically the market has been heavily focused on new customer acquisition with enticing introductory offers whilst existing customers have seldom been rewarded for their loyalty. Partners Life delivers a fresh approach to appreciating and rewarding customers for their long term business – for becoming partners for life.
Partners Life has an exceptional management team, proven product development and marketing capabilities, modern systems and effective processes. Coupled with the company’s philosophy of sharing its rewards with customers and advisers, Partners Life is well on its way to achieving its goal of becoming New Zealand’s leading life insurer.
The Partners Life name highlights our philosophy to share the value we create with all stakeholders, essentially building a partnership together. We deliver unique value propositions to our customers, distributors, staff and shareholders to ensure everyone benefits from the success of the company. As a life insurance company the relationships we form with our stakeholders are by default long-term – Partners Life rewards those relationships for their duration – hence the by-line ‘Rewarding partnership – for life.’
This business model is unique in its approach as it focuses on rewarding adviser expertise as well as customer loyalty. Essentially advisers are rewarded for identifying when Partners Life products deliver the best solution for their clients and customers are rewarded for their loyalty through increasing premium discounts over time.
The design of the Partners Life logo reflects this unique partnership philosophy. The concept comes from the idea that the sum of all parts is greater than each on their own in other words ‘we’ is better than ‘me’. It depicts our fresh approach of collaboration.
We understand how difficult and stressful it can be when it comes time to submit a claim and at Partners Life there are no surprises or shocks. We have a philosophy embedded into the fabric of the company that all genuine claims are paid as quickly and with as much empathy as possible. On the other hand for the protection of all of our clients we will simply not pay any claims that are clearly not genuine, based on the available evidence.
In circumstances where it is not clear from the available evidence whether a claim is genuine or not, our philosophy is to support the client and pay the claim i.e. if it’s grey, we will pay – we believe this is the fairest approach even though it is not necessarily followed by the wider market.
During the claims process an insurer can sometimes discover that a client failed to disclose or misstated a material fact about their health when they completed their application for cover. The penalties available to insurers in these circumstances are wide-ranging and, in our opinion, often extremely punitive to the client. While the law may allow the total avoidance of cover in these circumstances and most insurers rely on this to avoid paying the claim, the Partners Life approach is different.
We would re-assess whether that cover would have been offered and on what terms, had that material information been available at application time. Any decision whether a claim can be paid or not will then depend on this reassessment. Again we believe this is the fairest approach.
These are the commitments we make to our clients and to the advisers who service them, giving them the confidence that we will always do the right thing at claim time. To prove this is not just lip service – we have formally documented these philosophies into our policy contracts committing ourselves for the life of those contracts.