AMP's advice and sales director Blair Vernon spoke to Paul Henry about the biggest mistakes people make when setting up their insurance.
Here are a few things you can do to give yourself the best chance of receiving your claim:
1. Make sure you tell your insurance provider all you know. Non-disclosure of material information (or a pre-existing condition) at policy inception or renewal may mean your claim is declined
2. Make sure items of value are specifically listed and valued. People often forget to detail items such as jewellery or even the new road bike, which can be quite expensive. If they're not detailed and valued then the claim for them will be limited to the value of the payout.
3. Be honest. An Insurance Council survey in 2007 found that insurance claims fraud was approximately $150 million per annum. International surveys suggest that insurance fraud in most countries is somewhere around 10% of total premiums, which in New Zealand would make it around $450 million.
4. Know what you're covered for. Make sure you read and understand your policy. There will be specific exclusions in the policy meaning those can't be claimed on, such as those not caused by unforeseen and unexpected events.