AA Insurance backs Rainbow Inclusion at 2026 New Zealand Rainbow Excellence Awards
AA Insurance will sponsor the SME Rainbow Inclusivity Award at the 2026 New Zealand Rainbow Excellence Awards, backing small and medium organisations working to improve Rainbow inclusion.
The award recognises small to medium organisations that are making progress on Rainbow inclusion through practical changes to policy, programmes, or everyday ways of working. It focuses on action, not perfection, and on setting examples others can learn from.
AA Insurance’s sponsorship reflects its own inclusion journey and a close working partnership with Pride Pledge founder Martin King over the past three years.
Martin King, Founder of Pride Pledge, says, “Small and medium organisations play a huge role in shaping people’s day‑to‑day experiences at work. We’ve worked closely with AA Insurance for several years, and they’ve been prepared to do the work, listen, and keep improving. Supporting this award helps small organisations make that same progress in their own way.”
AA Insurance was the first general insurer in New Zealand to take the Pride Pledge, a values‑based commitment to safety, visibility, and belonging for Rainbow communities. Since signing in 2024, the business has used an independent Pride Pledge audit to guide its approach and prioritise practical change.
That work sits within AA Insurance’s wider diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging programme. Alongside Rainbow, employee action groups (EAG) across the business help shape inclusive policy, support leaders, and ensure different lived experiences are reflected in decision-making. These include Arawa Hōkūle’a, which connects, supports, and celebrates Māori and Pasifika people and cultures, the Neurodiversity EAG, focused on equity and understanding for people who think and work differently, and the Wāhine EAG, which supports women at all stages of their lives and careers. Together, these groups work with the business to build fairness, respect, and inclusion into everyday practice.
This broader approach was recognised last year when AA Insurance won the ANZIIF Excellence in DEI Award, an industry award acknowledging inclusive leadership, employee‑led change, and sustained effort across the organisation.
The Insurer has also increased its presence beyond the workplace. For the last two years the company has taken part in Auckland’s Big Gay Out, with strong participation from staff and the community. Fundraising through initiatives such as Sweat with Pride has raised more than $17,000, with AA Insurance ranking number one among New Zealand workplaces.
For AA Insurance, sponsoring the SME Rainbow Inclusivity Award is about backing progress wherever it happens.
Stephen Grey, Talent Acquisition Consultant and Rainbow EAG Lead at AA Insurance, says, “Small and medium businesses have a real influence on people’s everyday experiences at work, and even small changes can make a difference. This award recognises organisations that are taking thoughtful steps towards inclusion and helping set a better standard for others.”
The New Zealand Rainbow Excellence Awards are run by Pride Pledge and celebrate organisations across New Zealand that are strengthening Rainbow inclusion in meaningful, lasting ways.
About AA Insurance
AA Insurance is a New Zealand-based joint venture between Vero Insurance New Zealand Limited and the New Zealand Automobile Association Limited ('NZAA'). Vero is owned by Suncorp Group Limited, a listed Australian company. NZAA is an incorporated society that is governed by a National Council and Board. Since 1994 we have provided home, contents and car insurance in New Zealand and in 2018 we introduced small business insurance.
We underwrite our own policies and sell direct to New Zealanders. Our New Zealand-based teams looks after 560,000+ customers with more than 1,100,000 policies. S&P Global Ratings has given us an Insurer Financial Strength Rating of AA- (Very Strong).
We are consistently recognised in industry awards and honours, including being voted the Reader’s Digest Most Trusted General Insurer for 16 years running (since 2011) and named Canstar's 2024-2025 Outstanding Value Car Insurance winner. We have also been recognised in the Kantar Customer Leadership Index (since 2019) and the Kantar Corporate Reputation Index (since 2015) currently ranked 6th amongst 100 of New Zealand’s most successful companies.
Find out more at www.aainsurance.co.nz
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AA Insurance Media Team