AA Insurance’s new Limited Contents cover designed to support customers

> Download this press release Auckland, 16 November 2020 – Contents insurance has just become more affordable with the introduction of AA Insurance’s new Limited Contents product.

“Limited Contents offers a more cost-effective option for those customers wanting something a little different to the cover provided by our current contents policy,” says Aaron Dickinson, GM of Strategy for AA Insurance.

“For customers wanting to save on their premium, or for people buying contents for the first time—students, renters and younger customers—our Limited Contents product will provide a starting point to helping them protect their property,” he says.

It’s designed to cover the things in life that are unexpected and often quite dramatic like the damage caused by fires, storms, and flooding. It’s these types of events which can at times, leave New Zealanders in a financially devastating situation.

Believed to be the first of its kind in New Zealand, Limited Contents offers ‘new for old’ cover with optional benefits which allow additional accidental damage cover for specific items like mobile phones and laptops, tablets and notebooks.

“While lower levels of contents cover aren’t new to the market,” says Aaron, “these covers sometimes limit important items such as technology or change the basis of settlement to market value. We wanted to help look after customers by being flexible to their needs and help protect what’s most important to them.”

Approximately 18% of New Zealanders do not currently hold contents insurance, which leaves them vulnerable to losing everything should the worst happen, he says.  

“By introducing Limited Contents, we can provide a reduced level of contents cover that is tailored to New Zealanders for whom our current contents product does not meet their needs. It also gives our customers another option if they find themselves in a situation where their existing contents policy has become unaffordable.”

Customers who use the online quoting system will see side-by-side quotes for both Contents and Limited Contents to easily compare the benefits, excesses, premiums, and policy coverages and choose the product which best suits their needs. For those who prefer speaking to our customer care team, the same information will be conveyed about the different products to help customers work out the best cover for them.  

“Like each of our other personal lines policies, Limited Contents also has the WriteMark, which means the policy is much easier for our customers to read and understand. We’ve reduced the insurance jargon as well as cost,” says Aaron.

Limited Contents details at a glance:

What events are covered? Limited Contents will provide cover for some of the most difficult events to financially recover from: burglary, fire, storm, flood and natural disaster. AA Insurance offers ‘new for old’ cover if a customer has one of these events, so can be assured they will be put back into the same position as they were prior to the event happening.

What optional benefits will be available? We know mobile phones, and laptops, notebooks and tablets are important items in most people’s everyday life. Therefore, there will be two optional benefits available, one for mobile phones and one for laptops, tablets and notebooks, which will provide additional cover if these items are damaged by accidental loss, damage, or theft.

Will the standard benefits be the same as AA Insurance’s Comprehensive Contents policy? Limited Contents will still have benefits like liability cover, temporary accommodation, spoiled food, contents in storage, and moving to a new home. The adjustable event limits for bicycles, jewellery and cameras will still be available also, however, they will have a lower starting point of $2,500.

How much will Limited Contents cost? As this product is geared towards affordability, it’s important that the price is set accordingly. This product will be approximately half the price of our current contents policy. The optional benefits will have a slightly lower price also of $49 each per year. In addition, there will be three excess options available; $300, $400 and $500.