The Insurance Brokers Association of New Zealand has warned homebuyers to keep insurance front of mind when purchasing a property.

It says brokers have flagged a notable increase in premiums following last year’s major catastrophes, with some homeowners facing difficulty securing property cover.

New price-monitoring data provided to Treasury has shown an average increase in home premiums of 23% across New Zealand between September 2022 and July 2023, with some insurers no longer offering online quotes for certain regions.

The sharpest increases have been in areas most prone to natural hazards, particularly earthquakes and flooding.   

“Homeowners may now find it more difficult to arrange house cover in order to settle on a newly purchased property, even if it wasn’t affected by last year’s weather events, as insurers are now more sensitive to possible natural hazard risks,” association CEO Mel Gorham said. 

She says brokers have an important role helping homeowners “stay grounded in reality” by highlighting considerations such as natural hazard risk that may otherwise be overlooked.

“Insurance brokers can often help homeowners in these circumstances as they have good local knowledge, expert understanding of the insurance market and access to policy options that individual homeowners can’t purchase directly,” Ms Gorham said.  

“It’s easy for first homebuyers in particular to be wowed by views, school zones or that dream kitchen, but IBANZ urges buyers to stay grounded in reality and make sure the property is really a sound investment before signing up.”