Covid-19 coronavirus: Insurance Council confirm members deemed 'essential services' during lockdown

Kiwis who feared the Covid-19 lockdown could impact on access to critical insurance claims have been allayed.

The Insurance Council of New Zealand (ICNZ) has confirmed that their members have been deemed "essential services" during the lockdown - which will last at least four weeks.

"Insurance is a vital service to support the financial resilience of New Zealand and we are glad it has been identified as one of the essential services during this time," ICNZ CE Tim Grafton said.

"New Zealanders can have confidence that should the unexpected happen during the alert level 4 period, their insurer will be there to help and will be able to arrange emergency and critical safety repairs."

All ICNZ members have activated their business contingency plans, scaling up their work from home capacity to protect their staff and are well equipped to maintain their level of service to their customers.

"If you need your insurer don't hesitate to contact them," Grafton said. "New working arrangements mean it may take a little longer for them to respond, so we ask people to try to be patient."

Grafton commended the Reserve Bank of New Zealand and Financial Markets Authority, as part of the Council of Financial Regulators, for providing a full list of registered insurers and essential supply chain functions after consulting with Government.

He assured that should a service be required in person, all necessary steps to ensure it is done in a way that limits or eliminates the risk of spreading Covid-19 will be taken.