Pinnacle Life transfer FAQs

First Insurance Limited (FIL) has entered into an agreement to transfer its Funeral Insurance Plan (Funeral Insurance) product to Pinnacle Life Limited.

FIL believes that entering into a long-term agreement with Pinnacle to provide Funeral Insurance will benefit our members. The insurance industry has become very complex and requires a larger entity with the scope to be competitive. FIL believes it is in the best interests of policy holders to transfer now while we are in good shape.

Policies being transferred are Funeral Insurance Plan.

1 January 2025, but is subject to Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) approval

Pinnacle Life is a Licenced insurer that specialises in life, income protection, funeral, critical conditions and disability  insurance. 

Pinnacle Life holds:

• an insurance licence issued by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.
• a Financial Advice Provider (FAP) licence issued by Financial Markets Authority.
• a Financial Institution (FI) licence issued by Financial Markets Authority.

Pinnacle Life is also:

• a member of the Financial Services Council (FSC)  and adheres to the FSC Code of Conduct.
• a participant in the Insurance and Financial Services Ombudsman scheme.

The Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Act 2010 requires all licensed insurers to have a current Financial Strength Rating, given by an approved rating entity.  

Pinnacle Life Limited has a Financial Strength Rating of B+ (Good) as at May 2024 as accorded by the international rating agency A.M. Best Company.

Ratings from A to C also may be enhanced with a "++" (double plus), "+" (plus) or "-" (minus) to indicate whether credit quality is near the top or bottom of a category.

Further information about Pinnacle Life is available on its website https://www.pinnaclelife.co.nz/

All claims made up to the date of the transfer will be transferred to Pinnacle Life and will be managed and overseen by Pinnacle Life after that date.  Contact details for existing claims will remain the same. Staffing continuity arrangements have been made.  This means there is little change for you during the claim process.

Your policy will continue to provide insurance cover on the same terms and there will not be any changes to your contractual rights and obligations.  All contact information (i.e. phone numbers and email addresses) that policyholders usually use to contact the insurer will remain the same.

Pinnacle will replace FIL as owner and underwriter of the Funeral Insurance Plan.

There will be no change in:

• The contact details you use to talk to someone about your cover under the Funeral Plan
• the support you will receive if you need to make a claim; or
• your premium payment arrangements, which will automatically change without you needing to do anything.

If you are covered under the Funeral Insurance Plan when the transfer goes through you will continue to have cover on the same terms and there will be no change to your rights and obligations under your policy for at least 4 months. 

Once the transfer is complete Pinnacle will review the terms of the policy and is likely to make some changes. The focus will be to ensure the Plan can deliver good outcomes to members.

Changes currently being considered include:

• Removing the expiry of cover at age 85, but adding a minimum age of entry
• Reducing the premium refund from 105% to 100% if a member dies in their waiting period.
• Adding a continuation option for members that would like to continue cover if they leave the credit union.
• A review of pricing. It is likely some members in some age groups will pay more, while others will pay less.

Pinnacle will give 4 months notice of any change to the Credit Union so that members can be fully informed.

No, your existing policy and its terms will continue to be honoured after the transfer has been completed.

No, but we value your feedback and any comments you may have.

Please email  feedback@firstcu.co.nz to provide your feedback before 5pm on Friday 22 November 2024.