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NZ ANZSIC K6310NZ | Industry Report

Life Insurance in New Zealand Industry Data and Analysis

YL
Yentl Liu
Analyst Melbourne, Australia July 2025

Life insurers have faced difficult conditions over the past five years, with industry revenue falling in 2021-22 and 2022-23. Lost premiums from lapsed and cancelled policies outweighed premiums from new business across the majority of industry insurers. Following the end of the pandemic disruption, high inflation and weakened real household discretionary income have reduced consumers’ ability to afford expensive life insurance products. While industry revenue has been improving gradually over recent years, growth has been subdued. Inflationary effects have given life to investment returns and allowed life insurers to raise premium prices in 2025-26, contributing to an anticipated 0.7% uptick in revenue. Overall, slow recent growth hasn’t been able to make up for earlier plummets, with industry revenue expected to plunge at an annualised 1.4% over the past five years through 2025-26 to $3.9 billion.

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What's included in this industry analysis

IBISWorld's research coverage on the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand includes market sizing, forecasting, data and analysis from 2015-2030. The most recent publication was released July 2025.

About this industry

What's this industry report about?

The Life Insurance industry in New Zealand operates under the ANZSIC industry code K6310NZ. Industry operators provide life insurance and life reinsurance cover. Life insurance generally involves the insurer paying out the beneficiaries of the policy in the event of death, disablement, serious illness or injury for the insured individual. Related terms covered in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand include bancassurance, trail commission and kiwisaver.

What's included in this industry?

Products and services covered in Life Insurance industry in New Zealand include Individual lump sum risk, Individual disability income insurance and Group life insurance.

What companies are included in this industry?

Companies covered in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand include AIA International, Resolution Life and Fidelity Life Assurance Company Limited.

Performance

What's included in the Performance chapter?

The Performance chapter covers detailed analysis, datasets, detailed current performance, sources of volatility and an outlook with forecasts for the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand.

Questions answered in this chapter include what's driving current industry performance, what influences industry volatility, how do successful businesses overcome volatility, what's driving the industry outlook. This analysis is supported with data and statistics on industry revenues, costs, profits, businesses and employees.

Products & Markets

What's included in the Products and Markets chapter?

The Products and Markets chapter covers detailed products and service segmentation and analysis of major markets for the for the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand.

Questions answered in this chapter include how are the industry's products and services performing, what are innovations in industry products and services, what products or services do successful businesses offer and what's influencing demand from the industry's markets. This includes data and statistics on industry revenues by product and service segmentation and major markets.

Geographic Breakdown

What's included in the Geographic Breakdown chapter?

The Geographic Breakdown chapter covers detailed analysis and datasets on regional performance of the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand.

Questions answered in this chapter include where are industry businesses located and how do businesses use location to their advantage. This includes data and statistics on industry revenues by location.

Competitive Forces

What's included in the Competitive Forces chapter?

The Competitive Forces chapter covers the concentration, barriers to entry and supplier and buyer profiles in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand. This includes data and statistics on industry market share concentration, barriers to entry, substitute products and buyer & supplier power.

Questions answered in this chapter include what impacts the industry's market share concentration, how do successful businesses handle concentration, what challenges do potential industry entrants face, how can potential entrants overcome barriers to entry, what are substitutes for industry services, how do successful businesses compete with substitutes and what power do buyers and suppliers have over the industry and how do successful businesses manage buyer & supplier power.

Companies

What's included in the Companies chapter?

The Companies chapter covers Key Takeaways, Market Share and Companies in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand. This includes data and analysis on companies operating in the industry that hold a market share greater than 5%.

Questions answered in this chapter include what companies have a meaningful market share and how each company is performing.

External Environment

What's included in the External Environment chapter?

The External Environment chapter covers Key Takeaways, External Drivers, Regulation & Policy and Assistance in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand. This includes data and statistics on factors impacting industry revenue such as economic indicators, regulation, policy and assistance programs.

Questions answered in this chapter include what demographic and macroeconomic factors impact the industry, what regulations impact the industry, what assistance is available to this industry.

Financial Benchmarks

What's included in the Financial Benchmarks chapter?

The Financial Benchmarks chapter covers Key Takeaways, Cost Structure, Financial Ratios, Valuation Multiples and Key Ratios in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand. This includes financial data and statistics on industry performance including key cost inputs, profitability, key financial ratios and enterprise value multiples.

Questions answered in this chapter include what trends impact industry costs and how financial ratios have changed overtime.

Industry Data

What's included in the Industry Data chapter?

The Industry Data chapter includes 10 years of historical data with 5 years of forecast data covering statistics like revenue, industry value add, establishments, enterprises, employment and wages in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the market size of the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand in 2026?

The market size of the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand is $3.9bn in 2026.

How many businesses are there in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand in 2025?

There are 31 businesses in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand, which has grown at a CAGR of 0.7 % between 2020 and 2025.

How may import tariffs affect the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand?

The Life Insurance industry in New Zealand is unlikely to be materially impacted by import tariffs with imports accounting for a low share of industry revenue.

How may export tariffs affect the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand?

The Life Insurance industry in New Zealand is unlikely to be materially impacted by export tariffs with exports accounting for a low share of industry revenue.

Has the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand grown or declined over the past 5 years?

The market size of the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand has been declining at a CAGR of 1.4 % between 2020 and 2025.

What is the forecast growth of the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand over the next 5 years?

Over the next five years, the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand is expected to grow.

What are the biggest companies in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand?

The biggest companies operating in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand are AIA International, Resolution Life and Fidelity Life Assurance Company Limited

What does the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand include?

Individual lump sum risk and Individual disability income insurance are part of the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand.

Which companies have the highest market share in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand?

The company holding the most market share in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand is AIA International.

How competitive is the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand?

The level of competition is high and steady in the Life Insurance industry in New Zealand.

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