Self-insurance or Givealittle?

New Zealanders are living on a financial knife edge. After accounting for all our household spending and income, there’s a surplus of just $412 per household at the end of the year.

Yes, that’s an annual surplus!

Of course, the crude figures hide a lot of variance, and you probably aren’t living hand-to-mouth. But it’s still worth asking yourself the question: What’s my Plan B if things go wrong?

Self-insurance is fine – you don’t need to pay premiums to protect against every possible risk. But that means you should have six months’ living expenses set aside if the worst happens. How long could you survive if you lost your family income or had a major health problem that wiped out your ability to earn?

Please don’t let the answer be, “I’d rely on Givealittle.” Bad things do happen to good people. You’ll need a lump sum saved to self-insure against your risks – or you can talk to us about life insurance, trauma, health or the other policies we can advise on.

The best news? It costs you nothing to explore your options.

If you’d like to review any of your personal insurance policies, we’re always here to talk.