Leighton Langley, General Manager Sovnet of Sovereign in Auckland is pictured with Denis Thorner, Managing Director Thorner Financial Services and Denis’s delighted client Venessa seen here receiving her 2009 Sovereign Dream Holiday Prize which consisted of an $8,000 travel voucher and $2,000 spending money.

Contact Denis for all of your Insurance requirements – www.thorner.co.nz or denis@thorner.co.nz

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The health insurance industry is warning the growth in the rate of its claim costs compared to premiums is unsustainable.

Publishing the industry’s quarterly statistics today, the Health Funds Association identified rising health costs as its key challenge.

Executive director Roger Styles said claim costs had grown at double the rate of premiums during the past two years, which was not sustainable.

Premium income for the year to the end of September of $859 million, was up 5 percent or $41m on a year earlier. Claims paid were up 9.9 percent or $67m to $743m.

The two main reasons behind recent cost pressures were that more people were claiming on their health insurance, and the average value of each claim was rising, Mr Styles said.

In the past year additional services became available, such as private radiotherapy in Auckland, which was not previously an option for people with health insurance.

Cost-shifting was continuing from the public sector, with a rise in the number of claims for surgery knocked back by ACC, he said.

Also from this month, ACC would require co-payments from patients for physiotherapy, which would have an impact on insurers who covered top-ups for ACC in their policies.

Contact Thorners if you require any Health Insurance cover as they have access to several providers and understand the market.

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

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• Directors, officers, trustees and others could be fined for not arranging and maintaining adequate insurance cover;
• The levels of under-insurance in New Zealand in both the domestic and commercial sectors are alarmingly high;
• Being under insured is nearly as bad as being uninsured;
• Critical failures include not insuring your business and its assets for the correct replacement value and failing to anticipate how long it will take to get your business back up and running;
• Be realistic about potential recovery costs so that you don’t end up paying the cost of being under-insured;
• Allow for incidental costs such as architect’s or engineers fees. Also include an allowance for the cost of demolishing the remains of damaged buildings or plant and clearing the site of debris: the expense involved in clearing up can exceed demolition costs;
• There is anecdotal evidence of an increase in the incidence of fraud and theft. Liability is also a critical area to regularly review;
• Few businesses have internet liability cover – do you know what your employees are emailing?

Think ahead, not short term.

Thorners have vast experience in all insurance matters and provide advice New Zealand – contact us today to discuss your situation.

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Mortgage interest Rates:

Interest rates continue to fluctuate and the gap is widening between the short term fixed and floating rates and the longer term fixed rates.  Overseas pressure remains on long term funding and whilst short term rates are expected to remain stable over the next few months, predictions are that the floating rate could be back at 8% within 18 months. 

It is also timely to remind you that it’s better to have consumer debt e.g. credit card balances & HP’s transferred to your home loan to make considerable interest savings. 

Funding for rental properties and over 80% borrowing is tightening and you are encouraged to approach me to discuss any home lending you or your family may be considering.

 KiwiSaver:  

Have you and your family got your slice of the KiwiSaver cake yet?  Membership continues to grow rapidly with total membership now close to 1.2 million people.  The demographics are interesting with 17% of members under 18 years of age and 18% aged 55 plus.  

KiwiSaver is a tremendous opportunity for every New Zealander whether you are a child or under the age of 65, even if already retired or not working.

If you or your family members are not a member or are in an IRD default scheme we should discuss how KiwiSaver could work for you.  The benefits including the $1,000 kick start and Government contribution matching to $1,042 p.a. are hard to beat. 

Life Insurance Premiums:

Everybody dislikes paying premiums and I am constantly told that clients are over insured but the widow or widower always says the cover could have been higher.

 Options are now available to make premiums affordable over the longer term and are known as level premiums.  There are considerable long term premium savings to be made utilising level premiums and I should also note that the premium is guaranteed for the term of the contract so will not be subject to any changes following the introduction of new Life Industry tax changes being implemented from July 2010.

 Why would you not transfer to this?  This is the question I am asking everybody.  Let me provide you with some level life premium options to show you the premium savings that can be made over the life of the policy.

 Competitions:

Sovereign have a great offer to clients where they can enter to win an $8,000 holiday plus $2,000 spending money. Just visit www.sovereign.co.nz and follow the home page link.

 I am available to discuss your insurance and investment needs in what is a difficult time for many of us at the moment so please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. My personal email is denis@thorner.co.nz or ph 04 528 8088.

 I look forward to hearing from you soon.

 Kind regards       

       Denis

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At Thorners we have access to a myriad of investment options and we are always guided by the Standard & Poors rating list.

Non bank deposit takers have been in the limelight over recent years as many have got into financial difficulty and only two remain with an AA S&P credit rating which is the equivalent rating held by the the big Trading Banks.

If you are looking to invest wisely, contact us to discuss your options.

Click here to view our disclosure statement.

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

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Check the Sovereign website www.sovereign.co.nz to enter their client competition to win a dream holiday.

Good luck and remember you only have until 28 November 2009 to enter!

If you are not currently a client, contact us for some Sovereign Life Insurance quotes and to arrange an application.   Sovereign also offer very competative home loan options that have no transactional fees.  If you are contemplating a new purchase or have a fixed rate rollover coming up, speak to us about your options.

We are award winning insurance brokers who service clients NZ wide so if you desire service excellence. contact us for a full insurance review soon.

Update 10 December 2009 - It’s been drawn and a Thorners client has won the prize,  Sovereign to contact the client today to sort the arrangements and hand over of the travel voucher.

Thank you for  your interest and contact us if you have any insurance requirements.

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We are often asked why insurers exclude pre-existing conditions.

Unless a policy offers cover for pre-existing conditions, the insurer isn’t obliged to cover any of them. 

Companies generally exclude associated treatment for pre-existing conditions as they pose a higher risk and greater likelihood of a claim.

For sound advice on any new Life insurance policy, contact Thorners.  We service clients New Zealand wide and have a sound knowledge of the best options available.

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

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Monitored burglar alarms can save you money.

Some insurers will have no excess on your claim if you have a monitored alarm that was triggered by an intruder.

In addition, some insurers will also reimburse the security firms call out fee where it is not recoverable under any other policy.

These are more the exception than the rule and it is important that you understand the conditions of your insurance policy to maximise the benefits available.

Thorners service clients New Zealand wide and can quote home and contents insurance cover no matter where you are located.  Special package discounts are also available for Super Gold card holders.

Call us soon to get a comparison on your premiums – remember a broker knows each insurers good points and will place you with the most beneficial company for your needs and budget.

http://www.thorner.co.nz/services/domestic-insurance/

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

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Apply for Life Insurance through Thorners and your annually reviewable Sovereign Life policy will have 20% extra free life cover added for the first two years. The application must be accepted and the policy issued before 30 November 2009.

Quotes and applications can be made online from the Thorner website or you are welcome to contact us for personal attention.

Thorners service clients New Zealand wide andf are an award winning insurance agency.  We look forward to hearing from you.

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

Click here to view our disclosure statement.

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KiwiSaver has recently had a second birthday that celebrated over 1,100,500 members.  Of these people 52% were female and only 18% of the total membership were aged 55 plus.

Employee deductions in June 2009 amounted to $62,477,285 and for the financial year ending 30 June were $916,603,051.  Total payments by the IRD to providers including kick starts and member tax credits amounted to $2,116,241,037.

Have all of your family had their slice of the cake from KiwiSaver?  Whether working or not, so long as you or your family members are under 65 years of age, we can show you how to benefit from KiwSaver. The compounding effect of the additional benefits is hard to beat in the current financial climate.

Contact us if you require more information or would like to join.

Click here to view our disclosure statement

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

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