Congratulations to State, for winning Canstar’s prestigious Insurer of the Year | Car Insurance Award.
Whether your car requires you to pump gas or power up a battery to get rolling, it’s sure to be worth more to you than just an agreed value. Cars are the main form of transport for most Kiwis: it’s how we get to work, taxi the kids around and stock up on kai at the supermarket. Without a ready and reliable set of wheels, we’d be lost.
That’s why car insurance is so important. Not only can it be a financial life-saver, it can help provide alternative transport if your own car takes a ding and is up on blocks at the body shop getting repaired.
However, while Canstar’s research for our latest car insurance awards reveals that we understand the importance of great car cover – 87% of insured drivers have comprehensive insurance – far fewer of us (24%) bother to shop around for a better deal each year when our car insurance is up for renewal.
But finding the best deal in car insurance doesn’t have to be as gruelling as a Monday morning commute in heavy rain. Because here at Canstar, we’ve done all the hard work for you! Our latest awards research directs you straight to the best in car insurance.
The Canstar Car Insurance Star Ratings use a sophisticated and unique ratings methodology that compares price and features across Comprehensive car insurance products.
We then award the best products our 5-Star ratings for Outstanding Value Car Insurance, and the best insurer in the market our prestigious award for Insurer of the Year | Car Insurance. This recognises the insurer that delivers consumers outstanding value through its products, services and levels of customer satisfaction.
This year, our expert panel’s research covered 11 providers and policies, across six consumer profiles:
- Under 25: female driver
- Under 25: male driver
- 25-29 driver
- 30-49 driver
- Family with young driver
- 50+ driver
For the customer service element of the award, car insurance policyholders are asked to rate their satisfaction with their insurer across seven key areas:
- Overall satisfaction
- Communication
- Comprehensiveness of cover
- Cost
- Customer service
- Ease of claim
- Value for money
STATE
In awarding State this year’s Car Insurer of the Year Award, our research team noted that over the past 12 months the broader car insurance market saw premiums increase, on average, around 14%. However, over the same period, the cost of State’s comprehensive car insurance policy remained stable.
In addition to State’s competitive prices across all driver profiles, its great comprehensive policy features and strong customer satisfaction score helped it earn our Car Insurer of the Year Award.
State’s Outstanding Value Ratings:
- Under-25 Female Driver – 4 Stars
- Under-25 Male Driver – 4 Stars
- 25-29 Driver – 4 Stars
- 30-49 Driver – 5 Stars
- 50+ Driver – 5 Stars
- Family with Young Driver – 4 Stars
What State offers:
State has a choice of three levels of car insurance – full cover, third party fire & theft, and third party – plus optional add-ons, such as roadside assistance, windscreen and glass excess buyout, and car hire. State also offers benefits to its customers such online sign-up and multi-policy discounts.
What’s covered by State’s full cover policy?
State’s Full Cover comprehensive car insurance policy is designed to give full cover for collision, fire & theft. It also provides you with legal liability, should you damage someone else’s property.
Some of the key benefits are:
- Accidental loss or damage to your car, including by flood or storm
- Protection against uninsured drivers
- Repairs carried out by any repair service nationwide
- Guarantee on all repairs by our approved repairer network
- Up to $300 to replace your keys and locks
- Legal liability protection up to $20m for damage and injury you cause
- Transport and towing expenses
Optional extras include: roadside rescue, no-excess windscreen and glass cover, car hire.
What’s covered by State’s third party, fire & theft car insurance policy?
This policy doesn’t provide cover for your vehicle if you’re involved in an accident, but it does cover legal liability for others’ property. It also covers you if your vehicle is destroyed or damaged as a result of fire or theft.
Some of the key benefits are:
- Loss or damage to your car caused by fire or theft
- Guarantee on all repairs by our approved repairer network
- Legal liability protection up to $20m for damage you cause
- Damage caused by uninsured drivers
- Towing costs
- Clearing costs for removing accident debris from road
Optional extras include: roadside rescue and no-excess windscreen and glass cover.
What’s covered by State’s third party car insurance policy?
This is State’s basic level of cover. Some of the key benefits include:
- Cover for accidental damage to someone else’s car
- Legal liability protection up to $20m for damage you cause
- Damage caused by uninsured drivers
- Towing costs
- Clearing costs for removing accident debris from road
Optional extras include: roadside rescue and no-excess windscreen and glass cover.
Click here for more on our Insurer of the Year Award
About the author of this page
This report was written by Canstar’s Editor, Bruce Pitchers. Bruce has three decades’ experience as a journalist and has worked for major media companies in the UK and Australasia, including ACP, Bauer Media Group, Fairfax, Pacific Magazines, News Corp and TVNZ. Prior to Canstar, he worked as a freelancer, including for The Australian Financial Review, the NZ Financial Markets Authority, and for real estate companies on both sides of the Tasman.
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