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Tower Insurance
New Zealand insurance company From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Tower is a New Zealand and Pacific insurance company that provides car, home, contents, business, boat, pet, travel and other general insurance.
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History
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In 1869 the New Zealand Government provided the capital for the creation of the New Zealand Government Life Insurance Department (better known simply as Government Life). It became Tower Corporation in 1987 at a time when several New Zealand government departments and organisations were being corporatised or converted into state-owned enterprises. Three years later, ownership of Tower was transferred to policyholders as the business was mutualised.[2]
Being a mutual caused difficulties in raising capital and nine years later, in 1999, Tower demutualised and listed on the Australian and New Zealand stock exchanges.[3] Seven years later, in November 2006, Tower's Australian and New Zealand operations were separated with the approval of its shareholders and the high court. Today, Tower is still shareholder-owned and listed on the NZX and ASX.[2][4]
Diversification from plain life insurance
In 1989, Tower bought the National Insurance Company of New Zealand Limited. Originally founding its Head Office in Dunedin in 1873, the National Insurance Company had now grown its operations throughout the world. National Insurance had bought the failed Standard Insurance Company Limited in 1961.[5] These businesses provided Tower's fire and general insurance divisions.
In 2012, Tower sold both its medical insurance (Tower Medical Insurance Limited) and its investment (Tower Managed Funds Limited) divisions. This was followed in 2013 with the sale of Tower's life insurance business.[6]
In line with many other New Zealand insurance companies, Tower announced on 10 April 2013 that it was moving away from full replacement house policies towards nominated sum insured covers, attributing this change to international reinsurers.[7]
In August 2021, Tower began offering boat insurance policies online.[8]
In August 2022, Tower launched Contract works – Renovation cover, which covers damage to the renovation work being done at your house and theft of materials during the construction period.[9]
Digital transformation
Tower’s signature self-service digital platform, My Tower, was first launched in New Zealand in late 2019.[10] In March 2022 Tower launched My Tower in Fiji.[11] My Tower is the first insurance online portal in the Pacific that allows people to pay their insurance premiums, lodge a claim, get a quote, update their personal details, purchase a policy and view their insurance policies. By March 2023, My Tower was available in all Pacific island countries that Tower operates.[12]
In June 2021, Tower launched Quick Quote, an online quoting tool that automatically pulls publicly available sources and pre-populates information to cut down the number of questions asked of customers when sourcing an insurance quote.[13]
Over the past decade, Tower has implemented a range of digital initiatives aimed at improving operational processes and customer service. These include investments in technology and data analytics to deliver insurance solutions and support customers and shareholders.[14]
Pacific Islands presence
Tower Pacific operates in Tonga, Samoa, American Samoa, the Cook Islands, and Fiji.[15] Its Pacific operations hub, located in Suva, Fiji, employs around 300 staff to support Tower’s scalability across its markets.[16] Tower has received industry recognition for its workplace practices, including awards related to diversity and employee engagement.[17]
Most Diverse Insurance Companies | 5-Star Diversity, Equity & Inclusion 2023 | Insurance Business New Zealand
In November 2021, Tower announced it was taking complete ownership of its subsidiary National Pacific Insurance Limited (NPI) to streamline its New Zealand and Pacific operations.[18] In August 2022, NPI began re-branding to Tower.[19]
In October 2022, Tower began piloting a parametric insurance product,[20] Cyclone Response Cover in Fiji, in collaboration with the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF).[21] Cyclone Response Cover is now available to all customers in Fiji, Samoa[22] and Tonga.[23]
In 2024, Tower celebrated 150 years of operation in the Pacific.[24]
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Today
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Today, Tower operates across New Zealand and the Pacific Islands,[3] providing personal lines and SME insurance for more than 319,000 customers,[25] (~10% of the personal lines market).[26] The company is currently the only insurer listed on the New Zealand Stock Exchange (NZX), having rejoined the NZX Top 50 in 2024, and has reported strong profit growth in recent years.
In May 2025, Tower reported its result for the half year to 31 March 2025 recording an underlying net profit after tax of $61.7m ($36.6m in HY24) and a reported profit of $49.7m (vs 36.0m in HY24). [27]
Tower’s head office is located in a 6 Green Star building on Fanshawe Street, Auckland.[28]
Tower’s recent awards include 2025 and 2024 Canstar Home & Contents Insurer of the Year,[29] 2025 Canstar Outstanding Value Winner, 2024 IBANZ Top Insurance Employers Award,[30] 2024 IBANZ 5-Star Diversity Equity and Inclusion Award,[31] 2024 IBANZ 5 Star Innovators Award, 2024 IBANZ 5-Star Claims Award,[20] Excellence in Workplace Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Award at the 2024 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards, 2023 & 2024 Canstar Home & Contents Insurance Outstanding Value Award, 2023 Canstar Innovation Excellence Award for its flood risk rating tool,[32] 2023 & 2024 Canstar Outstanding Value International Travel Insurance Award, 2023 & 2024 Canstar Outstanding Value Trans-Tasman Travel Insurance, 2024 Canstar Outstanding Value Cruise Travel Insurance, 2024 Canstar Outstanding Value Seniors Travel Insurance, 2022 & 2021 Canstar Car Insurer of the Year Award & Canstar Outstanding Value Car Award,[33] 2022 Insurance Asia Insurtech Initiative of the Year – New Zealand[34] and the 2022 Insurance Business New Zealand General Insurer of the year.[35]
Tower was the first New Zealand insurer to introduce risk-based pricing for earthquakes in 2018, followed by inland flooding in 2021. In August 2025 Tower expanded its risk-based pricing and public risk rating tools to include landslide and sea surge risks.[36]
Tower’s risk-based pricing approach ensures customers pay premiums that reflect the specific risks associated with their property, increasing transparency and supporting fairer insurance costs. This strategy has also contributed to strong growth in Tower’s home insurance portfolio, particularly in properties assessed as lower risk. [37]
In March 2022, Tower released its new brand identity ‘Thinking Ahead’, reflecting the company’s growth strategy and customer-centric approach.[38] In May 2022, Tower announced the acquisition of TSB's insurance portfolio for $5.2 million. Tower has been underwriting TSB's portfolio since 2004. This was in addition to Tower’s acquisitions of Club Marine, ANZs insurance business and a small Westpac legacy portfolio.[39] In 2024, Tower announced a new partnership with Kiwibank.[40]
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Industry partnerships
Tower's current and future partnerships include:
- Westpac, the Australasian multinational banking and financial services company. From July 2026, Tower will underwrite house, contents, motor and landlord insurance products Westpac NZ sells to its customers.
- Kiwibank, the New Zealand state owned bank and financial services provider, which offers its customers house, contents, car and specialist insurance via Tower.[41]
- Trade Me Group, which offers customers online, home, contents and car insurance via Tower under the ‘Trade Me Insurance’ offering.[42]
- Allianz, one of the world’s leading travel insurance specialists, who deliver travel insurance and pet insurance products.[43]
- Coastguard New Zealand, the country’s primary maritime search and rescue charity organisation. Tower supports Coastguard’s core operations and volunteers.[44]
- TSB, the New Zealand bank and financial services provider, with its own branded portfolio of insurance unwritten by Tower as well as referring its customers to Tower for their insurance needs.[45]
- The New Zealand Defence Force, providing tailored insurance policies, for current and former service men and women, and their families.[46]
Government Life postage stamps
A unique (in New Zealand) feature of the Government Life office was its use of custom postage stamps, first issued in 1891. This was the result of a dispute between the office and the New Zealand Post and Telegraph Department over the correct calculation of postage costs.[47] All issues featured lighthouses, either in abstract designs or specific lighthouses from around New Zealand. New designs were issued in 1905, 1947 (surcharged at the time of decimalisation in 1967), 1969, and 1981. The use of these stamps was finally withdrawn in 1989.
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References
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