How AA Insurance compares, feature by feature
A hire car or transport allowance while yours is repaired or replaced — capped, and often only after a not-at-fault claim.
Check if you get a rental car and for how long.
Your belongings stolen from or damaged in the car are usually capped low, if covered at all.
Check the limit; valuable items may need contents cover instead.
If an uninsured driver damages your car and you only have third-party cover, this is all you get back — often capped at just a few thousand dollars.
On third-party cover, know this cap; comprehensive avoids the gap.
The first-dollar amount you pay on any claim. It's the number people forget until claim time — and it's often higher than they think.
Know your standard excess; a higher voluntary excess can cut your premium.
If a driver under 25 (or an inexperienced/unlisted driver) is at the wheel, a big EXTRA excess stacks on top of your standard one.
If anyone under 25 drives your car, find out this excess — it can be $1,000+.
A separate (often reduced) excess for windscreen/glass claims — but still a cost, and some policies don't reduce it.
Check your windscreen excess and whether glass-only claims affect your no-claims bonus.
Getting the car towed and recovered after an incident — usually capped.
Note the towing limit, especially if you drive rurally.
Re-keying and lock replacement after lost or stolen keys — capped, and modern smart keys are expensive.
Know the cap if your car has proximity/smart keys.
Documented traps in AA Insurance's wording
When your car is written off, the policy ends with no premium refund, and AA requires you to pay the entire annual premium in full before it will settle your claim.
Budget for the remaining annual premium being netted off a total-loss payout, and ask your insurer exactly how settlement and premium are handled on a write-off.
In AA Insurance's own words
“When your claim is a total loss, you must pay the total premium for the entire period of insurance shown on your policy schedule in full before we can settle your claim.”
“Your policy will end on the date of the event, and you will not be able to claim on any subsequent event. You will not receive any refund of your premium.”
If a claim contains incorrect information or is fraudulent 'in any respect', insurers can decline it and cancel the whole policy — not just the disputed part.
Only submit facts you can prove, keep receipts and photos, and never guess or inflate figures on a claim form.
In AA Insurance's own words
“If you give us any incorrect, incomplete or fraudulent information or statements, we may refuse your claim.”
Standard car policies cover only social, domestic and private use. Using the car for any business, courier, delivery, hire or fare-paying passenger work suspends or removes cover.
If you ever use your car for paid work, tell your insurer and arrange business or commercial cover; don't assume a private policy stretches to it.
In AA Insurance's own words
“Your vehicle is not covered when being used for any activities in connection with a profession, occupation or business.”
When you first take out a policy there is a waiting period — 48 or 72 hours — during which loss from storm, flood, wildfire, landslip or other natural hazards is not covered, and any already-named cyclone is excluded entirely.
Arrange cover well before any forecast weather event and don't rely on a same-day policy to cover an approaching storm or named cyclone.
In AA Insurance's own words
“When you first purchase this policy, for the first 48 hours of your period of insurance, this policy will not cover any loss, cost or liability that is directly or indirectly caused by, arising from or involving natural hazard, fire, storm or flood.”
Car policies exclude personal effects, household contents and business or professional tools left in the vehicle — these need a separate contents policy.
Insure valuable items and work tools under a contents or specified-items policy, and don't leave belongings in the car assuming the car policy covers them.
In AA Insurance's own words
“personal effects and household contents (such as clothing, sporting or recreational equipment, tools, eyewear, cell phones, tablets or laptops) in your vehicle, caravan or trailer”
Claims are declined if you or any driver are judged reckless, grossly irresponsible or grossly negligent — a subjective test the insurer applies after the event.
Take obvious precautions — lock the car, activate alarms, don't leave keys in it — and document that you took reasonable care.
In AA Insurance's own words
“Your claim will not be covered if you or any driver are reckless, grossly irresponsible or grossly negligent.”
Cover for damage to your own car caused by an uninsured driver, or under third-party policies, is capped at low fixed amounts — often $3,000–$5,000 or market value, whichever is less.
Understand the difference between comprehensive and third-party cover, and check the dollar cap on any 'uninsured motorist' or third-party benefit before relying on it.
In AA Insurance's own words
“We will pay up to $4,000 if your vehicle has suffered a loss and all the following criteria are met: the damage was due to an accident caused by an uninsured third party”
Add-on benefits like emergency accommodation, alternative transport and rental cars carry small sub-limits — sometimes as little as $40 a day or $500 total — far below real costs if you're stranded.
Check the exact dollar and daily limits on accommodation, transport and rental benefits, and top up with travel or additional cover if you travel far from home.
In AA Insurance's own words
“The most we will pay for any one event is $500.”
Insurers exclude damage to tyres caused by braking, punctures, cuts or bursts unless it happens as part of a wider accepted claim or was malicious.
Don't expect standalone tyre damage to be covered; budget for tyre replacement as a running cost.
In AA Insurance's own words
“This policy does not cover damage to tyres caused by braking, punctures, cuts or bursts.”
Insured with AA Insurance? Have your own policy read.
The free register shows how AA Insurance compares in general. The personal scan reads your exact PDF against every insurer.
Drawn from AA Insurance's published New Zealand policy wording held in the Inuio corpus and refreshed monthly. Limits and tiers change and vary by policy and cover level — general information to help you read your own policy, not financial advice. Always verify against your current wording.