We’re currently contacting impacted clients regarding two issues we have identified:
Incorrect rate application: We incorrectly applied a fixed flat rate to adjust some clients' sums insured for household contents, farm contents, and house and farm buildings policies. We should have used a variable rate to reflect changes in inflation over time.
Incorrect data: For a short period, during the month of October 2024, we used incorrect data to calculate rebuild costs for house insurance policies, which affected the premiums.
What to expect if you have been contacted
If we’ve contacted you about a refund, you have the following options:
- If you recently provided us with a nominated refund bank account, we'll pay the refund into this account. You can check and update your refund bank account in FMG Connect.
- You can fill out the FMG Client Refund Form using the unique client refund reference code included at the top of the email or letter we sent you. Alternatively, you can email your bank account name and number and unique code to clientrefunds@fmg.co.nz
- If you’d like to talk to one of our consultants about your refund, call 0800 366 466 (select option 5, and then option 1).
- Refunds are deposited within 7 business days of us receiving your bank account details.
If we have contacted you about reviewing your sum insured:
- If you have reviewed your sum insured, and want to change it, you can do this through FMG Connect. If you haven’t registered for FMG Connect, you can register here.
- If you’d like to talk with one of our consultants about reviewing your sum insured, you can contact us on 0800 366 466 (option 5, and then option 2) or send us a message here.
If you have been contacted, and have questions, you may be able to find the answers here:
-
We send client refund emails to clients from the email address clientrefunds@fmg.co.nz, with the subject line referring to us owing you a refund followed by your account name and number. We also include a unique client refund reference code. If we don’t have your bank account details, we’ll ask you for them. We won't ask you for your credit card details.
Email scams are becoming more prevalent, so we do encourage you to remain vigilant to protect your personal information. Always check the sender’s email address, hover over links to check the web address, and don’t click on anything that looks suspicious.
If you’re unsure or concerned after receiving an email or letter from FMG regarding a refund, please call us on 0800 366 466 (option 5, and then option 1) to speak directly with one of our consultants.
-
If you’re part of a group of clients whose refund due is less than $5, the refund amount will either be donated to the Rural Support Trust, or you can choose to have the refund paid to your bank account. If you’d like to support a charity other than the Rural Support Trust, please request your refund and donate it to the charity of your choice.
-
Unfortunately, no. To assist refunding all affected clients as quickly as possible, we’ve adopted a solution suitable for, and accessible by, all clients regardless of how they pay for their insurance. We determined that a direct refund into a bank account, which you can then pay towards your premiums if you wish, would best meet those requirements.
-
To calculate refunds, we’ve looked back as far as September 2013, which is when we introduced our current policy administration system that stores information about the nature of our clients’ insurances and premiums they pay.
-
If, after multiple attempts, we’ve been unable to contact a client to provide a refund, we will transfer amounts over $100 to the Inland Revenue (IRD) using the unclaimed money process.
In the event an account is held by a single policy holder who is deceased, and no alternate contact can be found on our files, we’ll also submit the details and money owing to IRD using the unclaimed money process.
To find out more about these processes and how to claim any funds, visit the IRD website (claiming unclaimed money). You can also call us on 0800 366 466 (option 5, and then option 1) to find out if we’ve transferred funds to IRD.