Don't Get Voided: How Your Driving Record Affects NZ Car Insurance in 2026

Introduction

Your driving history can affect whether an insurer offers motor cover and, if it does, the premium, excess, limits or other terms it proposes. The key risk is not that every infringement produces the same outcome. It is giving an incomplete or inaccurate answer when an insurer asks about driving offences, infringements, licence history or drivers of the vehicle.

In our editorial review, the practical rule is simple: answer the insurer’s actual questions fully and accurately, add relevant information where needed, and ask for clarification in writing if the question’s period or scope is unclear. ICNZ consumer guidance specifically identifies driving offences and infringements as information that may matter for motor insurance.

This is general information, not personalised insurance or legal advice. Before buying or renewing cover, compare the current wording and quote conditions alongside our car insurance guide.

What parts of a driving record matter?

It is important not to treat every driving-related event as the same type of record. A Ministry of Justice criminal record includes criminal and traffic convictions, but does not include infringements, demerit points or driver-licence suspensions. Those distinctions matter when an insurer’s application asks a specific question.

Check your information before you apply

Do not rely on memory, especially where an application uses a defined period such as a number of years, or asks about a particular type of offence. People with verified RealMe can order an NZTA report online at no cost and receive it by email. That report is relevant to demerits and suspension history. It answers a different question from a Ministry of Justice record.

You can request your own Ministry of Justice criminal record online for free. The Ministry aims to respond within 20 working days, and says about 90% of requests are answered in less than one week. Allow time to obtain it before an urgent renewal or purchase.

• Save the application questions and your answers, including screenshots of online forms.
• Keep relevant records so dates and descriptions can be checked rather than guessed.
• If a question is ambiguous, contact the insurer and ask for a written explanation before submitting the answer.
• Tell the insurer about changes that occur after the quote but before the policy starts if those changes are relevant to the information requested.

Disclosure: accurate answers matter more than assumptions

ICNZ guidance says consumers should give full, honest and accurate answers to insurer questions and provide additional relevant information. For motor cover, its examples extend beyond driving history to business use, non-factory modifications, and the main and additional drivers.

Do not use a blanket “disclose everything forever” approach in place of reading the question. A past suspension can appear in an NZTA seven-year report, but the appropriate response depends on what the insurer actually asks and any clarification it provides. Equally, do not omit information because you consider it old or minor if it falls within the question.

Incomplete information can have serious consequences. ICNZ says an insurer may refuse part or all of a claim, or treat a policy as never having existed from the policy start or from when the information should have been disclosed. The outcome is circumstance- and contract-dependent; it is not correct to assume every omission has the same result.

A note on the legal position as at 17 August 2026

The Contracts of Insurance Act 2024 has not commenced as at this date. Its commencement is to be set by Order in Council; if not commenced earlier, it comes into force on 15 November 2027. Its future reasonable-care framework should therefore not be presented as the operating disclosure regime in August 2026.

How driving history can affect cover

An insurer may use information supplied in an application to decide whether to offer cover and on what terms. The result can differ between insurers and between individual circumstances. Avoid assumptions such as “a camera infringement always raises the premium” or “a serious driving history automatically makes cover unavailable”; the verified guidance does not establish those universal outcomes.

Serious alcohol- or drug-related driving history may affect acceptance or terms, but the answer must come from the insurer’s questions, underwriting decision and policy documents. If an online journey does not fit your circumstances, consider obtaining quotes with full disclosure or seeking help from a licensed financial adviser or broker.

Claims-time exclusions are separate from application disclosure

Application disclosure concerns whether the insurer received accurate information when assessing the policy. A claims-time exclusion concerns what happened in the event itself and the policy wording that applies. These are related but different issues.

For example, AMI’s public FAQ says its car insurance does not cover intentional or reckless acts caused by the policyholder or another person covered by the policy, subject to the theft or unlawful-conversion exception described there. That is one insurer’s current wording position, not a universal rule for the entire market. Check your own current policy wording, definitions and exclusions before relying on cover.

If an insurer declines cover or a claim

Ask for the decision and reasons in writing. Check the application question, your answer, the evidence relied on and the exact policy wording. If a record is wrong or the question was unclear, explain this with documents and keep copies of all communications.

1. Make a formal complaint to the insurer. Give a clear timeline, identify the disputed information and state the outcome you seek.
2. Use the insurer’s named dispute-resolution scheme. The insurer’s policy documents or website should identify its scheme. Do not assume every insurer belongs to the same scheme.
3. Escalate when eligible. FSCL says it can begin investigating if the provider says the matter is deadlocked, or if it has remained unresolved for 40 working days. Consumer Protection explains that a provider must act on a scheme recommendation, while a consumer may decline it and pursue another avenue.

The Financial Markets Authority says insurers providing consumer services in New Zealand need a financial-institution licence and a fair conduct programme. If you believe you have been treated unfairly, the usual first step for an individual decision remains the insurer’s complaints process and then its applicable independent dispute-resolution scheme.

Practical Takeaway

• Check whether you need licence-history information, a criminal record, or both; they are not interchangeable.
• Answer each insurance question fully and accurately, including questions about driving offences and infringements.
• Ask for written clarification instead of guessing about dates, categories or scope.
• Read the exclusions that could apply to how a vehicle is driven at the time of an incident.
• Keep a record of what you disclosed and challenge a decision through the insurer’s complaint pathway if you believe it relied on inaccurate information or an unclear question.

References

• New Zealand Ministry of Justice — What is a criminal record
• New Zealand Ministry of Justice — Get your own criminal record
• New Zealand Legislation — Contracts of Insurance Act 2024
• Insurance Council of New Zealand — Duty of Disclosure: What to Tell Your Insurer
• AMI — Does car insurance cover reckless or intentional acts?
• Financial Markets Authority — Insurance
• Financial Services Complaints Limited — Complaints process
• Consumer Protection New Zealand — Making a complaint about your financial service provider

Author / Editorial Team

This article was produced by Insurspy’s internal editorial and research team. In our editorial review, we compare public policy information, prioritise authoritative New Zealand sources, and explain practical questions consumers can take to an insurer. We review content for accuracy and usefulness, but policy wording, underwriting decisions and individual circumstances can differ.