Public consultation on the Fire and Emergency levy for 2026-2029

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › Public consultation on the Fire and Emergency levy for 2026-2029

Wheelbarrow01

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#312604 30-Apr-2024 23:40

https://www.fireandemergency.nz/about-us/public-consultation/fire-and-emergency-levy-for-2026-2029/

Fire and Emergency New Zealand has started public consultation on their proposed levies for the period 1 July 2026 – 30 June 2029. Consultation closes at 5pm on 17 May 2024. Fire and Emergency is funded almost entirely through levies on home, contents, non-residential and vehicle insurance policies.

The proposed levy details are as follows:

The levy on motor vehicle insurance will rise from $9.53 to $40.12 per year. Third Party Only policies (where the levy is currently not applied) will be captured by the proposed change - so ALL insured vehicles (comprehensive, 3rd party only, 3rd party fire & theft policies) will be required to pay the new levy.

Residential Home Policies - rate change FROM 11.95 cents per $100 insured, capped at $100,000 TO 1.85 cents per $100 insured, capped at $625,000.

Contents Policies - rate change FROM 11.95 cents per $100 insured, capped at $20,000 TO 1.85 cents per $100 insured, capped at $75,000.

Non-Residential Building Policies - rate change FROM 11.95 cents per $100 insured, uncapped TO 11.51 cents per $100 insured, uncapped.

Have your say: https://consultation.fireandemergency.nz/

Wheelbarrow01

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#3224845 30-Apr-2024 23:47

Personally, I believe the fire levy for vehicles (which also funds motor accident rescues) should be paid via a fee incorporated into registration labels. My research reveals that an estimated 7-10% of the fleet (up to 450,000 registered vehicles) in NZ are uninsured (Source: https://www.transport.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Report/AnnualFleetStatistics.pdf )

That is an awful lot of people who don't pay the levy but still get all the benefits of it. If the fire service levy were to be recovered via vehicle registration fees instead of via the collection of insurance premiums, some vehicle owners would not be able to legally dodge paying for the fire levy as they do today. So long as a vehicle is registered/licensed, the levy would always be paid. Any unlicensed vehicles should not be on the road anyway. If an unlicensed vehicle is involved in a fire or requires accident rescue on-road, the owner (or their insurer) should be liable for actual fire/rescue costs (in much the same way that they are responsible for the cost of roadway/pole/guard rail damage today).
Shifting the collection of the levy to be via registration fees is a far more equitable solution for all. Anyone not paying registration fees is already liable for fines from Police and local authorities, so there is an existing enforcement regime in place to ensure a higher rate of compliance.
Remitting the fire levy via registration fees also has another benefit - with an estimated 450,000 additional uninsured vehicles forced to pay the levy, the actual percentage increase of the levy itself may not have to be so high as that proposed, as the total amount remitted would come from a larger pool of vehicles.

The above is essentially the feedback I have submitted. I did the math and the levy on my home/contents would drop slightly, however the levy I pay through vehicle insurance policies will quadruple. Not so bad if you only own a single insured vehicle, however I have 7 insured vehicles so the levy I pay will rise from $66.71 to $280.84. If the levy were funded via registration, that rise would potentially not be so steep because:

A. The required levy rise would potentially be less due to a larger pool of registered vehicles paying the levy;

B. Five of my vehicles are hobby, special interest or seasonal vehicles, so they are not continuously registered. This seems equitable as I would not expect to require FENZ fire or rescue services for vehicles locked in my garage. Even if they spontaneously burst into flames while parked at home, then the levy on my home & contents policies pay for that...

jarledb

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#3224853 1-May-2024 03:14

Given that we continue letting people drive around uninsured (which I think we shouldn't). Then I agree that the fire levy should be included in the registration.

Back to insurance: I think it should be mandatory to have at least third party insurance. I think its lunacy that there is no such requirement in NZ.

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Bung

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#3224854 1-May-2024 03:48

jarledb:

Given that we continue letting people drive around uninsured (which I think we shouldn't). Then I agree that the fire levy should be included in the registration.

Back to insurance: I think it should be mandatory to have at least third party insurance. I think its lunacy that there is no such requirement in NZ.

The biggest liability in any accident is the health cost of personal injury. NZ has that covered by ACC so it's not a case of insurance vs no insurance. There is also a high proportion of vehicles with comprehensive insurance. The number of vehicles with no insurance at all could be similar to the number of unlicensed/ unregistered.

mentalinc

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#3224869 1-May-2024 07:35

Quick maths suggest the max you'll pay has increased from $152.93 to $169.64. So $16.71 per year (assuming one car), or for a two car household the increase is $47.32 per year.

Probably better if they just put the price up instead of the cost of the consultation given the increases by the insurance companies themselves, this is an overall very minor increase.

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