We’re currently unable to take credit card payments over the phone. You can make a one-off payment in My Southern Cross or send us an enquiry and one of our friendly team will get back to you to discuss your options.
The quickest way to submit a claim is online through the My Southern Cross app or website, claims are usually paid within 5 working days. Our turnaround time for posted claims is 10-15 days once we’ve received the claim form.
Our team aims to respond to all other online enquiries within 3 working days.
Southern Cross Travel Insurance is run separately to Southern Cross Health Insurance. As we do not have access to Travel’s systems, we are unable to answer any queries regarding travel insurance.
We recommend you first visit scti.co.nz for more information.
If you’re an older member, you live alone, or you need some help with managing your health insurance, please make sure you have a family member or friend noted as an ‘authorised person’ for your health insurance policy. An authorised person is able to contact Southern Cross on your behalf and discuss your policy with us.
To add, change or update an authorised person, please send us an enquiry. Please include their name, contact phone number (preferably a mobile phone) and an email address on the enquiry form. If you’ve added an authorised caller in the past, you can still send us an enquiry to check whether we have the correct details for the them.
If you answer yes to the following questions then talk to us about your individual circumstances, and whether the Hardship Downgrade option is suitable for you and any other members on your policy:
In most cases the premium credit was calculated on a percentage of your annual premium as it was at 1 April 2020, and it equates to 14.4% of three months’ premium.
In some cases, due to the status of the policy, we had to calculate the premium credit as a percentage of annual premium as at an earlier date, for example where the policy was on hold at 1 April 2020.
The premium credit was applied to all eligible policies on 27 May 2020.
We contacted the majority of all eligible policyholders between Friday 5 and Friday 12 June to advise the details of the credit (you’ll receive this by post if we don’t have your email address, which may take longer to arrive). If you still have questions after you’ve received this update, please send us an enquiry and one of our team will aim to get back to you within 3 working days. (Note, there are some policyholders that will have their update provided after 12 June due to the complexity of their billing or work scheme arrangement.)
This depends on how you pay your premium and the timing of your payments.
If you pay any of your policy by direct debit or recurring credit card deduction, then the credit has been applied to your policy and will automatically change the amount of your payment/s.
If you pay by invoice, then your invoice will reflect this.
Details of your upcoming payments are available in My Southern Cross.
If you pay through wage or salary deduction, then we have been in touch with your employer and advised of the amount that needs to change in your deduction (after your employer has processed the change), so you receive the appropriate premium credit. We’re working closely with our group businesses to make sure they have everything they need to apply the credit to your policy. Please allow them some time to process it, particularly if you work for a larger organisation.
If you do not contribute anything to your health insurance premium, i.e. your employer pays for all of your premium - the premium credit will benefit the bill-payer (i.e. your employer, if they pay your bill).
As a general rule, the premium credit was applied to all eligible health insurance policies (including Health Essentials) that were in place as at 12.01am Wednesday 1 April 2020 and were not cancelled before the premium credit was applied on Wednesday 27 May 2020. Policies where no premium is payable as a result of a specific policy benefit or a specific group arrangement are an exception to this rule.
The premium credit does not apply to the following:
In the majority of cases the premium credit was calculated on a percentage of your annual premium as it was at 1 April 2020, and it equates to 14.4% of three months’ premium. In some cases, due to the status of the policy, we had to calculate the premium credit as a percentage of annual premium as at an earlier date, for example where the policy was on hold at 1 April 2020.
Your premium credit directly relates to the amount you pay towards your health insurance, and it was applied even when it was a small amount of money.
If you pay through wage or salary deduction, then we have been in touch with your employer to advise the details of your premium credit (if your policy is eligible) so you receive the appropriate amount.
We’re working closely with businesses to make sure they have everything they need to apply the credit to your policy. Please allow them some time to process it, particularly if you work for a larger organisation.
The premium credit was applied to the bill-payer on 27 May 2020. If you and your employer both contribute towards the policy premium, then the premium credit has been shared between you and your employer according to how much of your premium you each pay, and this information has been sent to you.
We’re working closely with businesses to make sure they have everything they need to apply the credit to your policy. Please allow them some time to process it, particularly if you work for a larger organisation.
We can’t say for sure, but if we continue to remain at a lower Alert Level, it’s unlikely. At Alert Level 1, private healthcare services have resumed, and claims have returned to normal levels.
The Premium Pledge was given in response to the lower number of claims that were made during Alert Level 3 and 4, due to the limited access to private healthcare services during the lockdown.
We believe it’s important to support all of our members through this tough time in a way that is fair and equitable.
All members have the potential for being impacted whilst treatment options are limited during Alert Levels. This is not a recognition of loyalty but a very specific response to the situation experienced throughout Alert Levels 3 and 4.
This is a large undertaking, and not something we’ve ever done before. With over 880,000 members and 4,000 business customers we aren’t able to change the way we apply this premium credit for individual members.
Some members have told us they intend to donate the equivalent amount to charity once they have received their premium credit. You may wish to do the same and donate it to a charity of your choice.
We’ll be contacting all policyholders in the next couple of weeks with details of your credit, now that it’s been applied to your policy.