Entries are open for the 14th ANZIIF New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards, with insurance organisations and professionals invited to submit for the 2026 program.
The awards, run by the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (ANZIIF), will be presented at the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC) in Auckland on Nov. 10, 2026. The event will cover general insurance, life insurance, broking, claims, underwriting, reinsurance, insurtech, and associated professional services.
For 2026, ANZIIF is accepting submissions in 12 judged categories spanning organisational and individual performance. The categories are:
Two further honours – Insurance Leader of the Year and the ANZIIF Lifetime Achievement Award – will be determined through a separate industry nomination and judging process. Nominations for those distinctions do not go through the open submission portal and follow the same approach as ANZIIF’s Australian awards. Submissions for the judged categories close on July 5. ANZIIF plans to publish the list of finalists on Sept. 8, ahead of the awards presentation in November. ANZIIF has moved to a fully automated digital submission system with no entry fee. According to the institute, the platform replaces its previous manual process for lodging entries.
The 2026 program introduces a Financial Advice Provider/Authorised Body of the Year category. ANZIIF states that the category is intended to reflect the role of advice-led models in insurance and related financial services under New Zealand’s current regulatory settings. The category is open to licensed financial advice providers operating in New Zealand. Entrants are expected to outline performance and customer outcomes delivered between April 1, 2025, and March 31, 2026. The timeframe is aligned with the eligibility period applied to other awards. The new category sits alongside existing awards for broking businesses, insurers, underwriting agencies, professional services firms, service providers, insurtech start-ups, and younger professionals.
ANZIIF chief executive officer Katrina Shanks said the awards are intended to highlight the role of insurance organisations and practitioners in serving customers and communities. “The ANZIIF New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards celebrate the individuals and organisations strengthening our profession through innovation, professionalism, and a deep commitment to supporting customers and communities. They champion the passion and progress that define our industry and recognise the achievements that build capability and inspire the next generation of insurance professionals. I encourage organisations and individuals across the sector to put forward a submission and share their accomplishments. These awards are an opportunity to recognise the work that is making a real difference for New Zealanders and to celebrate that success together as an industry,” Shanks said. The 2026 event will be held for the first time at the NZICC in Auckland.
The New Zealand awards form part of ANZIIF’s 2026 calendar of conferences, leadership events, and education programs across New Zealand, Australia, and parts of Asia. Key dates for New Zealand-based professionals include the Executive Connect Dinner NZ on April 21 and the New Zealand Liability Conference on June 24. In Australia, ANZIIF will hold its Reinsurance International Study Course in New South Wales from Aug. 4 to 7, the 22nd Australian Insurance Industry Awards on Aug. 13, and the AICLA/ANZIIF Claims Convention on Sept. 9.
ANZIIF is also introducing its Industry Connect series, which replaces the Member Connect events in Australian states. Industry Connect sessions – scheduled in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia, and South Australia through October and November – will cover current market developments and emerging issues. On the professional development side, the ANZIIF Business School will run on June 18 in New South Wales. The program uses an executive education format, with four specialist-led streams on applied topics. Later in the year, ANZIIF will host its Insurance Risk Management Program on Nov. 18 to 19 and the General Insurance Breakfast on Dec. 2.
The ANZIIF awards sit alongside other recognition programs for New Zealand’s insurance and financial advice sectors in 2026. The Financial Services Council of New Zealand (FSC) will run the FSC Awards 2026 as part of its FSC26 conference at the NZICC in Auckland from Aug. 12 to 13. The awards form part of the conference dinner and cover financial services, including life and health insurance and related sectors.
Financial Advice New Zealand (FANZ) held the Financial Advice New Zealand Awards 2026 during its National Adviser Conference at the Aotea Centre in Auckland from March 24 to 26, with a gala awards dinner on March 26. Those awards apply to advisers and firms across life and health insurance, personal risk, mortgage and lending, and investment and retirement advice. The 2026 FANZ program again included Financial Capability Advocate, Community Impact, and Lifetime Achievement categories, with eligibility extending to advisers and businesses active in insurance advice.
