The New Zealand government has announced that it will conduct public consultations on new ways to fund Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) – including improving the existing insurance-based levy approach or moving to an alternative model like a property-based levy.

Under the current system, the FENZ is funded by a levy imposed on the premiums of home, contents, and auto insurance. Earlier in the year, however, Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin announced a review into how Fire and Emergency will be funded in the future.

“The review will look at a wide range of options for funding FENZ,” said Martin. “We will be looking to achieve a model that is stable, universal, fair and flexible.”

Read more: Industry body welcomes FENZ funding review

Since then, the Department of Internal Affairs has been looking at different options.

“We’ve looked at overseas models, particularly in Australia, but have not yet settled on a preferred approach,” the department said in a statement. “This is because we want to understand more about the risks and challenges before the Government commits to a new model.

Written submissions close on Wednesday, February 05, 2020 and will inform decisions on the Government’s preferred approach to funding FENZ so it is “as fair as it can be for everyone.”