Career firefighters will stop work for one hour from noon on Friday, in a pay dispute playing out inside a service funded largely by levies collected through insurance premiums. Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) says 111 calls will still be answered, but responses may take longer in cities and larger towns.
FENZ says members of the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) will stop work from 12pm to 1pm on Friday, October 16. It will keep responding to fires in affected areas, but expects to take longer than usual to reach some emergencies in cities and larger towns. More than 11,000 volunteers from almost 600 stations are available, including in their own trucks. Neither FENZ’s notice nor the union’s statements quantify how much slower responses will be. The union says its members had taken 65 one-hour strikes by late September.
The stoppage comes ahead of a union vote. As reported earlier, FENZ tabled a 2.2% pay offer on October 1, below the 2.4% it had already awarded non-union staff. Members will meet between October 18 and November 3 to vote on the offer and on whether to escalate. FENZ said in May that its offer provides 6.2% over three years and compares favourably with public sector settlements.
The insurance link is funding. Levies on property and vehicle insurance supplied about 95% of FENZ’s $838 million revenue in 2024-25, and the levy is budgeted to raise $904 million in 2026-27.
The levy is collected through insurance premiums, generally by insurers. Where cover is placed with an offshore insurer through a New Zealand broker, the levy liability falls on the broker.
Levy revenue of $796.7 million came in 3.6% below budget in 2024-25, according to a parliamentary committee, which cited reduced insurance demand as premiums rise. Levy rates rose 2.2% from July, down from the 5.2% FENZ consulted on, and the Department of Internal Affairs has said its scoping review will not change the rates set for the next three years.
Levy administration is also under scrutiny. Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden said on September 17 that she had lost confidence in FENZ’s chief executive over a matter relating to the administration of the levy scheme, which FENZ has referred to the Serious Fraud Office. A referral does not establish wrongdoing, and no findings have been made.
Friday’s stoppage lasts one hour, and FENZ says emergency response continues. The immediate task for brokers is passing FENZ’s advice on to commercial clients: take extra care with work practices that could cause fire, make sure tenants understand evacuation procedures, and delay outdoor activities that create heat or sparks.
The longer-running issue is the levy itself. It is collected through the premiums brokers place, and the funding model’s future is now under review. How that review develops, and whether the pay dispute escalates after the November vote, will matter for clients whose premiums carry the cost of the service.
