Insurance

Have you ever worried about what would happen to your family or dependants if something should happen to you?  What if you were unable to work or worse were not around?  How would your family cope financially? Many people think it will never happen to them, but unfortunately the incidence of heart disease, cancer and other life threatening conditions is quite high in Australia.  It is unpleasant to think about these sorts of things but we can help you to find a policy which will provide you with a level of cover to suit you and your personal situation. Personal insurance will offer you a level of protection to give you the peace of mind that your loved ones will be looked after if something happens to you.

Life Protection Insurance

Life insurance insures you in the event of your death.  If you die, your beneficiaries nominated in your policy, will receive a lump sum payment.  This applies to most illnesses or conditions or an accident but won’t cover you for suicide. Adequate life insurance means your family will not be burdened by debt and will be protected from having to sell assets, such as the family home, to pay outstanding debts or to cover living expenses should you die. If you are diagnosed with a terminal illness, some policies will pay the benefit earlier.  This would be a great relief as it would provide funds to help with medical expenses and the like at a time when you should not be burdened by concerns about money.

Trauma or Critical Illness Insurance

A trauma or critical illness insurance policy will pay a lump sum if you are diagnosed with a specified disease or suffer some sort of trauma. The conditions covered will depend on the policy.  Generally illnesses such as cancer, stroke or heart attacks, Alzheimer’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis, for example would be covered. It is important when taking out a trauma or critical illness insurance policy to get adequate cover or what is known as a buyback option.  The reasoning for this is that if you receive a payout from this policy you may no longer be able to insure yourself for personal insurance such as death insurance, total and permanent disability or trauma insurance again. It is important to discuss your insurance requirements with a licensed expert so that you do not leave yourself under-insured…so please give us a call.

Income Protection or TPD Insurance

Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) or Income Protection Insurance is usually an optional extra under your life insurance policy.  As the name suggests, income protection insurance allows personal income or business expenses to be paid if illness or injury prevents you from working.  It is usually paid at a rate of up to 75% of your regular income and is paid fortnightly or monthly rather than as a lump sum. One of the main terms you need to understand with a TPD insurance policy is whether the policy insures you for your “own” occupation or “any” occupation.  For instance, if you are a dentist and damaged your eye, you may not be covered under “any” occupation because you could still perform other jobs. You need to also consider the waiting periods, which can be up to two years.  The other consideration is how long the benefit would be paid for.  This can be from a few years or until you reach 65.  The differences between policies will obviously affect the premium paid, however it is important to ensure you have adequate insurance cover in place.