AFSG News

Have you considered.....

Income protection insurance

Most people consider their car and house when they insure… but what if you can’t work for health reasons or an accident and have no income?

Without income there is no outcome. If you were self-employed this state of affairs would be a major concern.

Income Protection protects against the loss of one of your most valuable assets - your ability to earn money. If you become disabled due to illness or injury, Income Protection provides you with a monthly income. It provides you with the financial security you need to concentrate on recovering without having to worry about your bills.

If something happened to you and you were unable to work, would you have enough money set aside to cover your day-to-day bills and look after your family? It is estimated that one in three Australians will be unable to work due to illness or injury for a three-month period, or longer, during their working life.

Confronted with this situation, many Australian families experience significant financial difficulty, sometimes with no income for more than three months. Most policies allow you to receive a monthly payment of up to 75% of your pre-injury or illness income.

The Business Expenses benefit is specifically designed for self-employed individuals (employed full-time) who need to ensure that the fixed expenses of their business or practice will still be paid even if they cannot work due to Injury or Sickness. The benefit covers business expenses less any amounts reimbursed from elsewhere.

Making the most of your income protection

An AFSG recommended insurer provides you with the following benefits:

Carer's Allowance

The Carer’s Allowance benefit will provide a benefit of 25% of their Income Protection benefit up to $2,000 per month, where the life insured under the Income Protection or Accident Only Income Protection benefits is required to give up work to care for an ill child.

Retirement Optimiser

Retirement Optimiser provides a benefit of 5% of the life insured’s Pre-disablement Income as superannuation contributions, paid to the policy owner’s nominated superannuation account.

Complimentary Interim Accidental Death and Income Protection Cover

While your application is being assessed, we will provide Complimentary Interim Accidental Death and Income Protection Cover.

Benefit Indexation

The Sum Insured on your policy will automatically increase each year by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or 5%, whichever is higher.

Agreed Value

Your monthly benefit is agreed with you at the time of application and is based on your income at that time; OR

Indemnity Value

Your monthly benefit is calculated at the time of your claim and is based on your income at that time.

HIV / AIDS Cover

You are covered if you become disabled directly or indirectly due to HIV or AIDS (except for Accident only cover).

Waiver of Premium

If you become totally disabled, you won’t have to pay premiums from the end of the Waiting Period, until the end of the Benefit Period, or until the total disablement ceases.

Rehabilitation Expenses

If you have attended a rehabilitation program to get you back to work, we’ll pay the costs up to a maximum of 12 x your monthly benefit.

Recurrent Disablement

If you have returned to work on a full-time basis following payment of a disablement benefit and the same or related disablement recurs within 12 months, we will waive the waiting period.We will treat the claim as a continuation of your most recent claim. We will continue to pay your claim up to the end of your benefit period.

Severity benefit

This pays an additional 1/3 of your monthly benefit if you are on claim for over 6 consecutive months and then become totally disabled to the extent that you are unable to perform at least 2 of the Activities of Daily Living, up to a maximum of $30,000.

Death Benefit

In the event of your death, your nominated beneficiary will receive 6 x your monthly benefit, up to maximum of $60,000.

Worldwide Protection

If you travel overseas, full cover is provided 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, anywhere in the world.

Needlestick Injury Benefit - For Occupation Category AA only.

If you receive a needlestick injury or a splash injury while performing the duties of your normal occupation and become infected with HIV, Hepatitis B or Hepatitis C and experience a reduction in your earnings as a result. (Not applicable for the Accident Only cover).

In order to ensure you end up with the right level and type of cover, speak to an AFSG adviser about your insurance needs. He or she will be able to offer expert advice to help you find the right cover for your individual situation.