Accelerated Protection Do I need Critical Illness insurance?
Are you prepared? It s a fact of life that we all get sick, and sometimes seriously. The cost of recovery from an illness like cancer or heart attack can have a huge impact both emotionally and financially. That s when you need Critical Illness insurance. What is Critical Illness insurance? Critical Illness insurance is about helping you with survival. Australians are suffering an increasing incidence of cancer and we still experience high levels of heart disease and stroke. With ongoing advances in medical science, we have greater chances of surviving a serious medical condition. In many cases, this survival period can be measured in years. Critical Illness insurance is designed to pay a lump sum to you if you suffer a critical illness, to ensure that you can cope with the consequential effects on your lifestyle, family and work. Critical Illness insurance helps you to survive financially while you take the time you need to recover. What are the chances of surviving a Critical Illness? One in five men and one in seven women between the ages of 30 and 64 will suffer a critical illness *. 115,000 new cases of cancer are estimated in Australia in 2010. More than 60% of cancer patients will still be alive more than five years later. Every 10 minutes an Australian will suffer a Stroke (about 60,000 new or recurring Strokes are estimated in 2010). Two out of every three people that suffer a first time stroke will be alive one year later. About 88 per cent of stroke survivors live at home and most have a disability. For working people who suffer acute coronary syndrome (heart attack and chest pain), the average time before returning to work is three months - and one in five will remain off work.
Why Critical Illness insurance? Critical Illness Insurance is designed to pay a lump sum if you suffer a critical illness; such as cancer or a heart attack to help you cope with the consequential financial impact on your lifestyle, family and work. A lump-sum payment allows you to choose how you spend the claim amount it might be paying off your mortgage, making alterations to your house to improve access and mobility, or taking a family holiday. Many people survive an illness only to be crippled financially. Critical Illness insurance can help you recover financially by: Reducing or eliminating debt Offsetting lower levels of income for an income earner returning to work following a critical illness Creating an emergency fund or cash reserve -- Boosting retirement savings Or a lump sum can give you the funds you need to explore alternative treatment options, without putting a severe strain on your finances. Critical Illness insurance is available as both Premier and Standard With TOWER s Accelerated Protection, you can choose to have Premier or Standard cover, depending on your needs. Accelerated Protection Premier Critical Illness insurance provides you with a great level of confidence about managing the financial impact of a critical illness by offering you cover for up to 59 critical medical conditions with full payment of your entire sum insured for 37 conditions, and a number of partial payments depending on the severity of the condition. Accelerated Protection Standard Critical Illness insurance provides cover for the key conditions while controlling the cost of your insurance. You are still covered for 37 critical medical conditions. Both Premier and Standard Critical Illness insurance are available on its own, as an attached benefit on a Life insurance plan, or linked as a plan to a Life Insurance plan. * GenRe LifeHealth Australian Critical Illness Survey 2008 Cancer Council, Fact Sheet. www.cancer.org.au 2010 The Stroke Foundation, 10 things you should know about stroke www.strokefoundation.com.au 2010 North Shore Heart Research Foundation. National Preventative Health Strategy 2008.
Critical Illness conditions Premier and Standard Cancer Permanent conditions Organ disorders Heart conditions Benign Brain Tumour Blindness Chronic Kidney Failure Angioplasty* (partial payment) Neurological conditions Alzheimer s disease Blood disorders Aplastic Anaemia Cancer* Intensive Care Chronic Liver Failure Aortic Surgery Coma Medically Acquired HIV Loss of Hearing Chronic Lung Failure Cardiomyopathy Dementia Occupationally Acquired HIV Loss of Independent Existence Major Organ Transplant Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery* Encephalitis and Meningitis Loss of a Single Limb Pneumonectomy Heart Attack* Major Head Trauma Loss of Speech Severe Burns Heart Valve Surgery* Meningococcal Disease Primary Pulmonary Hypertension Triple Vessel Angioplasty* Motor Neurone Disease Multiple Sclerosis Muscular Dystrophy Paralysis Parkinson s Disease Stroke* Additional Premier (partial payments) Cancer Permanent conditions Organ disorders Carcinoma In Situ* Loss of Hearing in one ear Adult onset insulin dependent diabetes mellitus* Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia* Pregnancy complications Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation Congenital abnormalities Congenital Blindness Other events Lupus (females only) Loss of Sight in one eye Severe Crohn s Disease Eclampsia of pregnancy Congenital Deafness Osteoporosis (females only) Early Stage Melanoma* Severe Ulcerative Colitis Ectopic pregnancy Down s Syndrome Partial Alzheimer s Disease Early Stage Prostate Cancer* * We will not pay a benefit if you suffer these conditions within the first three months of policy commencement. Hydatidiform Mole Spina Bifida Myelomeningocele Severe Diabetes Still Birth Tetralogy of Fallot Severe Rheumatoid Arthritis (full payment) Transposition of Great Vessels
Key features of Critical Illness insurance Benefit type This is a lump-sum payment with a maximum sum insured of $2 million. Cover options Stepped or Level Premium with or without cover indexing with inflation and the option to freeze premiums by reducing your cover. Financial Planning Benefit Provides a reimbursement of up to $5,000 for financial advice received once the full sum insured has been made. Paralysis Support Benefit Doubles the lump sum payment, to a maximum of $2,000,000, if you become paralysed. Guaranteed Future Insurability Benefit Provides the option to increase your cover without providing additional health information after significant life events such as marriage, having a baby or taking out a mortgage. Accommodation Benefit Allows accommodation costs of an immediate family member to be met when you re confined to a bed. Grief Counselling Benefit Grief counselling costs for up to three sessions, to a total cost of $1,000 can be reimbursed. Child s Critical Illness Benefit We will pay a lump sum payment of $10,000 if your child suffers from one or more of the conditions listed in the Product Disclosure Statement. Death Buyback Benefit If you attach or link Critical Illness insurance to Life insurance you can buy back your Life insurance without further underwriting. Eligible entry ages From 16 years to 61 years. Worldwide cover Provides cover anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day.
Optional Add-ons You can choose to extend your cover with the following options for your Critical Illness insurance: Critical Illness Reinstatement Option Double Critical Illness Option Child s Critical Illness Option Premium Relief Option Business Insurance Option Allows you to repurchase the Critical Illness insurance amount paid 12 months after receiving the Critical Illness benefit. This option is available when Critical Illness insurance is Attached to Life insurance and means that payment of the Critical Illness Benefit will not reduce your Life insurance and future premiums will be waived. We pay a lump sum payment of $50,000 if an insured child first suffers from one or more of the conditions listed in the Product Disclosure Statement and we offer grief counselling to immediate family members. We ll waive your premiums if you re unable to work at least three consecutive months due to Sickness or Injury. This option is available when Critical Illness insurance is attached to Life insurance and means you can increase your Critical Illness insurance in line with Life insurance without medical underwriting on the occurrence of a valid business event. Why TOWER? Over two million Australians have chosen TOWER for their life insurance needs, which is why we are the largest non-bank life insurance company in Australia. We have a history in life insurance that dates back 130 years and are the only specialist life insurer listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. Because we re in the business of life, you ll find our insurance solutions are simple and easy to understand. But most important of all, you can be rest assured that TOWER will be there in your time of need. Our reputation is built on the claims we pay. TOWER pays over $2 million in claims every working day. We are here to support you as you embrace life s challenges. Life s a journey, we re with you every step of the way.
How do I arrange the right cover? Your financial adviser will work with you to find the right Critical Illness insurance policy that suits your specific needs. For more information and to obtain a quote, speak to your financial adviser today. Alternatively, you can contact our Customer Service Centre. PO Box 142 Milsons Point NSW 1565 Monday to Friday 8:00am 7:00pm (AEST) Customer Service Centre 1300 209 088 Fax 1300 351 133 Email accelerateservice@toweraustralia.com.au www.toweraustralia.com.au Important Information Information in this brochure is for general information only and no individual s financial need or objectives have been taken into account in its preparation. Prior to making any decision to buy or hold this product, customers should read the Accelerated Protection or Accelerated Protection for Investment Platforms Product Disclosure Statements available at www.toweraustralia.com.au. Current as at 18 July 2011. This document is issued by TAL Life Limited ABN 070 050 109 450 AFSL 237 848 (TAL). TOWER Australia Limited 80 Alfred Street South Milsons Point NSW 2061 Contact Monday to Friday 8.00am 7.00pm (AEST) Customer Service Centre 1300 209 088 Fax 1300 351 133 www.toweraustralia.com.au TR0714/0411