Enhancements Income Protector
Contents 1.0 Summary of changes 2 2.0 Enhancements to Included Income Protector Benefits 4 2.1 Improved Partially disabled benefits to 100% of Pre-Disability Income 4 2.2 Improved Income Update Benefit (Agreed Value) 4 2.3 Improved Pre-Disability Income Definition (Agreed value) 5 2.4 Improved Capability clause (assessed over 2 months) 5 2.5 Improved Capability clause (only due to causes other than sickness or injury) 5 2.6 Improved Definition Offset Provisions 5 2.7 Improved Statutory Insurance Offsets (Occupation Classes AA, AP, LP or MP only) 6 2.8 Improved Sick Leave Offsets 6 2.9 Improved Retraining Benefit 6 2.10 New Blood Borne Disease Statement 6 2.11 New 5 Year Benefit Period for S Class Occupations 7 2.12 New Income Protection available to Part-Time Workers 8 2.13 Improved Definition Partial Disability 8 2.14 New Temporary Extended Waiting Period 8 2.15 Improved Replacement Ratio & Maximum Cover Limit of $60,000 8 2.16 Improved Payments Whilst Overseas (Occupation classes AA, AP, LP, MP, A1 or A2) 9 2.17 New Waiting Period Conversion Benefit 9 2.18 New Concurrent Disability Benefit 9 2.19 Improved Recurring Disability Benefit 9 3.0 Improved Optional Benefits 9 3.1 New Extended Waiver of Premium Option 10 3.2 New Recovery Booster Option 10 3.3 Improved Benefit Needlestick Option 10 3.4 Improved Increasing Claim Option 10 3.5 New Booster Plus Option 10 3.6 Improved Crisis Benefit Definitions 11 3.6.1 Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Benign Tumour of the Spine with Impairment 11 3.6.2 Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Deafness 11 3.6.3 Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Cancer 11 3.6.4 Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Heart Attack 12 3.6.5 Improved Crisis Benefit Waiting Period 12 4.0 Contact us 12
At Life, we regularly review our policies to ensure that they are at the forefront of industry developments and will continue to meet the financial challenges which may occur as a result of sickness or injury. Providing regular updates is an integral part of our service philosophy at Life. As a result, we have automatically upgraded your policy to reflect some of the innovations we have made to our Income Protector product. This ensures that your policy remains at the leading edge of insurance and gives you and your family even better value protection at no extra cost. In this brochure you will find a summary of both the automatic enhancements we have made to your policy plus a series of new optional enhancements that you can apply to have added to your existing Life policy. These improvements offer you an increased number of benefits, improved definitions on benefits and the opportunity to add additional features to your policy. Automatic Enhancements We will enhance your policy without any further cost to you. You will not need to undergo any further medical assessments to benefit from these automatic enhancements, so you can start enjoying your new improved cover today. In the event of a claim, you will be assessed against the most recent, upgraded version of the policy. If, in your opinion, the improvements are less favourable, we will assess you against your previous policy terms. We will work with you and your adviser to ensure that the cover you have is most appropriate to your needs. Optional Benefits Some optional benefits have also been improved. Any optional benefits that you already have will also be upgraded from the effective date of upgrade. We understand that, over time, your needs may change so we have also created some new optional benefits that you may be eligible to have added to your policy. Adding some or all of these options to your policy may result in an increased premium and may also require additional underwriting. We can work with you and your adviser to explain these. Changes to Policy Terms Included within this brochure is a summary of changes to the policy terms. If you have any questions or need any further information on these please contact your adviser or our Life Customer Service on 1800 221 727 where one of our team will be delighted to help you.
2 Enhancements Income Protector 1.0 Summary of changes This brochure includes a summary of the upgraded benefits for Income Protector policy. Depending on the PDS issue number you applied with, some or all of these upgraded terms will already be included in your policy. Included benefits are automatically provided as at the effective date listed below. Where an upgrade: has been applied to your policy the field below will include 3. was already included in your policy terms the field below will note INC (included). issue 1 issue 2 issue 3 issue 4 issue 5 Enhancements Included Benefits Improved Partially Disabled benefits to 100% of Pre-Disability Income Improved Income Update Benefit Improved Pre-Disability Income Definition (Agreed Value) Improved Capability clause (assessed over 2 months) Improved Offset provisions Definition Effective Date of upgrade 17 April 2007 15 April 2008 19 August 2009 24 May 2010) 15 November 2010) 15 April 2008 3 INC INC INC INC 15 April 2008 3 INC INC INC INC 15 April 2008 3 INC INC INC INC 15 April 2008 3 INC INC INC INC 15 April 2008 3 INC INC INC INC Improved Retraining Benefit 15 April 2008 3 INC INC INC INC New Blood Borne Disease Statement New 5 Year Benefit Period for S class Occupations New Income Protection Cover Available to Part- Time Workers 15 April 2008 3 INC INC INC INC 10 November 2008 3 3 INC INC INC Improved Sick Leave Offsets Improved Definition Partial Disability New Temporary Extended Waiting Period Improved Capability clause (only due to causes other than sickness or injury) Improved Replacement Ratio & Maximum Cover Limit of $60,000 Improved Payments Whilst Overseas (Occupation Classes AA, AP, LP, MP, A1 or A2) New Waiting Period Conversion Benefit New Concurrent Disability Benefit Improved Recurring Disability Benefit Improved Statutory Insurance Offsets) 24 May 2010 3 3 INC INC INC 15 November 2010 3 3 3 3 INC 15 November 2010 3 3 3 3 INC 15 November 2010 3 3 3 3 INC 15 November 2010 3 3 3 3 INC 15 November 2010 3 3 3 3 INC
Enhancements Income Protector 3 issue 1 issue 2 issue 3 issue 4 issue 5 Enhancements Optional Benefits Effective Date of upgrade 17 April 2007 15 April 2008 19 August 2009 24 May 2010) 15 November 2010) New Extended Waiver of Premium Option New Recovery Booster Option Improved Needlestick Option Improved Increasing Claim Option 15 April 2008 3 INC INC INC INC 15 April 2008 3 INC INC INC INC New Booster Plus Option Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Deafness New Crisis Benefit Definition Benign Tumour of the Spine with Impairment Improved Crisis Benefit Waiting Period Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Cancer Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Heart Attack 24 May 2010 3 3 3 3 INC 15 November 2010 3 3 3 3 INC
4 Enhancements Income Protector 2.0 Enhancements to Included Income Protector Benefits Below is a summary of changes to included benefits each with a simple description of how it affects you. Some of the terms and expressions used in the policy wording quick reference below have specific meaning and the meaning of these words and expressions can be found in the glossary of our current Product Disclosure Statement (PDS). A copy of our latest PDS is available on our website, www.asteronlife.com.au or by contacting Life Customer Service on 1800 221 727. In the event of a claim, you will be assessed against the most recent, upgraded version of the policy. If, in your opinion, the improvements are less favourable, we will assess you against your previous policy terms. We will work with you and your adviser to ensure that the cover you have is most appropriate to your needs. Please note that if you are suffering from a pre-existing condition before or at the effective date that an upgrade applies to your policy, the benefits introduced in that upgrade will not apply when assessing any claim affected by that pre-existing condition. The effective date for each upgrade is denoted in the summary of changes. 2.1 Improved Partially disabled benefits to 100% of Pre-Disability Income Your policy allows payment of partial benefits if you are Partially Disabled. The amount of this payment may be reduced if you receive other income or insurance benefits as a result of your disablement. The formula used to calculate the Partially Disabled Benefit has been revised in your favour as it now uses a maximum benefit limit of 100% of pre-disability income, rather than 75%. Policy wording Quick Reference We will recalculate the benefit so that the amount we pay, when added to your monthly income and the other payments above, is no more than the greater of: 2.2 Improved Income Update Benefit (Agreed Value) This benefit gives you the flexibility to help keep your cover in line with your current income and is available if you are age 49 or under when you apply for the policy. It allows you to increase the amount insured each year without needing to provide further medical information. The Policy Owner has the option to apply to increase the Total Monthly Benefit each year by providing written notice to us within 30 days of the anniversary of the commencement date, without needing to provide further medical evidence if: you are under age 55; no benefit has been received or is payable under this policy; and premiums are not being waived. We will require financial evidence to support the increased Total Monthly Benefit. The maximum increase is the lesser of: 10% of the Total Monthly Benefit at the commencement date of this policy; $1,000 per month; and the difference between the Total Monthly Benefit and $20,000. The total of all increases in the Total Monthly Benefit, under this benefit, cannot exceed the original Total Monthly Benefit at the commencement date of this policy. This benefit is not available, or ceases to be available, if: the Total Monthly Benefit is equal to or greater than $20,000; or the Policy Owner is entitled to make a claim, or we have accepted a claim under this policy. 75% of your pre-disability income where the Severely Disabled benefit, Accidental Injury Option or Accidental Injury Plus Option is payable or 100% of your pre-disability income where the Partially Disabled Benefit is payable; and the benefit otherwise payable.
Enhancements Income Protector 5 2.3 Improved Pre-Disability Income Definition (Agreed value) We have further improved the definition of pre-disability income for Agreed Value policies. The new definition gives you even more choice in determining the consecutive 12 month period to be used in calculating your pre-disability income. Your pre-disability income can now be based on your income during any consecutive 12 month period falling between the period commencing 2 years before the commencement of your policy and the start of the waiting period for your claim. Pre-disability income is your highest average monthly income for any 12 consecutive months falling between the period commencing 2 years before the policy commencement date and the start of your waiting period. 2.4 Improved Capability clause (assessed over 2 months) Your policy provides partially disability benefits if you are partially disabled due to sickness or injury. If you are partially disabled, we will calculate your benefit based on the monthly income you could reasonably be expected to earn if you were working to your capability. However, the assessment of whether you are working to your capability will now occur over at least a 2 month period. If you are partially disabled and you are not working to your capability and this situation continues for at least 2 months, then monthly income while partially disabled will be calculated based on what you could reasonably be expected to earn if you were working to the extent of your capability. In determining what you could reasonably be expected to earn if you were working to the extent of your capability, we will take into account available medical evidence (including the opinion of your registered doctor) and any other relevant considerations directly related to your medical condition (including information provided by you). 2.5 Improved Capability clause (only due to causes other than sickness or injury) If you are partially disabled due to a sickness or an injury, clearly you are unable to work to your full capability due to that sickness or injury. Therefore, we have modified the wording for the capability clause to specify that while assessing capability, we will only consider whether you are working to your capability as a result of causes other than sickness or injury. If you are partially disabled and you are not working to your capability as a result of causes other than sickness or injury and this situation continues for at least 2 months, then your monthly income while partially disabled will be calculated based on what you could reasonably be expected to earn if you were working to the extent of your capability. In determining what you could reasonably be expected to earn if you were working to the extent of your capability, we will take into account available medical evidence (including the opinion of your registered doctor) and any other relevant considerations directly related to your medical condition (including information provided by you). 2.6 Improved Definition Offset Provisions It is normal for income protection policies to limit benefit payments if you are also receiving other benefits from other insurance policies. We have now relaxed this limitation so your benefits under your policy are not affected by other insurance, as long as you had disclosed the other insurance to us at the time of application. For all occupations, the amount payable will be recalculated if you or the policy owner receive other payments in relation to the sickness or injury causing your disablement by way of: other disability, group sickness or accident insurance cover, including cover under a mortgage repayment insurance policy or through a superannuation fund that were not disclosed to us at the time you applied for the policy
6 Enhancements Income Protector 2.7 Improved Statutory Insurance Offsets (Occupation Classes AA, AP, LP or MP only) It is normal for income protection policies to limit benefit payments if you are also receiving other benefits from other insurance policies including statutory insurance schemes such as Workers Compensation, Accident Compensation, social security etc. If you work in an occupation that is classified by us as AA, AP, LP or MP at the time of claim, we will not limit your benefits under this policy even if you receive payments under any statutory insurance schemes. For all occupations, the amount payable will be recalculated if you or the Policy Owner receive other payments in relation to the sickness or injury causing your disablement by way of: other disability, group sickness or accident insurance cover, including cover under a mortgage repayment insurance policy or through a superannuation fund that were not disclosed to us at the time you applied for the policy. For occupations classified as A1, A2, B, C or S, in addition to the above, the amount payable will also be recalculated if you or the Policy Owner receive other payments in relation to the sickness or injury causing your disablement by way of: any payments from Workers Compensation schemes, social security, Accident Compensation schemes and other statutory insurances payable for loss of income. We will recalculate the benefit so that the amount we pay, when added to your monthly income and the other payments to be taken into account, is no more than the greater of: 75% of your pre-disability income, (or 80% of your pre-disability income if the SuperSaver Option applies) where the Severely Disabled Benefit, Accidental Injury Option or the Accidental Injury Plus Option is payable, or 100% of your pre-disability income where the Partially Disabled Benefit is payable; and 2.8 Improved Sick Leave Offsets We will no longer offset Income Protection payments for Severe or Partial Disability if you receive (or are entitled to receive) payments for sick leave. This allows you to manage your own sick leave balances without impacting your monthly benefit. 2.9 Improved Retraining Benefit Additional benefits over and above your monthly income benefit to support your recovery and independence are an important part of your policy. One such benefit is the retraining benefit, which reimburses costs of your retraining to give you genuine incentive to return to gainful employment. This benefit has now been increased by 33%, so you can now be reimbursed up to a maximum amount equivalent to 12 x your monthly benefit, from the previous 9 x monthly benefit. To assist you to return to a gainful occupation and help you recover, we will reimburse you up to 12 times the Total Monthly Benefit for any retraining or rehabilitation expenses, if: we agree to your retraining or rehabilitation expenses before they are incurred; these expenses are incurred while we are making payments for disablement; and they are not being otherwise reimbursed. 2.10 New Blood Borne Disease Statement In recognition of the unique risks that many health care professionals face in their day to day environment we have introduced a blood borne disease statement in our Income Protection policies. This statement outlines how we will assess disablement should you become exposed to a blood borne disease and the resultant impact on your ability to work. the benefit otherwise payable.
Enhancements Income Protector 7 If you are a health care professional such as a surgeon, medical practitioner or a dentist and the schedule states your occupation class is AA or MP or and you become infected with HIV or Hepatitis B or C, then the following three scenarios may apply to you. In these scenarios you must notify the relevant governing body of your condition: If you elect to disclose your condition to your patients then some of your patients may decide to seek medical treatment elsewhere. It could also be difficult for you to attract new patients. Consequently, with a reduction in the number of patients, your income may be reduced. Should you choose to cease performing exposure prone procedures as defined by the relevant governing body then your income may be reduced. You could continue performing other duties that are not considered to be exposure prone procedures (eg: consulting work or lecturing). In such cases, if a high percentage of your income was generated from performing exposure prone procedures, then it is likely that your income will be reduced. Should your governing body advise you to cease performing exposure prone procedures, as defined by the relevant governing body, then your income may be reduced. You may elect to continue performing other duties that are not considered to be exposure prone procedures (eg: consulting work or lecturing). In such cases, if a high percentage of your income was generated from performing exposure prone procedures, then it is likely that your income will be reduced. If either: a) you were working full-time in your usual occupation during the 12 consecutive months prior to the commencement date irrespective of whether you are working full-time or part-time during the 12 consecutive months immediately before your disability started; or b) you were working part-time in your usual occupation during the 12 consecutive months prior to the commencement date and you are working full-time during the 12 consecutive months immediately before your disability started. We will deem that you are unable to perform the important income producing duties of your usual occupation for more than 10 hours per week. If you are not working more than 10 hours in any gainful occupation and satisfy all other conditions of being severely disabled, payment of the Severely Disabled Benefit will commence at the end of the waiting period. Should you continue working more than 10 hours per week and your monthly income is less than your pre-disability income, and you satisfy all other conditions of being partially disabled, payments will be based on you being partially disabled. If you were working part-time in your usual occupation during the 12 consecutive months prior to the commencement date and during the 12 consecutive months immediately before your disability started We will deem that you are unable to perform the important income producing duties of your usual occupation for more than 5 hours per week. If you are not working more than 5 hours in any gainful occupation and satisfy all other conditions of being severely disabled, payment of the Severely Disabled Benefit will commence at the end of the waiting period. Should you continue working more than 5 hours per week and your monthly income is less than your pre-disability income, and you satisfy all other conditions of being partially disabled, payments will be based on you being partially disabled we will not deem you to be disabled as a result of: Hepatitis B or C, where a cure for Hepatitis B or C has become available prior to your infection; and HIV, where a cure for HIV or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) has become available prior to your infection or prior to the onset of your AIDS. 2.11 New 5 Year Benefit Period for S Class Occupations If your occupation is higher risk and is rated in our S class occupation category, you are no longer limited to applying for a 2 year benefit period and can now apply to have the option of a 5 year benefit period to better protect your income security. Changing from a 2 year benefit period to a 5 year benefit period will require underwriting.
8 Enhancements Income Protector 2.12 New Income Protection available to Part-Time Workers If you are working part-time for more than 20 hours per week you may be eligible to increase your cover. 2.13 Improved Definition Partial Disability Rather than having two different partial disability definitions, we have simplified our Partial Disability definitions to a single definition across our income protection range. While the level of cover has not changed we believe this change will make this benefit easier to understand. If either: a) you were working full-time in your usual occupation during the 12 consecutive months prior to the commencement date irrespective of whether you are working full-time or part-time immediately before your disability started; or b) at the commencement date you were working part-time in your usual occupation and immediately before your disability started you are working full-time We will consider you to be partially disabled if: you are working for more than 10 hours per week in your usual occupation or a gainful occupation; or you are working for 10 hours or less per week and you are not severely disabled; or you are not working and you are not severely disabled; and solely due to sickness or injury your monthly income is less than your pre-disability income. If you were working part-time in your usual occupation during the 12 consecutive months prior to the commencement date and you are working part-time immediately before your disability started We will consider you to be partially disabled if: you are working for more than 5 hours per week in your usual occupation or a gainful occupation; or you are working for 5 hours or less per week and you are not severely disabled; or you are not working and you are not severely disabled; and solely due to sickness or injury, your monthly income is less than your pre-disability income, as long as you are following the advice of a registered doctor in relation to that sickness or injury. 2.14 New Temporary Extended Waiting Period If your policy has a 30 day waiting period, you can choose to increase the waiting period applicable to the policy to 60 or 90 days for a period of up to 13 months. This option can be exercised only once during the lifetime of your policy. If the schedule states a 30 day waiting period applies, the Policy Owner can elect to increase the waiting period applicable to the policy to: 60 days; or 90 days for a period of up to 13 months. The waiting period can be reduced back to 30 days without the need for further underwriting during this time. The Policy Owner must write to us in order to apply to reinstate the original waiting period before the end of the 13 month period. The application to increase the waiting period and subsequently reinstate the original waiting period can be made only once during the lifetime of your policy. 2.15 Improved Replacement Ratio & Maximum Cover Limit of $60,000 Higher income earners can now apply for a higher proportion of their income to be covered. You can now apply for 75% of the first $320,000 annual income, 50% of the next $240,000 and 20% of the balance. The maximum cover that you can apply for has also been increased from $40,000 per month to $60,000 per month. You can apply for an overall maximum* Total Monthly Benefit of up to $60,000. The maximum monthly income that can be insured is: 75% of the first $26,667 (of monthly income); 50% of the next $20,000 (of monthly income); and 20% of the balance (of monthly income). Cover above a Total Monthly Benefit of $40,000 may be available to occupation classes AP, LP, MP and selected AA occupations, subject to eligibility 1. A 2 year benefit period will apply to any cover above $30,000. * maximum level includes insurance cover of a similar type offered under another insurance policy issued by any insurer including us. 1. Certain occupations may not be eligible. For more information, speak to your financial adviser.
Enhancements Income Protector 9 2.16 Improved Payments Whilst Overseas (Occupation classes AA, AP, LP, MP, A1 or A2) Your protection now fully applies overseas in exactly the same way it applies at home. You now have the security of knowing that if you claim outside of Australia and New Zealand and are unable to return home, your income protection is not limited simply because your condition occurred overseas. If you are disabled outside Australia and New Zealand and are entitled to receive payments from us, and in our opinion can still meet our claim requirements, benefits will continue to be paid whilst you remain outside Australia and New Zealand. 2.17 New Waiting Period Conversion Benefit Some employers or superannuation funds provide salary continuance cover for up to 2 years. You can then supplement this by choosing individual income protection cover with a 2-year waiting period, allowing payments under the individual income protection cover to commence after the salary continuance cover. This reduces your premium and you only pay for the cover needed. If employment is changed and the salary continuance is no longer provided, then typically the policy would need to be re-underwritten in order to apply for a shorter waiting period. We have now relaxed this requirement so you can now reduce your waiting period to 30, 60 or 90 days with no underwriting. If your schedule states a 2 year waiting period applies and you have comparable insurance cover provided by an employer or superannuation fund, you may apply to reduce your waiting period to 30, 60 or 90 days should that cover no longer apply. You must apply within 30 days of your previous cover ceasing to apply and evidence of the previous cover must be supplied. 2.18 New Concurrent Disability Benefit There may be occasions where your sickness or accident causes multiple disabilities, each of which would normally qualify for payment under the policy. While it is not possible to pay benefits on more than one condition at any one time, your policy now stipulates that you will always be paid under the disability which qualifies for the highest benefit amount. Where you are suffering from two or more concurrent disabilities and are eligible for more than one payment for the Severely Disabled Benefit or Partially Disabled Benefit (whichever is applicable), payment will only be made for the condition that entitles you to the highest benefit. We will not pay for more than one benefit at the same time. 2.19 Improved Recurring Disability Benefit Your policy already has special provisions that cater for a condition which causes recurring claims. Previously, if you suffered from the same or a related condition (to the first claim) within 6 months of the earlier claim ending, this would be classified as a recurring claim and benefits would commence without a waiting period. This period has now been extended to 12 months if your policy has a benefit period longer than 5 years. This means that should the same or related condition occur, you can get paid without serving a waiting period which ensures you can access your insurance payments quicker. If you suffer from the same or a related sickness or injury within: 12 months of disability claim payments ending (if the benefit period is longer than 5 years); or 6 months of disability claim payments ending (if the benefit period is 5 years or less), we will consider your disablement as being recurring. If we consider you to have a recurring disability, the monthly payments for the Severely Disabled Benefit or Partially Disabled Benefit (as applicable) will recommence without applying a new waiting period and the benefit period will be reduced by any previous periods for which benefits were paid for the disablement and each recurrence of the disablement. 3.0 Improved Optional Benefits Following is a summary of changes to optional benefits each with a simple description of how it affects you. Some of the terms and expressions used in the policy wording quick reference below have specific meaning and the meaning of these words and expressions can be found in the glossary of our current Product Disclosure Statement (PDS). A copy of our latest PDS is available on our website, www.asteronlife.com.au or by contacting Life Customer Service on 1800 221 727.
10 Enhancements Income Protector Some or all of these options may be limited to certain occupations only. Where you already have an optional benefit applied to your policy any improvements to that optional benefit will be automatically applied to your policy. All other new options can be applied for and will require underwriting. In the event of a claim, you will be assessed against the most recent, upgraded version of the policy. If, in your opinion, the improvements are less favourable, we will assess you against your previous policy terms. We will work with you and your adviser to ensure that the cover you have is most appropriate to your needs. Please note that if you are suffering from a pre-existing condition before or at the effective date that an upgrade applies to your policy, the benefits introduced in that upgrade will not apply when assessing any claim affected by that pre-existing condition. The effective date for each upgrade is denoted in the summary of changes. 3.1 New Extended Waiver of Premium Option Many policyholders already know the importance of including a premium waiver option to cover their premium payments during a disability claim. Our new Extended Waiver of Premium Option waives the premiums on any in-force lump sum policies on your life, (such as Life Cover or Recovery Stand Alone) if you are receiving a disability payment under your Income Protector policy. This effectively means you can cover the cost of your whole personal insurance package during a claim, so that you won t be faced with compromising your protection just to save on expenses. If the schedule states that the Extended Waiver of Premium Option applies and the Severely Disabled Benefit or the Partially Disabled Benefit or the Partially Disabled Benefit is payable, we will waive the premiums payable for all in force Life Cover, TPD Stand Alone, Recovery Stand Alone, Recovery Package, Income Shield, Income Protector, Income Advantage and Business Expenses policies where you are the insured person. 3.2 New Recovery Booster Option Why be limited to only insuring 75% of your income? Most income protection policies will generally be enough to cover basic living expenses, but what if you suffer a condition that requires greater expenditure to make life comfortable and to aid successful recovery? To address this issue, we have developed our new Recovery Booster Option, which you can now include as an optional extra benefit on your policy. It allows you to insure for the 25% income protection gap for the first two years of a claim, if the claim is as a result of a listed crisis condition, such as heart attack or cancer. This gives you the freedom to focus on recovery without the stress of cutting back on expenditure. 3.3 Improved Benefit Needlestick Option If you work as a health professional, you may find the Needlestick Option provides added security to you. It offers a lump sum payment for needlestick injury occurring in the course of the normal occupation causing HIV or Hepatitis B or C. The impact this benefit can have on quality of life has now been massively boosted with a doubling of the payout from $500,000 to $1,000,000, making it worthwhile to have this included in the policy. 3.4 Improved Increasing Claim Option Most people would not imagine their income remaining static for the rest of their working life, so why should your income protection be any different? Including the Increasing Claim Option ensures your claim payments will increase with inflation on each policy anniversary. Up until now, this increase was capped at 10%, but this has now been removed so that your claim payments can increase in line with inflation without any restrictions. Speak to your adviser now if you don t have this benefit attached to your policy. If the Increasing Claim Option applies, the Total Monthly Benefit will be increased at each policy anniversary whilst the policy owner is receiving payments by the indexation factor (the Pregnancy Premium Waiver Benefit and the Unemployment Benefit are not considered to be a payment for this purpose). When you are no longer disabled, the indexed Total Monthly Benefit will not be reduced unless the policy owner requests the reduction in writing. 3.5 New Booster Plus Option In addition to Recovery Booster, we have introduced a new Booster Plus option, which will take away the need to choose, and combines the benefits of the Recovery Booster and Booster options. This allows you to be insured for the 25% income protection gap for: the first two years of a claim, if the claim is as a result of a listed crisis condition; or the first 3 months of a claim if the Severely or Partially Disabled Benefit is payable.
Enhancements Income Protector 11 If the schedule states that the Booster Plus Option applies, you will be covered for all events under the Booster Option and the Recovery Booster Option. If the Booster Benefit and the Recovery Booster Benefit are payable at the same time, the higher benefit, but not both, will be payable. 3.6 Improved Crisis Benefit Definitions The Crisis benefit provides you with a guaranteed payment should you suffer certain specified medical conditions. We have further extended the coverage of this benefit by improving the definitions of certain existing conditions as well as adding new payment conditions without any increase in cost to you. This means that you have greater scope to claim under this benefit. The changes to the definitions include: 3.6.1 Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Benign Tumour of the Spine with Impairment We will make a payment under the Crisis Benefit should you be diagnosed with, and meet the definition for, benign tumour of the spine with impairment. Definition means the diagnosis of a non-cancerous tumour in the spinal cord giving rise to objective changes such as sensory and/or motor deficits or abnormalities of bladder or bowel functions and results in you either: suffering at least 25% permanent impairment of whole person function*, or being permanently unable to perform at least 1 of the numbered activities of daily living without the physical assistance of someone else * as defined in the American Medical Association publication Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment, 5th Edition 3.6.2 Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Deafness If you get a cochlear implant to treat your loss of hearing, we will still make a payment under our deafness definition. Definition means the total and permanent loss of hearing, both natural and assisted, from both ears as a result of sickness or injury. Assisted hearing is not excluded if the loss of hearing is treated by cochlear implant. 3.6.3 Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Cancer The definition of cancer under the Crisis benefit has been modified to include multiple myeloma as well as including ulceration as a criterion to determine the severity of a melanoma (in line with medical advances). Definition means the presence of one or more malignant tumours including malignant lymphoma, Hodgkin s disease, leukemia, multiple myeloma, malignant bone marrow disorders and melanomas greater than or equal to Clark Level 3 or greater than or equal to 1.5mm depth of invasion or where the melanoma is showing signs of ulceration as determined by histological examination. The tumour must be characterised by: the uncontrolled growth and spread of malignant cells; and the invasion and destruction of normal tissue. The tumour must also: require treatment by surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, biological response modifiers, or any other major treatment; or be totally incurable. The following tumours are excluded: a) tumours which are histologically described as pre-malignant or show the malignant changes of carcinoma in situ ; carcinoma in situ of the breast is not excluded if the entire breast is removed specifically to arrest the spread of malignancy, and this procedure is the appropriate and necessary treatment as recommended by a registered doctor. b) melanomas which: have no evidence of ulceration; and are less than Clark Level 3; and are less than 1.5mm depth of invasion as determined by histological examination; c) all other types of skin cancers unless they have metastasised; and d) prostatic cancers which are both histologically described as TNM Classification T1 or lesser (or any other equivalent or lesser classification) and have a Gleason score of 5 or less.
12 Enhancements Income Protector 3.6.4 Improved Crisis Benefit Definition Heart Attack We have made some clarifications to our Heart Attack definition so that you can better understand what you are covered for and what criteria need to be met so that you can qualify for a payment for this condition. Definition means the death of a portion of the heart muscle as a result of inadequate blood supply to the relevant area. The basis for the diagnosis of a heart attack will include: confirmation of new electrocardiogram (ECG) changes or a left ventricular ejection fraction of less than 50%; and one of the following: elevation of cardiac enzymes CK-MB above standard laboratory levels of normal; or elevation in levels of Troponin I greater than 2.0ug/l or Troponin T greater than 0.6ug/l, or their equivalent. The elevation in the cardiac enzymes CK-MB, Troponin I or Troponin T above must not be due to cardiac or coronary intervention. If a diagnosis cannot be made on the basis of that criteria, we will pay a claim based on satisfactory evidence that you have unequivocally been diagnosed as having suffered a heart attack resulting in: a reduction in the left ventricular ejection fraction to less than 50%, measured 3 months or more after the event; or new pathological Q waves. 3.6.5 Improved Crisis Benefit Waiting Period The 90 day waiting period for Crisis Benefit previously started on the commencement date of the policy. It will now commence from the date the fully completed application was received by us. Unless this policy is a replacement policy, cover does not start under this benefit for conditions or procedures for cancer, heart attack, heart surgery (open), coronary artery angioplasty triple vessel, coronary artery surgery, repair or replacement aorta, repair or replacement of stroke until the later of the policy commencement date and 3 months after the following scenarios, whichever one is applicable to you: the receipt by us of a fully completed application for insurance; the receipt by us of a fully completed application for an increase to the sum insured (in respect of the increased portion only); or the most recent reinstatement of this policy. This means that: the cancer must be first diagnosed; the heart attack, out of hospital cardiac arrest or stroke must first occur; or the disease or condition which the coronary artery angioplasty triple vessel, coronary artery surgery, heart surgery (open), repair or replacement of aorta, or repair or replacement of valves, as the case may be, is intended to address, must be first diagnosed, after cover for that condition or procedure (or increase in the monthly benefit in respect of the increased portion) starts. 4.0 Contact us If you have any queries about the automatic enhancements to your policy, or want to find out more about the various optional benefits, contact your adviser, visit our website www.asteronlife.com.au or call our Life Customer Service team on 1800 221 727. Important note This information is general advice and doesn t take into account a person s objectives, financial situation or needs. A person should consider the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) available at www.asteronlife.com.au and consider obtaining financial advice before making any decision about this product. This product is not a bank deposit or other bank liability. Products and services are provided by different entities in the Suncorp Group and each entity is not responsible for, does not guarantee and is not liable in any respect for products or services of other Suncorp entities. is issued jointly by Suncorp Life & Superannuation Limited ABN 87 073 979 530 AFSL 229880 and Suncorp Portfolio Services Limited ABN 61 063 427 958 AFSL 237905 RSE Licence No L0002059.
Contact Life or the Trustee Mail Life Customer Service GPO Box 68 Sydney NSW 2001 Fax 1300 766 833 Email life_customerservice@asteronlife.com.au Phone 1800 221 727 (outside Sydney) 02 8275 3999 Web www.asteronlife.com.au Life state offices NSW/ACT Level 10 321 Kent Street Sydney NSW 2000 GPO Box 4252 Sydney NSW 2001 T 02 8275 3400 F 02 8275 3022 NSW callers outside Sydney 1800 805 241 VIC/TAS Level 8 15 William Street Melbourne Vic 3000 PO Box 256 440 Collins St West Melbourne VIC 8007 T 03 9245 8582 F 1300 363 702 Vic callers outside Melbourne & Tasmanian callers 1800 803 628 QLD Level 4 50 McDougall Street Milton QLD 4064 PO Box 5229 West End QLD 4101 T 07 3011 8600 F 1300 363 714 QLD callers outside Brisbane 1800 177 716 SA/NT Level 18 45 Grenfell Street Adelaide SA 5000 PO Box 429 Unley Business Centre Unley SA 5061 T 08 8205 5333 F 1300 652 945 SA callers outside Adelaide 1800 506 274 WA Level 3 37 St Georges Terrace Perth WA 6000 PO Box 444 West Perth WA 6872 T 08 9320 3688 F 08 9325 2119 WA callers outside Perth 1800 799 537 Suncorp Life & Superannuation Limited ABN 87 073 979 530 AFS Licence No. 229880 Level 10 321 Kent Street Sydney NSW 2000 Suncorp Portfolio Services Limited ABN 61 063 427 958 AFS Licence No. 237905 RSE Licence No. L0002059 Level 18 Suncorp Centre 36 Wickham Terrace Brisbane QLD 4000 AS01877 01/01/12 B