Insurance policy changes from 1 July 2023
ESSSuper - 23 Jun 2023
If you have an Accumulation Plan with ESSSuper, you should be aware that we can help safeguard your quality of life through our Death, Total and Permanent Disablement (TPD), and Income Protection insurance cover. Having adequate insurance cover helps provide financial peace of mind for you and your loved ones should an unforeseen event occur.
While we hope our members never have to fall back on insurance, we know that if they do, what we offer can really make a difference. We have renewed our policies with AIA Australia Limited, a leading life insurance company, and are pleased to say that:
- Your premiums will not change due to this renewal, and
- There are a number of policy changes that may benefit you.
These changes will come into effect automatically on 1 July 2023, meaning you don't need to take any action. We anticipate they will result in more circumstances in which genuine claims can be paid, reduced waiting periods, and increased duration of payments.
What this means for you
While there are 10 changes overall, we have listed those that have the most impact below. For the full list of changes, more detail and examples, please refer to our Additional insurance information fact sheet and recent significant event notice.
- For pre-existing conditions, where there was a two-year exclusion relating to Death, TPD, and Income Protection claims, from 1 July 2023 you'll only need to show 30 consecutive days of active employment at any time since the start of your cover.
- To be eligible for Income Protection cover, insured members are no longer required to work 15 or more hours per week. However, it is worth knowing that if you're working less than 15 hours per week on average in the three months before the start of the waiting period, you will be assessed against the standard 'any occupation' disability definition.
- If you receive Income Protection benefits, up to 75% of your pre-disability income will be paid to you with your superannuation guarantee (SG) contribution amount to also be paid into your ESSSuper Accumulation Plan account. On 1 July 2023, this SG amount will rise to 11% of your salary, and to 12% by 1 July 2025 in alignment with the legislated scheduled increase.
- The recurrent disability definition will be extended from six months to one year before the waiting period will re-apply. This means that a waiting period will not apply if the insured member is disabled again from the same or related cause within 12 months of last receiving an Income Protection benefit payment.
- The return to work allowance for lost earnings or lost capacity to earn will be extended from five to ten consecutive days during the Income Protection waiting period if it lasts for 60 days or more.
- The overseas payment of disability benefits will be increased from six months up to one year, while an insured member is abroad. After one year, the insured member may be required to return to Australia for further assessment for their benefits to continue.
- A criminal activity exclusion will be introduced to prevent an insured member from claiming a disability benefit because they participated in criminal activity or whilst they are incarcerated.
- The self-harm exclusion period for all covers will be reduced from two years to 13 months.
For the full list and more details of these changes, please read our Additional insurance information fact sheet.
What happens next?
You don't need to do anything.
If you wish, you can cancel, change, or increase your insurance cover at any time by using the Vary your insurance cover form (E167). This prepopulated form is available through the Insurance / Insurance details menu in Members Online.