Zurich – Income Protection Insurance

Zurich Income Protection Cover

• Provides a monthly benefit if the life insured is unable to work due to a sickness or injury and is totally disabled or partially disabled for longer than the waiting period. It contributes towards a replacement income so that the life insured can concentrate on his or her recovery without having to worry about how to pay ongoing expenses
• Replaces up to 75% of annualised claimable income
• Entry ages: 19 – 60 years old
• Expiry age: 65 or 70 years old (with age 70 benefit period)
• Eligibility: full-time, part-time permanent employees, or self-employed workers that work a minimum of 20 hours per week, or fixed term contractors and casual workers that work a minimum of 24 hours per week
• Cover from $1,500 up to $30,000 per month, and an additional $30,000 per month if choosing a one or two-year benefit period
• Cover can be increased until the policy ends
• Two levels of cover: Zurich Income Protector Plus and Zurich Income Protector
• Benefit type: indemnity
• Waiting periods: 14, 30, 60, 90, 180 days, one or two years
• Benefit periods: one, two, or five-year, up to 65 or 70 years old²
• Built-in benefits:
  • Total disability benefit - pays a benefit if the life insured is totally disabled after the waiting period
  • Partial disability benefit - pays a proportion of the total disability benefit if the life insured is partially disabled after the waiting period, based on the life insured’s pre-disability income and post-disability income
  • Specified injury benefit^{1, 4} - fixed period of benefits in lieu of the total or partial disability benefit if the life insured suffers a specified injury from a range of covered events including quadriplegia, loss of hands, feet or sight and certain fractures
  • Rehabilitation benefit¹ - extra benefits to help the life insured get back to work sooner
  • Funeral benefit - a lump sum of four times the insured monthly benefit to help with immediate expenses is payable on death during claim
  • Confined to bed benefit⁵ - benefits are payable right away during the waiting period (max 180 days) if the life insured is disabled and confined to bed for more than two days and unable to earn any income
• Built-in features:
  • Inflation protection - cover will increase every year (unless declined by you) without health assessment
  • Waiver of premium - premiums are waived while we’re paying a claim
  • Accommodation expenses⁵ - reimbursement of some travel and accommodation expenses for an immediate family member who travels more than 100km from home to be with the life insured who is confined to bed and requires full-time care
  • Recurrent disability - no waiting period applies if disability recurs from a related cause within 12 months (six months for special risk occupations)
  • Concurrent disability - if the life insured has more than one sickness or injury, the one which pays the most benefit will apply
  • Medical professionals feature - provides special terms for medical professionals who contract HIV, hepatitis B, or C and as a result have their occupational duties restricted
  • Waiting period reduction feature - allows for a one-year or two-year waiting period to be reduced to a one-year or 90-day waiting period if the life insured leaves an employer and their salary continuance cover ends as a result
  • Involuntary unemployment⁶- premiums are waived for up to three months if the life insured is involuntarily unemployed
  • Interim cover - puts some accidental injury cover in place while cover is applied for
  • Premium holiday⁷ - allows a break in cover (maximum 12 months over the life of the policy) to ease financial pressure, however you are not covered during this time
• Optional benefits:
  • Increasing claims option - benefits increase annually with CPI while on claim
  • Super contributions option⁶ - cover is available for regular superannuation contributions in addition to the total or partial disability benefit, so that superannuation savings can continue during a claim
  • Day 4 accident option⁶ - benefits during the waiting period if the life insured is disabled due to accident. This option is only available with waiting periods of 30 days or less
  • Family care option¹ – benefits can continue being paid to a surviving partner for up to five years if the life insured dies while on claim
  • Home support option¹ - cover for the life insured’s partner carrying out home duties full-time up to age 55
  • Future insurability option⁶ - allows an increase in cover without underwriting every year subject to conditions
  • Lump sum accident option^{1, 6} - lump sum payable once if the life insured suffers an injury which causes (within 180 days) accidental death or a specified loss, e.g. loss of hands, feet or sight
  • Trauma advancement option^{1, 6} - an advance benefit payment if the life insured suffers a specified Trauma
  • Needlestick cover option¹ - a lump sum payable on occupationally acquired HIV or occupationally acquired hepatitis B or C as a result of an occupational accident (for people who work in exposure-prone occupations)