Life insurance Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

The main benefit to having a life insurance policy is that if you’re suddenly no longer around to provide for your family, it pays a lump-sum that can be used to help them meet their financial commitments like the mortgage or rent, education costs for your children, and everyday living expenses. Even if you don’t leave behind any debts, the payout can simply help your loved ones maintain the lifestyle you’ve worked hard to achieve.

Life insurance provides your chosen beneficiary/s with a lump-sum payment should you pass away or (depending on the policy you choose) if you’re diagnosed with a terminal illness. When applying for a life insurance policy, you’ll need to nominate an amount that you wish to be covered for. However, the maximum cover amount you’re eligible to apply for usually depends on your age at the time of application, and with some policies, your income is also a factor. Joint policies are available to insure your partner as well, and some policies even allow you the option to add your children to your policy.

For the policies that can be arranged directly through Choosi, you’ll be able to apply for a policy, as long as you’re an Australian resident aged between 18 and 64 (or up to 65 for some policies). You’ll usually need to answer a few health and lifestyle questions and your application will be assessed based on the answers to these questions. If you’re adding your partner to your policy, they’ll also need to meet these criteria and answer the same health and lifestyle questions. Some insurers may require additional information before making a decision on whether to accept your application.

For policies available directly through Choosi, the minimum cover amount that you can apply for is $100,000, and the maximum is $1.5 million. However, the maximum level of cover you’re eligible to apply for will depend on your age at the time you apply, and for some policies, your income.

This will depend on your personal circumstances. Could your family survive financially if you couldn’t provide for them anymore? If you have dependents such as a spouse or young children, and financial commitments such as a mortgage, education costs or personal debts, life insurance could help provide your family a measure of financial security.

No. You can include your partner on your policy if a joint cover is available as an option, but they’ll need to verify their details and answer the application questions separately in order for the application to be processed.

No. Your partner may apply for cover and include you as a partner if a joint cover option is available, but you’ll still need to verify your details and answer the application questions separately in order for the application to be processed.

You’ll need to check the policy details of the cover you’re interested in, but for policies available direct through Choosi, there’s no expiry age which means you can get covered for life, as long as you ensure all your premiums are paid when due.

In some cases, yes. Depending on the policy, some insurers offer an advance payment while your life insurance claim is being assessed. This can assist with immediate expenses such as funeral costs. Please refer to the Policy Disclosure Statement for more information.

Joint cover for life insurance is available through the policies available through Choosi.

A majority of the life insurance policies available through Choosi have an option to add children's insurance which covers your child if they were to suffer from a death from any cause, a terminal illness, or specified serious illnesses. Generally, your child will need to be an Australian resident and aged between 2 and 17 to qualify for this type of cover. You should check the insurer's Product Disclosure Statement to see exactly what your child is covered for.

Your premium is determined by a number of factors which include (but aren’t limited to) your health and lifestyle, age, smoking status, gender and also the amount of cover you select.

This will depend on the type of policy you choose. Policies offered by Choosi may use either stepped or level premiums.

Stepped premiums may start off lower, but they will increase based on your age. If you purchase a policy with level premiums, your premiums will not be affected by your age. However, it’s important to remember that each policy has its own advantages and disadvantages which you should consider. Premiums for all types of policies may increase based on other factors too, such as lifestyle changes, an increase in the sum insured or a base premium rate adjustment by the insurer.

Your life insurance policy will start on the Commencement Date seen on your certificate of insurance. For policies directly available through Choosi, you’re not covered for death or terminal illness due to a deliberate self-inflicted injury for the first 13 months of your policy. Please refer to the Policy Disclosure Statement for more information.

Your Insurance Policy ends when the first of the following occurs:

• the date of payment of the total Benefit Amount in respect of a Life Insured and there is no surviving Partner Life Insured; or
• the date you cancel the Insurance Policy; or
• the date we cancel the Insurance Policy.

You’ll need to check the Product Disclosure Statement for the policy that you’re looking to buy to make sure but generally, most policies will cover you while travelling overseas.

When you buy a policy, you’re entitled to a cooling off period (generally 30 days), and as long as you cancel within this time, and a claim hasn’t been made, you’ll get a full refund of the premium that you paid. You may also cancel after the cooling off period, but usually, you won’t get a refund. If you’ve chosen an annual payment option, and cancel part way through the year, you may receive a refund equivalent to the unused portion of your payment.

Generally, there are no tax benefits for making premium payments on a life insurance policy, but in most cases, you also shouldn’t need to pay any tax on the payout that you receive. Everyone’s circumstances are different, and you should talk to a professional tax advisor for your particular situation.

You can apply to increase or decrease your level of cover at any time, but if you want to increase your cover or add optional benefits like total and permanent disability or serious illness, for some policies, you’ll need to answer additional health and lifestyle questions to determine your eligibility. Any changes to your cover will be reflected in your premium payments.

Yes, most life insurance policies have a beneficiary nomination form that you can fill out, so you can tell the insurer whom you want the money to go to when you die.

Some insurance policies do need you to have a medical check-up and blood tests when you apply, but not for policies available directly through Choosi. Instead, you’ll be asked some health and lifestyle questions to assess your insurability. Make sure you check the product details for each policy to find out which policies don’t need medical check-ups and blood tests.

For policies available through Choosi, as long as you’re an Australian resident aged between 18 and 64 (or 65 for some policies) you’ll be eligible to apply for life insurance. You’ll usually need to answer a few health and lifestyle questions and your eligibility to take out insurance will be determined by these answers. If you’re adding your partner to your policy, they’ll also need to meet these criteria and answer the same health and lifestyle questions. Some insurers may need more information before making a decision on whether to insure you.

If your application for life insurance doesn’t get approved, it’ll usually be because of one of the following:

• you’re not an Australia resident;
• you’re outside the age eligibility for the product you applied for;
• your answers to the health and lifestyle questions were deemed too risky for the insurer; or
• you didn’t meet other eligibility criteria that the insurer needs

Yes, you can take out more than one life insurance policy. While most insurers impose limits on the amount of cover you can have in total (on all policies combined), this limit can be several million dollars.

Yes, the life insurance policies available through Choosi offer joint cover, so you and your partner can get covered in one policy. Some policies even allow an option to add your children (subject to eligibility) to the same policy, so the entire family can be covered!

Insurance premiums are calculated based on the type and level of cover that you’re applying for as well as the risk to insure you. Insurers determine your risk based on the likelihood of you passing away or getting seriously ill, and the higher your risk, the higher your insurance premium is likely to be. The main factors taken into account when assessing risk for life insurance include your age, gender, health, lifestyle, and smoking status.

The amount of cover you need and apply for will depend on your needs and your personal circumstances. When working out how much cover you need, you may want to think about how much money your family would need to get by living their current lifestyle. How much will they need to cover things like the rent or mortgage, education costs, day-to-day living expenses, and other debts? Think about how long they’ll need to continue meeting these financial obligations. If your children are still young, they may need financial support for a lot longer than if your children were young adults. Your partner’s ability to work and for how long could also be taken into account. Everyone’s situation is different, and you may want to get professional advice on the ideal cover amount based on your circumstances.

For life insurance, there are different types of cover available. You’ll need to check the Product Disclosure Statement of the policy you’re interested in to verify specific details of what’s covered. As a general rule, the following types of life insurance are available:

Life insurance – covers death or if you’re diagnosed with a terminal illness.

Total and permanent disability insurance (TPD) – can be added as an option to a life policy and is sometimes known as ‘permanently unable to work’ insurance, this covers you should you become completely disabled and unable to work or earn an income.

Serious illness insurance – can be added as an option to a life policy and is also known as trauma cover, the type of illnesses covered may vary from insurer to insurer, but policies may include cover for Cancer (excluding specified early stage cancers), stroke, severe heart attack, and coronary artery bypass surgery.

For policies available directly through Choosi, you can apply to cover both yourself and your partner under a joint policy (provided you both meet the eligibility criteria) and some policies also give you the option to include your children (subject to eligibility).

For policies available directly through Choosi, your life insurance policy offers continuous cover for life as long as you pay your premiums on time (some optional covers may expire).

When you request a quote from us, we give you an indicative quote based on the basic details that you provide. Once you’re ready to apply for cover, we’ll ask some more detailed health and lifestyle questions to assess your risk factors. Depending on your answers to these questions, there may be certain aspects of your health and lifestyle that the insurer regards as being of higher risk, which in turn will add a premium loading to your original quoted price.

As everyone’s situation is different, we need to take you through some health and lifestyle questions in order to provide you with a personalised quote.

Life insurance is sometimes known as ‘death cover’, ‘life cover’ or ‘term life insurance’. It gives you or your loved ones a lump-sum payment if you die or get a terminal illness diagnosis. Some policies also offer optional add-on cover for serious illness or a permanent disability, and you may even have the option to insure your kids. Funds paid to you or your family could be used to help pay off your mortgage, personal debts, bills, other living expenses, or even act as a nest egg for your partner and/or kids.

Choosi allows you to compare a range of life insurance products from many of Australia’s most trusted brands. Picking the right life insurance can sometimes be a challenge, so Choosi has made sure our comparison service is easy to use, by allowing you to compare a range of products and find a life insurance policy that suits your needs in just minutes. Researching allows you to make informed decisions by looking at included cover, exclusions to cover, and more. Just request a quote, and we’ll take care of the rest!

Yes, it’s possible to switch life insurance policies but there are several things to consider before you do. If you switch, you may be subject to a long waiting period before you can claim on the new policy. If you have a new medical condition, this could also be a barrier to switching, as you may not be entitled to the same cover options, level of cover, or price that you were before. There may also be other risks to switching cover, depending on your circumstances. Consider these things very carefully before switching life insurance providers.

Direct life insurance is insurance you can buy directly from an insurer rather than through a financial adviser or your superannuation fund. Direct life insurance could suit those who are looking for a quick and easy application process to get cover, as these applications are often done over the phone or online. For policies available through Choosi, you can get a quote from a range of life insurance brands and apply for cover in one phone call. With no medical check-ups, blood tests, or complicated forms to fill out when you apply, we make getting life insurance as quick and easy as possible!

A standard life insurance policy covers you for death or terminal illness. Depending on the policy you choose, there may also be some optional cover that you can add to your policy, like serious (or critical) illness insurance, total and permanent disability (or permanently unable to work) insurance, and some policies also allow you to take out cover for your children. Children’s insurance typically covers death, terminal illness, and some specified serious illnesses. Check the Product Disclosure Statement of the policy you’re interested in to see what options are available to you.

An exclusion (sometimes called a special provision or term) on your policy is a specified event that’s not covered by your policy. For policies available directly through Choosi, you’re not covered for death or terminal illness resulting from a self-inflicted injury for the first 13 months of your policy. If you’ve disclosed any existing health conditions, or lifestyle activities that are deemed hazardous or risky during your application, then you may find that a death or terminal illness resulting from these may also be excluded from cover. It’s always a good idea to check your insurance contract (also called a policy schedule or certificate of insurance) to know everything that’s not covered by your policy.

If you’re looking for a life insurance policy, here are a few things to consider:

• how much cover you need
• whether you want additional/optional cover for serious illness or total and permanent disability
• what the exclusions or special provisions are for the policy you’re considering
• if there are any waiting periods before you can claim
• what limits there are on the cover
• the cost of premiums

You, your beneficiary, or your legal representative will need to call or write to your insurer (the contact details will be included in the Product Disclosure Statement of your policy). You’ll be sent a claim form to complete and return back to them, along with proof the insured event took place. Your insurer may also ask your doctor (if applicable) to fill out a form. If you want to make a claim on your policy, you should do so as soon as possible, ideally within 120 days of the insured event taking place.

If you nominated a beneficiary for your payout, then it will be deposited straight into their preferred bank account. If you don’t have a beneficiary, a cheque will be forwarded to your estate.