CommInsure Income Protection Insurance

Making sure your income is protected in the event of illness or injury can be an important step towards keeping you and your family financially secure. If you find yourself in a position where you’re unable to work due to an accident or sickness, income protection insurance can provide you with much-needed peace of mind, by replacing a percentage of your regular income.

In this article, we’ll look at Income Protection Insurance from CommInsure, including how it works, what type of cover is offered, and how to purchase an income protection insurance policy from CommInsure.

What is CommInsure?

With nearly 4 million customers, CommInsure is one of Australia’s largest insurance providers¹. In 2017, CommInsure paid over $1 billion in claims, equating to more than $20 million each week¹.

CommInsure provides a wide range of insurance options, including home and contents, car insurance, travel insurance and income protection.

How does Income Protection Insurance from CommInsure work?

An income protection insurance policy from CommInsure will replace up to 75% of your regular income if you can’t work due to sickness or injury².

This works differently depending on whether you’re totally disabled, partially disabled, or permanently unable to work². Here’s an overview of these different scenarios:

If you become totally disabled

In the event that you’re unable to perform all or part of your job due to injury or sickness, you’ll generally be eligible to receive up to 75% of your pre-disability income.

If you become partially disabled

Should you become disabled but are still able to work, you can receive a payment designed to supplement your income.

If you’re permanently unable to work

In the event that you become totally disabled by a serious medical condition*, you can receive up to 100% of your pre-disability income. Please note that the maximum monthly benefit can be 75% of your income.

*This is defined in the CommInsure Protection Product Disclosure Statement (PDS)¹.

What type of cover can I get with CommInsure Income Protection Insurance?

CommInsure Income Protection Insurance offers four levels of income protection, which we’ve outlined for you here²:

Income Care

This level of cover replaces up to 75% of your income if you can’t work due to injury or illness³. Income Care coverage is CommInsure’s standard cover outside super, and includes both Total and Partial Disability benefits.

With Income Care, you can choose from a range of optional extras, including²:

• Recurrent Disability Benefit: This lets you avoid the waiting period for recurrence of the same or associated sickness or injury.
• Reward Cover Benefit: After three or more years of cover, you can receive up to $100,000 Accidental Death Cover at no extra cost.
• Rehabilitation Benefit (not available on a policy inside super): This benefit helps towards the cost of an approved rehabilitation program for up to 12 months if you become totally disabled.

Involuntary Unemployment Cover Benefit for CBA Group loans (not available on a policy inside super): This extra feature helps cover your minimum monthly loan repayments for up to three months.

You can also tailor your policy by adding one or more of the following benefits³:

• Increasing Claim Option
• Accident Option
• Super Continuance Option

Income Care Plus

Income Care Plus⁴ is a comprehensive income protection policy that offers all the benefits of Income Care cover, plus a number of additional benefits. These extra benefits include cover for Rehabilitation Expenses, Accommodation, Family Support, Home Care and more.

As with Income Care, you can insure up to 75% of your regular income and choose from a variety of waiting and benefit periods⁴.

Your Income Care Plus policy includes the following benefits⁴:

• Total Disability Benefit
• Partial Disability Benefit
• Rehabilitation Benefit
• Specific Injuries Benefit
• Crisis Benefit
• Accommodation Benefit
• Family Support Benefit
• Home Care Benefit
• Bed Confinement Benefit
• Transportation Benefit

You can also choose to add one or more of the following benefits to your Income Care Plus policy⁴:

• Increasing Claim Option
• Accident Option
• Super Continuance Option

Income Care Platinum

Income Care Platinum² provides all the benefits of Income Care Plus, along with Total and Permanent Disability Cover. However, with this policy you may be able to claim the Total Disability benefit even if you can continue to work in a reduced capacity. You can also enjoy more flexible waiting periods².

Essential Cover

Essential Cover provides income protection for accidents only. This means you can receive up to 75% of your regular income if you’re unable to work due to an accident².

What makes CommInsure Income Protection Insurance different?

One of the benefits of selecting CommInsure Income Protection Insurance is the ability to tailor your insurance policy to suit your needs². For example, you can choose your:

• Protection level
• Waiting period
• Benefit payment period; and
• The percentage of your income you want to insure

The flexibility to customise your income protection insurance policy with CommInsure means you can select the specific features you need, without needing to spend money on extras you won’t actually use. You can also choose between cover inside and outside super.

What’s more, your insurance premiums with CommInsure Income Protection Insurance are generally tax deductible² – this depends on your circumstances, so it’s important to check whether this is the case.

Are there any waiting periods with CommInsure Income Protection Insurance?

Yes, there are waiting periods applicable to all CommInsure income protection insurance policies, so be sure to check your policy details. Different levels of cover will have different conditions relating to waiting periods – you’ll find all the details in the CommInsure PDS¹.

A waiting period is the length of time for which the insured person must be totally or partially disabled from the same illness or injury, in order to be eligible for a Total or Partial Disability benefit.

What about exclusions and limitations?

As with any insurance policy, it’s important to be aware of the exclusions and limitations that may apply in your case¹. This could include things like pre-existing conditions or self-inflicted injuries.

You may also find your benefit is offset or reduced if you claim a benefit and are receiving income from other sources¹. Check the CommInsure PDS¹ for more details about benefit offsets, as well as policy exclusions and limitations.

How do I take out an income protection insurance policy with CommInsure?

All CommInsure cover information can be found on the CommBank website.

*iSelect is partnered with Lifebroker (AFS Licence number: 400209) to help you compare a range of Income Protection Insurance policies. iSelect earns a commission from Lifebroker for each customer referred through the website or contact centre. Lifebroker do not compare all life insurers or policies in the market.

iSelect Life Pty Ltd – ABN 89 124 304 347, AFS Licence Number 331128. Any advice provided by iSelect is of a general nature and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. You need to consider the appropriateness of any information or general advice iSelect gives you, having regard to your personal situation, before acting on iSelect’s advice or purchasing any policies. You should consider iSelect’s Financial Services Guide which provides information about iSelect services and your rights as a client of iSelect.

Sources:
1. https://www.commbank.com.au/content/dam/commbank/personal/apply-online/download-printed-forms/CommInsure_comb_pds.pdf
2. https://www.commbank.com.au/personal/insurance/life-insurance/income-protection.html
3. https://www.commbank.com.au/business/business-insurance/protect-your-income/income-care.html
4. https://www.commbank.com.au/business/business-insurance/protect-your-income/income-care-plus.html
5. https://www.commbank.com.au/business/business-insurance/protect-your-income/income-care-plus.html