Superannuation FundInsurance ProtectionNewsRetirement Planning superannuation statements in Australia

Superannuation Statements – What to Check

Last financial year’s superannuation statements are hitting your mail boxes over the last week.

It is important that you check your details are correct. The type of information you should be checking:

  • What is your balance.
  • Is the balance trending upwards over time – remember the Centrelink aged pension will probably not provide enough for the niceties in life. Chances are you will be relying on your superannuation for a better quality of life in your retirement.
  • Are all this year’s superannuation payments showing on your statement?
    Only recently we had a client whose superannuation guarantee payments from his employer were going into a different fund to the one he thought. And in rare cases, unscrupulous employers have been known not to make their payments at all even though they have a legal requirement to do so.
  • Do you have insurance within your superannuation (life, income protection or total permenant disability)?  Is it still sufficient for your needs?
    Remember that insurance premiums within your super fund are paid from your superannuation returns rather than billed to your directly. This makes them a convenient form of extra financial security, but one which it is easy to overlook.
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Insurance ProtectionNews Total and Permanent Disability Insurance

Total and Permanent Disability Insurance: Business vs Personal

Total and permanent disability insurance is designed to help protect individuals and businesses from the severe consequences of a permanent disability that makes someone unable to ever return to work. While most people are aware of its personal use and coverage, many are unaware that TPD can also be used to protect their business in the case of a permanent disablement to a key member of the staff.

Covering Your Business

Total and permanent disability insurance can be used by business owners to cover their losses or expenses if an important team member becomes totally disabled and is unlikely to ever work again. The consequences of a permanent disability to a key person can include the loss of income and productivity. It can also cost a lot to replace them and train that replacement.

Coverage levels can be difficult to work out because there are so many factors involved. Skill level, training time, loss of productivity and loss of market leverage are all important considerations. Your insurance provider has access to formulas that are accepted across the industry to help you determine what coverage is appropriate.

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Insurance ProtectionNews Denied Life Insurance

Have You Been Denied Life Insurance?

Most people who apply for life insurance in our Perth office are approved, but sometimes an insurance company will reject or deny life insurance. There are many reasons that people are denied, but it doesn’t always mean you are out of options. Here are some strategies that you can adopt if you are denied life insurance.

Collect Information

It can be helpful to ask the insurance company for information as to why you were denied. For example, you may have taken a medical examination that found a previously undisclosed illness.

Confirm the Veracity of the Results

Mistakes happen in every facet of business. Sometimes they happen while applying for insurance. It can be helpful to double check and make sure all information that you and other sources provided was accurate.

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Insurance ProtectionNews Total And Permanent Disability Insurance

Are Your Wealth and Family Protected?

Total and permanent disablement insurance, or TPD, is a form of disability insurance that pays you a lump sum payment in the case that you are never able to work again due to disability. TPD can help ensure that your needs and your family’s are covered if you become permanently unable to work. (1)

Sadly, a disability can happen to anyone, young or old. A person can suffer a debilitating injury by playing sports, driving or even walking down the street. A head trauma or severe illness can have life-changing consequences. These are all risks that we face every day of our lives, even if they aren’t in our consciousness.

How TPD can Help You

If you sustain an injury or illness that makes you unable to work, TPD can help you provide for your family. It is usually purchased in tandem with life insurance to provide a “financial safety net” for you and your family in the event that you are no longer able to work. (2)

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Insurance ProtectionNews Activities that Raise Premiums

Activities that Raise Premiums and Make it Difficult to Obtain Life Insurance

Are you an active person looking for life insurance who lives in the Perth area? Are you wondering why your premiums are so high? Here are some high-risk activities that may be raising your life insurance, courtesy of a US not for profit organisation called “Life Happens.”*

Cliff Diving

This is diving off of a cliff into water. It is exceedingly dangerous for many reasons. If you don’t hit yourself on the way down, you can sever your spinal cord when you hit the water, especially if it isn’t deep enough.*

Big Wave Surfing

Australia has a lot of world class surfing. Unfortunately, finding the biggest waves causes the most risk. If you don’t drown, break bones or suffer severe organ damage, you can fall victim to a shark attack.*

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Insurance ProtectionNews Understanding Trauma Insurance

Understanding Trauma Insurance

Trauma insurance can take care of you and your family if you have a traumatic illness or procedure that makes you unable to work for an extended period of time. We have helped many Perth residents protect themselves from the financial consequences of conditions or procedures such as a stroke, a heart attack, cancer or even a major organ transplant.

Unlike income protection insurance or total and permanent disability (TPD) cover, trauma insurance pays you upon being diagnosed. The time that you are unable to work is irrelevant. Many of our clients in the Perth area have found trauma insurance to be the missing piece that completes their wealth protection program.

How Trauma Insurance Works

Trauma insurance pays you a lump sum if you are diagnosed with any medical condition specifically covered or have a medical procedure that is specifically covered. It is a standalone policy that pays you regardless of your ability to work. It is often used for medical and living expenses that are over and above those covered by TPD or income protection.

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Financial PlannersInsurance ProtectionNews Up To Date Wealth Protection Plan

Is Your Wealth Protection Plan Up to Date?

Wealth protection, also known as insurance, helps you protect yourself and your family. It helps you ensure financial security for yourself and your family in case something bad happens to you. We have been providing wealth protection and financial planning in the Perth area since 2005. We can’t provide individual advice without a consult, but here is an overview of how a solid wealth protection plan may protect you and your family.

The Four Basic Types of Insurance

There are four basic types of insurance cover: income protection, trauma cover, total and permanent disablement (TPD) and life insurance.

Income protection pays you up to 75% of your income in monthly payments during any period of time that you are unable to work because of injury or illness. This provides for your monthly expenses and keeps you and your family afloat while you are unable to work.

Trauma cover pays you a lump sum if you are diagnosed with a specific illness or medical condition outlined in the plan. Many plans also cover medical procedures such as bypass surgery. This allows you to focus on getting well instead of worrying about finances.

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Financial PlannersInsurance ProtectionNews Financial Planner Discuss NDIS

Is the National Disability Insurance Scheme Enough to Protect You and Your Family?

Currently, the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) has two trial sites in the Perth area. The NDIS is under the umbrella of the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA). It is currently available for residents of two Perth suburban areas: the Lower South West and Cockburn/Kwinana.

What is the NDIS?

According to their Government website, the NDIS is a scheme in which the disabled are offered community assistance to help them live better lives. It is designed to assist not only people with disabilities, but their carers and their families. It is intended to provide those who suffer a significant and permanent disability. Assistance includes information, referrals, individualised supports and plans, early intervention and support to help access activities and community services.*

However, there is one thing that the NDIS isn’t: it is not Total and Permanent Disability Cover.

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Insurance ProtectionNews Techniques to Protect Your Lifestyle and Wealth

Techniques to Protect Your Lifestyle and Wealth

Perth financial planners are in a unique market, especially when it comes to wealth protection. Perth may have suffered the least of any Australian capital city during the Global Financial Crisis. This situation may have created a false sense of security for many in the Perth area, as though we are “immune” from financial disasters.

Unfortunately, Perth doesn’t have an exemption from unexpected trauma, illness or financial woes. Here are some ways to protect both your wealth and your lifestyle.

Income Protection Insurance

Do you have enough money set aside to pay your day to day expenses if you were suddenly unable to work for more than a few days? Income protection insurance is essential if you become unable to work due to disability or illness. The cover usually replaces 75% of your income. It is subject to tax, but the premiums are deductible. It can be obtained through your superannuation fund.

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Financial PlannersInsurance ProtectionNews Financial Planning For The Self-employed

A Checklist for the Self-Employed

We like to think that financial planning is important to everyone in Perth, and that includes the self-employed. We know that many self-employed people tend to neglect financial planning services because they are always busy and don’t have the time. We visited the ASIC website called MoneySmart and found some information that can be helpful to the self-employed.

This information is general and is not a substitute for individual advice, but we thought it might be helpful for the self-employed to see what ASIC has to say about self-employed people and money.

Managing Cash Flow

Those who are self-employed tend to make a good living and earn a strong income. However, that income doesn’t always come in on a regular basis. For some, it can be months between pay periods. ASIC stresses that it is important for the self-employed to manage their cash flow properly to ensure that they have income during long gaps between “paydays.”*

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