An insider's guide to maximising your value
The biggest mistake people make when taking out insurance is thinking that it’s a 'set and forget' product – this is far from the truth. To get the most out of your policy, you need to know that it’s flexible, adaptable, and you’re in control. You don’t stay the same, so your cover shouldn’t either.
Here are 9 things you can do to get the most out of your policy
1. Have an end date for your product – and plan for it
Generally, your need for financial protection usually decreases over time. You should keep your policy as long as you require financial protection for your needs – if you no longer have debt, or dependants that need financial support, you may no longer need cover. Work with your financial adviser to develop the long-term strategy for your insurance – including identifying a time when you may no longer need it.
2. Review your cover every 12-18 months
As a rule of thumb, you should adapt your insurance to your changing needs every 12-18 months. Work with your financial adviser to assess and adjust your level of cover. If a specific event has happened to you, your policy may allow you to get more cover without needing any medicals.
3. Pay stepped or level premiums to reduce the lifetime cost of your policy
Most of our policies offer two ways of paying and managing the costs of your cover over time, and the one you choose may have a significant effect on the lifetime cost of your policy. Which option is best for you simply depends on how long you need your policy for. Stepped premiums generally start off lower and increase as you get older, while level premiums generally start off higher but end up being cheaper in the long term. Speak to your financial adviser to understand which is most cost-effective for you.
4. Pay for your insurance through super
For some of our products, you can pay your insurance premiums from your super account. This means you’re effectively paying for your premiums out of pre-tax money, helping you reduce the cost of cover by as much as your marginal tax rate (up to 45%). If you’re self-employed, your personal super contributions are tax-deductible, meaning you may be able to claim a tax deduction for contributions made to buy insurance inside super.
5. Improve your health and wellbeing (and potentially reduce your premiums if you have a loading on your policy)
For eligible customers*, OnePath offers free access to ‘LiveWell by Zurich’, our global holistic health and wellbeing app. Through relevant and engaging experiences, LiveWell makes the path to better health rewarding and sustainable across physical, mental, social and financial health. We also offer personalised health coaching to help our customers fight symptoms of anxiety and depression in the comfort of their own home, and coaching for new policy holders with a premium loading for Body Mass Index (i.e. overweight), high blood pressure or cholesterol to improve their health and potentially remove their loading.
6. Look into rewards
For eligible customers*, we offer a rewards program which connects you with dozens of retail partners offering discounts on everything from your grocery shopping and fuel, to travel and lifestyle. You can start earning Qantas Points on premiums paid for eligible OnePath insurance policies (terms and conditions apply^).
7. Switch indexation on and off as you need
Remember when movie tickets used to cost just a few dollars? The value of money decreases over time due to inflation. By switching on indexation, you increase your sum insured to keep up with inflation so that you’ll always be able to have the same financial freedom in the event of a claim. This is great if your needs stay the same, but if your need for protection decreases over time, you may want to think about switching indexation off.
8. Don’t miss out on discounts
We want to make your policy as affordable as possible. So when you do something that reduces our cost, we’ll pass that saving on to you. Choosing to pay your premium annually rather than monthly means we have to spend less time processing transactions. For OneCare, as an example, this means you aren’t subject to the 6% loading for paying monthly.
9. Choose how you’d like your benefits to be paid
We’re committed to making benefit payments flexible. That's why, for some of our products, at policy inception you can choose how your benefit will be paid: all at once, in monthly instalments, or a mix of both. For many, a combination of a lump sum and instalments provides access to funds for immediate needs like paying down a mortgage, while setting aside funds for ongoing needs like family living expenses. In the end, it’s up to you.
*To be eligible for LiveWell by Zurich you need to be an individual policyholder of a OneCare Non Super policy.
^ You must be a Qantas Frequent Flyer member and correctly register your Qantas Frequent Flyer membership details with OnePath to earn Qantas Points on eligible insurance policies. Eligible insurance policies are the policies listed in the ‘OnePath and Qantas Frequent Flyer Rewards terms and conditions’ available at onepath.com.au/qff-terms-conditions, as defined for ‘Eligible OnePath Insurance Policy’. A joining fee usually applies. However, OnePath has arranged for this to be waived for new customers who join at qantas.com/onepathjoin. This complimentary join offer may be withdrawn at any time. Membership and points are subject to Qantas Frequent Flyer program terms and conditions available at qantas.com/terms. The maximum number of points you can earn on eligible policies is capped at 20,000 points per year, per policy. Qantas Points accrue in accordance with and subject to the ‘OnePath and Qantas Frequent Flyer Rewards terms and conditions’. Qantas does not endorse, is not responsible for and does not provide any advice, opinion or recommendation about these products or the information provided by OnePath in this communication.
OneCare is issued by Zurich Australia Limited (Zurich) trading as OnePath Life (OneCare) ABN 92 000 010 195, AFSL 232510. OneCare Super is issued by OnePath Custodians Pty Limited (OnePath Custodians) ABN 12 008 508 496, AFSL 238346. Zurich and OnePath Custodians are not related bodies corporate.
We recommend that you read the OneCare Product Disclosure Statement and Policy Terms available at www.onepath.com.au or by calling 133 667 before deciding whether to acquire, or to continue to hold the product.
Where tax or technical information is included, the information is our interpretation of the law and does not represent tax advice.
