ING’s latest OneCare offer went live this week, following the completion of the company’s Life Risk Leaders national roadshow presentations at the end of last week.
In its presentations, the company outlined the key product and service enhancements to OneCare and OneCare Express within a three-part delivery package that comprises:
- Product
- Process
- Technology
ING said the changes it implemented were influenced substantially by feedback from advisers, who wanted ING to focus on four key elements:
- Speed
- Flexibility
- Smart Solutions
- Security
Product
With the above elements in mind, the key OneCare product enhancements that have been highlighted to advisers include:
Upgrade for male-specific cancers
Whereas last year’s OneCare update focused on female cancer issues, the 2009 update has concentrated on male-specific cancer events:
- Extended coverage of prostate cancer to include all early stage cancers where treatment by radiotherapy, chemotherapy or hormone replacement is required
- Where removal has occurred, all forms of testicular cancer claims will be paid the full insured benefit. This is an ‘industry first’, according to ING.
Full benefit payout on progressive conditions
ING will now pay a full benefit on the diagnosis of degenerative conditions such as Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer’s Disease.
ING also advises it will now pay a full benefit to any client who is placed on an Australian organ donation waiting list (whereas previously the benefit was only paid when the transplant operation occurred).
Simplified Premier Maximiser option
In order to enhance and simplify this benefit option, ING will now double the benefit amount of every condition under its Trauma Premier contract that is subject to a partial benefit payment, up to a maximum of $200,000.
Simplified Priority Income option
Clients may now insure up to 80% of their income under Priority Income if they contribute at least 5% of their income to superannuation or contribute t least 5% of their income to their home mortgage repayments.
Day one partial benefit payments for Income Secure Professional
ING has removed the requirement to be totally disabled before making a disability claim under Income Secure Professional - clients only need to be partially disabled during the waiting period.
Also under Income Secure Professional, the minimum working hours requirement has reduced to 20 hours per week (down from 30 hours per week). This enhancement is seen by ING to particularly suit more females and more secondary income earners.
Earlier qualification period commencement
In what ING claims to be a first, the company advises it will now commence the 90 day qualification period which applies to certain benefits from the date the full application is received. This enhancement applies for Trauma Cover, Trauma Recovery Benefit under Income Secure and Child Cover.
Family cover pause
Under Income Secure Cover, parents who reduce their hours of work to care for young children can also reduce their income protection cover for a period of time and then increase their cover at a later date without the need for medical underwriting.
Other product enhancements include:
- Removal of Terminal Illness Benefit cap
- Removal of CPI capping on Life, TPD, Trauma and Child Cover
- Ability to continue TPD cover beyond age 65 (particularly relevant in future years if the retirement age does increase to age 67 as announced in the recent Federal Budget)
- Upgraded trauma definitions
- More waiting periods available under Income Secure Special Risk (for occupations not normally covered under income protection contracts)
- More flexible rules for the provision of financial requirements for Income Secure Guaranteed contracts (ie financial details can be provided at a later date, but the client can still be issued with an agreed value contract )
- Removal of the $50,000 Life Cover requirement under OneCare Super with TPD and Income Secure
Process & Technology - OneCare Express
ING continues to improve its electronic OneCare Express proposal and underwriting system. Enhancements to OneCare Express, which has now delivered over 30,000 applications, include:
- Automatic updating of ING Illustrator and OneCare Express software
- Introduction of a national database of all current medical practitioners, updated regularly
- Significant increase to the number of underwriting rules that apply within OneCare Express, designed to increase the number of proposals that can be accepted at point of sale
- Introduction of additional questionnaires into the electronic OneCare Express environment, meaning less paperwork and a more efficient processing of client applications
- Introduction of the option to use an electronic, rather than physical, ‘wet’ signature when submitting applications. This means that an application and sales process may be completed remotely, if required or preferred.
- Straight through processing of OneCare Express applications when submitted
Importantly with these changes/enhancements, ING advises there are no changes to premium rates, and that the enhancements will automatically apply to all existing policies in the OneCare series.
Summarising this current round of enhancements, ING’s new Executive Director of Life Risk, Gavin Pearce, said that the company’s approach was to listen to advisers, then act and deliver on their feedback, citing in particular the value of the new Adviser Boards that had been established earlier this year.
