Aviva has announced it has introduced automatic life insurance cover to 18,000 members holding accounts in its Aviva Business Super product.
This initiative from Aviva is the second round of automatic (opt-out) life insurance cover provided to Business Super members, following a successful introduction in 2008.
Members are provided with automatic life insurance cover (no underwriting) up to $228,000, based on their age, gender and super fund balance. Eligible members are also able to access automatic Total and Permanent Disability cover under this arrangement.
All members have the opportunity to opt out of this offer within 90 days and have any premiums returned to their account. Members can also opt out beyond 90 days, but premium for that initial period will be retained by Aviva.
Letters have already been sent to the 18,000 superannuation clients included in the latest offer round, and Aviva’s General Manager, Wealth Management, Andrew Barker, has confirmed to riskinfo that 17,000, or almost 95% of members, have taken up Aviva’s offer.
Mr Barker related a recent claims event for a Business Super member who was included in the 2008 automatic insurance offer, and has subsequently been diagnosed with a terminal cancer.
…only 4% of the total Australian population with dependent children have adequate levels of life insurance cover
This example serves to highlight the value of such automatic cover initiatives within superannuation, with Mr Barker pointing to (sourced) research which reports that only 4% of the total Australian population with dependent children have adequate levels of life insurance cover.
