BT Insurance has released an update to its BT Protection Plans product series, taking effect from 22 August 2011.
In its enhancements guide, the insurer summarises its key changes as including:
- Upgrades to product definitions, features and benefits
- Broadening of underwriting rules to provide more cover to more clients, including miners and offshore workers
- Technology innovations with improvements to BT’s LifeCENTRAL and LifeCENTRAL+ online services
Enhancements include:
- Introduction of interim accident and sickness cover certificates, valid on completion of the personal statement and signing of the certificates
- Waiting Period definition upgrade for Business Overheads cover: If a client has an Income Protection Plus Policy and a Business Overheads Policy, the waiting period definition for Income Protection Plus will apply to both policies
- Enhanced Total Disability definition for B and C category occupations, so that for the entirety of their claim, the insured is assessed against the three tiers of ‘duties’, ‘time’ and ‘earnings’
- Expansion of available cover to a greater range of occupations working within the oil and gas industries
In addition to these changes, BT has updated its LifeCENTRAL policy administration system to allow more reports to be made available to advisers, such as pending lapse, lodgements and completions reporting.
With a view to possible changes to be implemented under Future of Financial Advice reforms, BT has modified its LifeCENTRAL+ quotation and remuneration system so that the adviser will now have the option to remove remuneration on the portion of the premium paid through their client’s superannuation fund, while continuing to receive remuneration on the portion of the premium paid outside of superannuation.
Other upgrades to LifeCENTRAL+ will offer more flexibility for those applying for income protection cover under BT’s medical graduates offer, introduced in February 2011, as well as enhanced quoting capability for income protection sums insured over $30,000.
These latest changes are outlined in a supplementary Product Disclosure Statement accompanying a new PDS dated 22 August 2011 and also in the insurer’s updated adviser guide.
BT ‘A’ Rating in risk store Claims Service Benchmarks
In other BT Insurance news, the insurer announced last week it has been awarded the highest ‘A’ rating by the risk store’s C-MAP (claims management analysis programme) benchmarking service.
The C-MAP program is intended as a detailed assessment of all aspects of claims processing and servicing.
BT’s Head of Life Insurance, Phil Hay, said “Service is where the rubber hits the road. The Risk Store’s independent acknowledgement of the outstanding experience BT Insurance provides to customers at claim time reflects the unwavering support our staff provide when customers need it most. We have invested heavily in staff and systems to make processing claims as effective as possible.”
