Accumulation Scheme (Retained) Insurance Benefits

What cover do you have?

Default insurance

If you are under 60 years old and were in Division 5 (the Accumulation Scheme) before you left your employer and you meet the following 2 conditions, insurance cover will be automatically provided to you without you having to supply any additional health information:

1. You elected to retain your super benefits in ElectricSuper, and
2. You had insurance at the time of leaving employment with your participating electricity industry employer.

This cover starts automatically the day after you leave your ElectricSuper employer.

You can see the details of your cover in the secure area of the website.

But what if you don’t meet the conditions above?

You can still apply for insurance cover through your Retained Division 5 account with ElectricSuper, as long as you are under 60 years of age.

If you are a retained Division 2 or Division 4 member, you have 60 days from date of leaving your ElectricSuper employer to request (and start paying for) basic insurance cover. If you are retaining your benefit in Division 2 or 4, you will need to cover the cost of premiums of your insurance with personal or employer contributions.

Division 3 (Pension Scheme) members don’t have the option for separate insurance cover as Death and TPD cover is provided as part of the retained benefit in that scheme.

Death and TPD cover

Death and TPD cover is offered to retained members on a unit basis with a fixed premium per unit of cover.

The basic Death and TPD cover for retained Division 2, Division 4 and Division 5 members is 3 units of cover.

If you were a Division 5 (Accumulation) member who had a different level of cover to the default “Level 2” insurance that is automatically provided on joining Division 5, you will receive an amount of Death and TPD cover closest to your previous level of insurance cover, rounded down to the nearest value of units for your age (see below for information on units).

Any exclusions or limitations that were placed on your insurance while you were an ‘active’ member will continue to apply.

You may apply for a higher amount of cover. This will be subject to an assessment of your health information.

Disability Income (income protection) cover

If you were a Division 5 (Accumulation) or Division 2 (Lump Sum) member, you may also be eligible for disability income insurance (income protection) to pay you up to 2/3 of your salary for up to 2 years if you cannot work because of illness or injury (subject to conditions).

Cover is offered in units of $500 of cover per month. When you leave your ElectricSuper employer, the default basic disability income cover provided is based on your level of cover when you left your ElectricSuper employer, rounded down to the nearest $500. As your salary changes with your new employer, your cover will only ever be payable up to 2/3 of your actual salary. You need to check that your level of cover, and the premiums you’re therefore paying, are appropriate for you.

This cover has a waiting period of 90 days, which means you need to be unable to work due to illness or injury for 90 days before you could be eligible to receive benefits.

Division 3 and 4 members cannot access disability income cover.

Amounts of cover and costs of cover

Disability income (income protection) cover

The cost of Disability benefit (income protection) cover is based on your monthly amount covered.

The premiums are deducted from your ElectricSuper account monthly.

The table below shows the weekly premiums charged on each $500 of cover each month.

Changing your Death and TPD cover

Complete the ‘Adjusting Insurance Cover (retained and spouse)’ form. We will be in contact with you for the additional information we need to consider the application.

Depending on the health information you provide, exclusions or limitations may be placed on the new amount of insurance. We will write to you to let you know when your insurance is accepted and any limitations that apply.

You can also use this form to cancel your insurance cover. If you cancel your cover and want to reapply later, we will need you to provide health information before we can consider your application, regardless of the amount of cover you wish to apply for.

Changing your Disability Income (income protection) cover

As your income with your new employer changes, you should advise us to ensure your cover accurately reflects your current salary. The amount payable for a Disability benefit (income protection) claim will always be a maximum of 2/3 of your actual salary.

More information about Death and TPD cover

If you die (or are diagnosed with a terminal illness) while a member of Division 5, a benefit may be payable of:

1. Your account balance, and
2. Any insurance benefit (to age 60)

If you are eligible for a total and permanent invalidity benefit, you may receive a benefit of:

1. Your account balance, and
2. Any insurance benefit

You can nominate which of your dependants you wish to receive your benefit in the event of your death by completing a Binding Death Benefit nomination form. You can find more information about this on the Beneficiaries page.

Terminal illness cover

If you are diagnosed with a Terminal Medical Condition, you may apply to access your super, if:

• Two registered medical practitioners certify jointly or separately that you suffer from an illness or injury that is likely to result in your death within a period that ends not more than 12 months after the date of the certification, and
• At least one of the registered medical practitioners is a specialist practicing in an area related to your illness or injury, and
• For each of the certificates, the certification period has not ended.

To make a TPD or Death claim please email us at inquiries@electricsuper.com.au.

More information about Disability Income (income protection) cover

This benefit provides you with up to 2/3 of your salary for up to 2 years if you can’t work due to illness or injury.

Salary is generally taken to be the salary you were being paid at the date you stopped receiving salary on account of your illness or injury. You will need to provide us with evidence of your salary during the claim process.

When is Disability Income cover not payable?

• For periods off work of less than 5 consecutive business days
• If you are eligible for workers’ compensation
• If you recover, reach age 60 or die
• If your employment terminates
• While you are taking annual leave or long service leave (you do not have to exhaust your annual leave or long service leave to qualify for Disability Income Benefit)
• If you are able to work in another available position with your employer which offers at least 80% of your previous salary (regardless of whether you take up the alternative position)

A waiting period of 90 days applies before you can apply for Disability Benefits. This means you need to have been unable to work for 90 consecutive days before you may be eligible.

You may be asked to provide ongoing medical evidence that you continue to be unable to work.