Superannuation - Hospitality Industry

Insurance through your super fund

Many superannuation funds in Australia offer insurance cover as part of their membership offering. The types of insurance cover offered by superannuation funds can vary, but typically they offer death, total and permanent disability and temporary disablement cover.

Although we don’t like to think about it, none of us know what may transpire in the future – but insurance provides us with security and peace-of-mind. Just knowing that you are financially covered to take care of yourself and your family should anything happen to you, is a comfort.

The cost of insurance cover can vary significantly between funds. As the cost of your cover is drawn from your superannuation account, it is very important that you compare the premiums between different providers. Paying low insurance premiums is imperative and means more money remains in your super account to grow over time.

Some funds provide cover automatically when you join. However, if you simply accept the default cover you may find yourself under-insured. Research has shown that only 4% of Australians have enough death insurance cover to provide for their families future for ten years or more¹. Being under-insured means you may not have the money to cover your mortgage, your children’s education, other loans or debts or your living costs. You may need to consider things like medical care and home modifications in the case of temporary disablement. So, will your insurance be enough to cover all your costs?  Source¹: *TNS Research, Investigating the issue of under-insurance in Australia, August 2005

The simple worksheet shown on the right can help you to determine whether you have enough insurance or whether you may need to consider increasing it. In most funds you can apply to increase your cover. Alternatively you can cancel your cover if you do not need it.

There are many superannuation funds in Australia. One of the leading funds, NGS Super, has received Money magazine’s Best of the Best award for “Best Value Insurance in Super” for 2009 and 2010. For information about NGS Super’s insurance offering, visit their website, where you will find a range of insurance calculators which can provide an instant quote.