Income Protection When You’re Over 60 – Do You Need It And Can You Get It?
Getting older isn’t what it used to be. Back in the day, you could expect to retire at 65, receive the age pension, take up hobbies and spend your latter years watching the grandkids play in the backyard.
These days, Australians are living longer, having children later and, most importantly, working longer. The Government has lifted the pension age, and that has potential to rise again.
For a lucky few, their wealth at retirement and ongoing income from investments allow for a comfortable, self-funded retirement. But for many Australians aged over 60, financial circumstances mean they need to continue to work well past 60 and possibly into their 70s. And that means, if something goes wrong with your health or you have an accident, your retirement plans could suddenly be thrown into disarray.
Unfortunately, many insurers have been slow to respond to Australia’s changing demographics and the vast majority of insurers have set a maximum age for income protection and life insurance policies of just 60. With baby boomers continuing to contribute meaningfully to Australia’s economy, that seems just a bit out of touch.
But there are insurance options out there for older working Australians, some of which will cover you up to 70 years of age.
Even if you have a substantial nest egg in place, if you’re still working and you don’t want your family to have to dip into those hard-earned savings in the event of an unfortunate incident, income protection insurance may be well worth considering. And if you don’t have that nest egg, a policy will protect your family from the burden of sudden or unexpected costs that you can’t cover. And the reality is, your family is probably younger and possibly still financially dependent on you – it simply might not be a burden that they’re in a position to carry.
An unfortunate reality is that, as you age, premiums get more expensive – insurers take into account the fact that you are statistically at a greater risk of something happening with your health. So, if you have been thinking about taking out an income protection policy, it’s best to act sooner rather than later.
There are also employers (existing and potential) who insist on their employees having income protection cover in place, before they will allow you to continue/commence working for them.
Older Australians working longer https://t.co/gzEWLKaCK0 pic.twitter.com/rvoecNVegJ
— Queensland Treasury (@qldtreasury) March 12, 2020
If you’re over 60 and you think income protection is the right choice for you, then it’s more important than ever to make sure you understand what’s being offered in the product disclosure statement – does the product cover you once you turn 60 and therefore give you the peace of mind that you need to protect you and your loved ones? The best way to make sure that an insurance product is the right one for you is to talk to an income protection insurance specialist like Aspect UW – someone who can give you independent, quality and expert advice and is focused on getting the best outcome for you and your family.
Mike Wallis
Mike has over 25 years experience, having spent his first seven years working as a Broker at Jardine Lloyd Thomson in Melbourne and in 2002 was transferred to JLT’s Accident and Health Department in London. For four years (2002 – 2005) Mike was a specialist A&H Lloyd’s Broker and during this time developed excellent relationships with the Lloyd’s A&H underwriting fraternity. In 2006 he returned to Australia in a senior broking position with overall responsibility for Placement Strategy, including the implementation of underwriting facilities and the various authorities granted by Lloyd’s. Mike was the underwriter at two specialist Underwriting Agencies prior to founding Aspect Underwriting in 2016.
