Trauma Insurance

Is trauma insurance necessary? Am I too young to need it?

You hope that a critical illness or injury will never happen to you or to your family. But even if you’re young, lead a healthy lifestyle and take every precaution, nothing can fully shield you from life’s uncertainties.

Trauma insurance, also known as critical illness cover, provides a lump sum payment if you or your covered dependents suffer from any of the critical illnesses or injuries listed in your policy.

Severe disease or disability can devastate your family and wreck your finances. And as the examples below show, these critical events could happen to you, at any time.

• Asha had a severe stroke. She was only 26 years old at the time. Ten years later, she is still re-learning how to walk and has to rely on caregivers 24/7.
• Andrew was 34 when he was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer. He needs to find $1,775 each fortnight to fund the non-Pharmac funded chemo drugs that are keeping him alive. He relies on a crowdfunding platform to fund his treatment.
• Justin was 36 when he had a stroke while sleeping. The disease left one side of his body paralysed. He is unable to drive or go back to work.
• John a fit, healthy runner, and father of two, was 48 when he received a stage 4 lung cancer diagnosis. He was a non-smoker. Some lung cancer treatments can cost $8,000 or more every 3 weeks.
• Christine a mother of two, was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. Health insurance allowed her to receive radiation treatments quickly rather than face lengthy wait times through the public healthcare system or paying up to $55,000 to get faster access to radiotherapy at a private healthcare facility.

More than 26,000 Kiwis are diagnosed each year with some form of cancer and that number is growing. Heart disease rates are also high with one New Zealander dying every 90 minutes from heart disease. Disaster can strike in the form of illness or accident at any time.

Trauma insurance gives you and your family the financial resources you need for faster treatment and a smoother recovery.

The lump sum benefit also softens the financial impact a critical illness or injury can have on your family. Since you’re in full control of how you spend that money, you can use it to pay for ongoing family expenses, medical bills, your mortgage, take a much needed family holiday, or for anything else you need.

Knowing that you can take care of the bills and your family’s needs means you can focus on your recovery.

Keep reading to learn more about trauma insurance, including:

• Covered conditions
• Coverage for your family, and other benefits
• How you can use the funds, including for the cost of private treatment and non-Pharmac funded drugs
• Answers to frequently asked questions about premiums, benefits, and more.

What is critical illness insurance and why do you need it?

Critical illnesses and life-altering injuries are emotionally and financially devastating for patients and their families.The financial repercussions of a critical illness diagnosis can include:

• Lost income if you’re the main breadwinner or a contributing earner
• Further reduction in your household’s income if a family member stops working to be your full-time carer
• Cost of diagnostic tests and treatments at private health facilities (to avoid long public hospital wait times)
• Meeting the expense of life-saving non-Pharmac-funded treatments

The table below shows why some private treatments are often out of reach for all but the wealthiest Kiwis.

To help loved ones recover, desperate New Zealand families must find other ways to raise funds, including:

• Draining savings accounts, retirement funds, and money set aside for children’s education
• Selling a home or other assets
• Taking on debt
• Crowdfunding
• Delaying payments on mortgages, insurance and other obligations

But with the tax-free lump sum payment from trauma insurance, you and your family have additional financial resources which you can use for anything you need, such as:

• Private treatments and life-saving or life-prolonging non-Pharmac drugs
• Medical costs not covered by your health insurance plan
• Rehabilitation with recovery expenses, nursing and palliative care and therapy
• Living expenses such as groceries, utility bills, transportation costs, and childcare or home help during recovery
• Mortgage,rent, car loans, credit cards, student loans and other debt repayments
• Home modifications for accessibility, and home care medical supplies
• A holiday to spend some quality time with your family

Who should get trauma insurance? Is it right for me?

Not sure if you need to get trauma insurance? Ask yourself:

• If the worst happened to me, my spouse or our child, can we afford the medical and living expenses?
• How much money will I or my family need if I have to stop working due to a critical illness or injury or to care for a sick loved one?
• Do I have enough savings to replace the income I might lose?

Don’t be caught short. Our Policywise advisers can help you determine the right trauma insurance cover for your circumstances. This way, you’re only paying for the cover that you need. Schedule a call now and make sure you’re covered for the unexpected.

What conditions and illnesses does trauma insurance cover?

Trauma insurance provides full or partial benefits for most of the common critical illnesses and injuries.

Plus, many trauma insurance products also cover your children.

Trauma policies can be complex and may cover different conditions, diagnosis criteria, benefits for dependents, built-in and optional benefits as well as list certain exclusions. You’ll also need to check out the full and partial lump sum payment conditions. A Policywise adviser can explain these to you and help you compare and find the trauma insurance plan that matches your needs.

Most New Zealand Insurers cover the following conditions:

Additional benefits (built-in or optional)

Trauma insurance products offer additional benefits that can help you and your family during a health crisis.

These are either built-in policy benefits or optional add-ons which may increase your premium. Contact us to learn more.

How much does trauma insurance/critical illness cover cost?

A number of factors will have an impact on your premiums such as:

• Age
• Gender
• Smoking status
• Sum insured

Typically, maximum cover amounts to between $2 million and $3 million, which you can use as you see fit. You can use it for your family’s living expenses, debt payments and other costs.

You can also use it for private treatment or expensive non-Pharmac-funded drugs and their administration costs. Trauma insurance can make a potentially life-saving difference in your care and health outcome without costing you a fortune.

How does trauma insurance work?

Insurers provide two types of trauma insurance or critical illness payments: one-off lump sums or multiple payments.

• One-off lump sum payments: The insurer pays you a one-off sum if you suffer a covered illness or injury. Depending on your medical condition, this one-off payment can be equivalent to your full trauma cover, or a partial amount.
• Multiple payments: You can file multiple claims. For example, you will receive a small percentage of your trauma cover if your medical condition is at the least severe stage, and a bigger percentage if your condition is more severe.
  
  While your total cover is reduced by the amount of your claims, your trauma cover remains in effect. It allows you to file additional claims if your condition worsens or if you suffer from another covered condition.

Want more information on these trauma cover options? A Policywise adviser can further explain these payment options. Click here to schedule a call, and one of our advisers will contact you.

How to get a trauma insurance quote comparison online

Comparing trauma insurance products from multiple insurers allows you to choose the best product for your circumstances at the best price.

But comparing and reviewing trauma cover details can be overwhelming.

At Policywise, we make trauma insurance quote comparison simple and easier for you, and it’s free! Here’s how we do it.

Life insurance with trauma or critical illness cover

Thinking of getting life insurance and trauma/critical illness cover?

You have the option to choose either an accelerated or standalone trauma cover.

• Accelerated: The trauma insurance claims you make will be deducted from your life insurance cover.
• Standalone: Your trauma cover is separate from your life insurance. Your trauma insurance claim will not be deducted from your life cover.

A Policywise adviser can help you weigh up the pros and cons of each option.

Already have an insurance policy and you’d like to know if adding trauma cover would be unnecessary? Contact us: we’ll review your insurance cover and give you an honest evaluation for free.

Alternatives to trauma cover/critical illness insurance

• Health insurance: Helps you pay for treatment at private healthcare facilities. Depending on the product you choose, it can pay for inpatient treatment, outpatient care, diagnostic tests and/or non-Pharmac funded drugs.
• Life insurance: Pays you or your loved ones a lump sum in the event of your death or you are diagnosed with a terminal illness. You can use the funds as you deem necessary. The money can be used to fund a vacation or quality time with your loved ones, replace your partner’s income if they opt to take time off work, or cover living expenses, hospice care, funeral costs or your children’s education.
• Income protection: Pays a percentage of your income in monthly instalments if you need to stop working due to an illness or injury. This helps meet your ongoing financial obligations, so you can focus on recovery.
• Total permanent disability: Provides a lump sum payment if you can no longer work due to a permanent disability.

Why choose Policywise as your trauma insurance adviser?

Our Policywise advisers can:

• Provide comprehensive policy comparisons as well as impartial and customised insurance advice at lightning speed. We outline options from different insurers, so you are not limited to one insurance company’s products.
• Help you find the best product for your/your family’s needs and budget. You don’t have to do the comparisons alone. You can contact us for any information you need or for expert advice before deciding which policy to buy.
• Help you to figure out how much insurance you really need and where insurance fits into your/your family’s financial plan .

And if you need to make a claim, Policywise can arrange all the paperwork and liaise with the insurer. Dealing directly with the insurance company can be challenging and stressful and you may not get the result you were hoping for. We can make the whole process much smoother.