What do we mean by change?
Here are some examples of changes in personal circumstances that we believe are important to discuss:
• You have had an increase/decrease in your household income
• You have bought or sold a property/s
• You have had an investment increase or decrease by more than $50,000
• Your overall debt has increased or reduced by more than $50,000
• The number of dependent people living in your household has changed
• You have had a change in your personal relationship e.g. marriage or separation
• Your employment has changed
And these are some common changes that occur in business:
• You have purchased or sold a business
• Your business has had a significant increase or decrease in profit
• You have taken on a new business partner/s
• The business debt has increased or decreased by more than $50,000
• The value of your business has changed by more than $50,000
• There has been a change in your business structure
In absence of anything definitive we still recommend you should at least have a conversation with us every 2-3 years. We can often talk through a brief checklist with you to determine if we think your current situation will have an impact on your current cover.
Age
Most policies are priced on a “rate for age” basis. This means that you pay the cost for cover based on your current age. Next year your price can increase (on your policy anniversary) based on your new age.
This form of pricing is favourable to most people as it is the cheapest cost for your cover right now. All things going well, your need for cover could go down as you get older and your financial commitments change. Regular reviews will enable us to accurately determine whether or not your cover needs to be reduced and ideally minimise the cost increases as you get older.
Inflation
Some insurance policies have a feature built into them which increases the cover in line with inflation. This helps to ensure that you are still able to achieve the things you want to achieve if a claim is paid. These increases may not necessarily be required if your need for cover reduces such as a reduction debt levels. Having inflation related increases can be beneficial in the event your health changes and your ability to obtain additional cover through the normal application process is negatively impacted. Regular reviews will enable us to accurately determine this need. If you have any questions give as a call. There are a number of ways we may be able to assist or address your concerns.