Trauma protection can be a misunderstood member of the personal cover family and we would like to provide some clarity.
Trauma protection is a personal cover providing a lump sum payment in the event of a diagnosis of certain illnesses or if you experience specified injuries. Different providers have slightly different lists of illnesses or injuries but all include cancer, heart attack and stroke. Injuries can include head trauma, burns or time spent in intensive care.
The infographic below shows the most common claims on trauma covers.
So how do you decide if trauma protection is for you?
If you have medical cover and income protection, having trauma protection can feel like doubling up, but there are a number of reasons it can be worth having trauma cover as well or why it may actually be your best option.
Determining how much trauma cover to get, or which provider’s policy is best for you, can be challenging, which is why it is always best to talk to a broker, who can take into account your individual circumstances, your budget, other cover you have in place and your lifestyle.
Unless you include a “buy back” in your premium, once you have used your trauma cover it is gone. The buy back rate is usually very small (as low as $4 a month) but on some policies it can allow you to claim up to five times, provided there is at least six months between claims and the claim is for a separate event. While it may sound unlikely to claim more than once, it is not uncommon for people to claim three times on one policy.
If you think trauma cover is something you need to consider as part of your personal cover plan get in touch with one of our brokers today.
Here are a few reviews from some of our existing clients around New Zealand