Important change to your Income Protection

Effective 30 March 2024 your Income Protection will reduce to $1,000 a month.

We wrote to you in November 2023 about the upcoming change to your Income Protection (see the Important change to your Income Protection notice) and your options.

Here’s a summary about the change and information about what you can do.

What’s changing

It’s important you get value from your insurance cover1 and that it’s right for your needs, because insurance costs are deducted monthly from your super account and they reduce your retirement savings.

You currently pay for basic age-based Income Protection from your super account. We’re reducing the amount of Income Protection you have to $1,000 a month and changing it to fixed cover, effective from 30 March 2024.

See Your options below for more details and the things to consider about your Income Protection.

Why it’s changing

We’re reducing your Income Protection because you may be paying too much for your cover and may not be able to claim the full amount of your cover, as your estimated annual salary is less than $25,000.

This is based on the gross Superannuation Guarantee contributions you’ve received in your AustralianSuper account for the last four financial years up to 30 June 2023 meaning your age-based Income Protection may be unsuitable for you2. This is because:

  • The maximum Income Protection benefit payment amount you can get is the lower of your cover amount or 85% of your pre-disability income (offsets and other conditions may apply). See What is Income Protection in our FAQs for a more detailed explanation about what you’re able to claim and an example.
  • If the amount of cover for your age is more than 85% of your salary, you may not be able to claim the full cover amount you’re paying for from your super account.

Your options

Income Protection can provide monthly payments to help you get by if you become ill or injured (at work or outside of work) and can’t work.

We don’t know your personal and financial circumstances, that’s why it’s important that you review and consider your insurance needs, how much cover (if any) might be right for you and your options if you do want to keep or change your Income Protection.

Check your cover and review your insurance needs

  • When reviewing your Income Protection, think about whether you need this type of insurance cover and the amount that is right for you. Use the insurance calculator to help you work out how much (if any) cover is right for you and what it might cost, based on your age as well as other personal and financial details.
  • Consider the impact of insurance costs on your retirement savings.
  • If you have insurance cover elsewhere, for example with another super fund, then you may want to consider if you should keep both amounts of cover and if you will be able to claim it or not.
  • You may choose to keep your basic age-based Income Protection, or you may want to increase, decrease or cancel it based on your needs.

To check how much cover you have, use the AustralianSuper app or log into your account at australiansuper.com, go to Insurance, then Manage insurance.

You can choose to:

Keep your basic age-based Income Protection
  • You need to let us know by completing the online Keep your basic Income Protection form by 25 March 2024. If you received your form by post and you don’t want to use the online form, you can complete and return it to us (see the instructions on the form).
  • If we don’t receive your form by 25 March 2024 (and if you haven’t made any changes to your Income Protection or notified us of a claim), your Income Protection will be reduced to $1,000 a month of fixed cover, effective 30 March 2024. We’ll write to you to confirm we’ve reduced your cover.
Reduce your Income Protection to $1,000 a month of fixed cover, effective 30 March 2024

You don’t have to do anything. We’ll write to you to confirm we’ve reduced your cover.

Change or cancel your Income Protection

You can do this anytime by using the AustralianSuper app or logging into your account at australiansuper.com, or by completing the relevant form at australiansuper.com/InsuranceForms

We won’t reduce your cover to $1,000 a month of fixed cover if you make any of the following changes to your Income Protection by 25 March 2024:

  • cancel your Income Protection
  • apply to change your Income Protection to fixed cover (you can decrease or increase your cover to a fixed amount or convert the amount of age-based cover you have to fixed cover), or
  • change your benefit payment period or waiting period.

Some reasons you may want to keep your basic age-based Income Protection

  • If your cover reduces to $1,000 a month of fixed Income Protection you’ll need to apply and provide detailed heath information for the Insurer to consider if you want more Income Protection in the future.
  • If the cover you have is right for you based on your salary and financial circumstances.
  • If you expect that your salary may increase in the near future.

More information and help

Frequently asked questions

Can’t find the answer to your question here? Our FAQs might have the answer.

view our faqs
  1. AustralianSuper insurance is provided by TAL Life Limited (the Insurer) ABN 70 050 109 450, AFSL 237848.

  2. Based on the gross Superannuation Guarantee contributions received for the last four financial years in your AustralianSuper account, your estimated annual salary is less than $25,000 indicating that basic age-based Income Protection may be unsuitable for you. This estimate does not take into account contributions you may be receiving at any other super fund, your insurance needs and your financial circumstances.
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