A life insurance application will always have a section about sensitive medical information and lifestyle questions. We have read every application questionnaire and know what's required and what's going to be asked.

• We have a no BS* no surprises policy so we understand the effect of your answering ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to every question in an insurance application.
• When you allow us to work with you, we focus on the end result and help you get there quickly and effectively, with dignity intact.

For people concerned with triggering past traumas, we're a Trauma-Informed-Organisation (TIO) and have designed all our systems and interactions to minimise the risk of re-traumatising anyone working with us.

Sometimes Yes. Expatriate Australians (Expats), living outside Australia but who have an intention to return in the future, can use our online services to pre-assess for life insurance covers and if successful get high-quality life insurance established for themselves, even when they are living overseas. This is helpful for travelers, professionals on assignment and people consulting overseas as part of their normal working lives. Eligibility can change from time to time so check with us first for the current underwriting rules.

Yes, a lot of the time you can. We are in talks with some insurers about TPD (Total and Permanent Disability cover) and we're had success getting most clients full TPD cover.  You should be aware that high-quality life insurance also pays out upon a terminal illness diagnosis, so that may be of assistance if you have mortgage arrangements that require some form of TPD cover.

For most people, Yes.

Critical Illness is also referred to as Crisis Recovery or Trauma insurance.

For most people, Yes. 

As this is a complex area of specialty, please take our Pre-assessment and then call for a call.

Yes, you can.

• Disability Income Protection is usually another name for Sickness and Accident Income Protection or even just income Protection - (the changes in names drives us crazy too). Regardless of the product name they use, all are designed to pay up to 70% of a person’s income if through sickness or injury they are unable to work.

Contact us today for more information on this specialist window of opportunity.

Yes, you can.

• Income Protection insurance can pay up to 75% of a person’s income if through sickness or injury, they are unable to work.

Contact us today for more information on this specialist window of opportunity.

Yes.

• We can work with people who have different levels of well managed HIV, diabetes or other health conditions.

Matching the right products to your personal situation - that’s our specialty.

Yes. It's now possible for Australians living with well managed HIV to get high-quality life insurances.

With over 20+ years of experience in specialty risk advice, we have seen a lot of changes and have worked hard to educate insurance underwriters about the need in the community and the developments in medications and management.

• People living with HIV (PLWHIV) can now qualify for full life insurance, income protection cover and even Crisis Recovery insurance cover, if you know where to look and who to work with.

We can help you with that.

No. Not at all. Unusualrisks.com.au is an online discrete and focused pre-assessment service run solely by our parent company Sapience Financial.

After completing a successful online pre-assessment, the entire application process, all correspondence, updates and reviews are completed through our standard market-branded service, Sapience Financial. They care for a full range of different clients with different needs from mortgage brokering, estate planning, financial advice and strategies and even small business risk management.

The good ones won't.

• Relationships, regardless of gender, are now recognised by the quality insurance providers who have modified their application questions so that 'unprotected sex', in a monogamist relationship is considered standard.
• A few insurers are yet to update their assessment processes and monogamous same-sex relationships may inadvertently trigger an additional questionnaire about behaviours.

While this is an ongoing frustration for unusualrisks.com.au we know those providers to avoid and those to use.

As part of the general underwriting process, insurers ask a standard question about recreational drug use similar to:

• “Have you ever injected, smoked or otherwise taken recreational or non-prescribed drugs, taken any drugs other than medically directed or received advice and/or counselling for excess alcohol consumption from any health professional?”

Past moderate use may result in an increase to an insurance policy premium as would a history of drug-induced psychosis.

Current harder use may result in an automatic decline for a fully underwritten insurance policy. These same questions often don't get asked as part of the application questions for an accidental death or accident income protection policy. Speak with us about this issue further. Either way, that's why you need a specialist at unusualrisks.com.au to handle all that for you.

Speak with us about this issue further. Either way, that's why you need a specialist at unusualrisks.com.au to handle all that for you.

There have been significant reforms to the way gay, lesbian, bisexual, intersex people and trans folk are treated by insurance companies. The Australian Financial Services Insurance Council has issued guidelines removing the so-called 'gay questions' from application forms and now require all insurance underwriters decisions to be based on sexual 'behaviour' instead of a 'person’s sexuality'.

• Each insurance application can only be dealt with on a case-by-case basis, using the best available relevant evidence.
• It is no longer acceptable for insurance companies to ask if a person applying for a policy is gay or bisexual and insurers will not ask questions about sexuality. Companies cannot make assumptions about a persons sexuality from the details of their living arrangements, occupation or medical history.

If you have taken a HIV test you do not need to declare negative HIV test results. The fact of having an HIV test will not, of itself, have any effect on your acceptance terms for insurance.

Yes - everyone gets asked that same question now anyway.

• Insurers now ask all applicants if they have ever tested positive for HIV, AIDS, Hepatitis B or C or if you are awaiting the test results for the same.

If you are applying for a particularly large level of insurance cover, eg: $1,000,000 or more, all applicants (regardless of medical status) will usually be required to undergo a blood test for HIV and cholesterol as standard practice.

No.

There have been significant reforms to the way gay, lesbian, bisexual, intersex people and trans folk are treated by insurance companies.

• It is no longer acceptable for insurance companies to ask if a person applying for a policy is gay or bisexual and insurers will not ask questions about sexuality.

Companies cannot make assumptions about a persons sexuality from the details of their living arrangements, occupation or medical history.

Absolutely! The clever people behind unusualriks.com.au run a complete financial advisory practice and provide all our services under the parent company name Sapience Financial. We have a range of standard & specialty clients.

• Over the last 20 years, Sapience specialty clients have established in excess of $30,000,000 insurance cover and received over $5,000,000 in insurance claim payments.

You're welcomed into our family, regardless of gender, sexuality or diagnosis.

(*Serodiscordant is sometimes referred to as a mixed-status relationship and is usually one where one partner is not HIV positive)

No. Never an issue.

Life insurance is about data and statistics. It has nothing to do with sexuality, gender expression, lifestyle, identification with a lifestyle, labels or tags.

• We don't ask about sexuality identification and nor should anyone.
• Not all people and not all partners identify in traditional ways (whatever that is)
• Not all people and not all partners want to be Out and that is always their choice.

We believe all people should always be respected; regardless of who they love or how they identify (or don't).

The team at unusualrisks.com.au believe it's always the individual who matters more than all of that put together.

Back 'in the day' (ok in the not so distant 1980's) it was impossible to get Life Insurance for someone who had tested positive for HIV.  This was because life insurance companies simply deemed the risk of a policyholder dying abnormally quickly, too high.

Add to this, the fact there was so little statistical date available about treatments, life expectancy increases and medical breakthroughs, the insurance actuarial community didn't want to know about it.

This stance by the life insurance industry had two major effects:

• not only did people living with HIV find it impossible to get life insurance, but
• people who were at an increased risk of HIV were reluctant to have an HIV test in case it meant they would be 'turned down' for a future life insurance policy.

The team behind unusualrisks.com.au decided to be the change they wanted to see if the financial services community and have now designed a framework that helps people living with well managed HIV get their life insurance needs sorted.

No worries. We believe in looking after those who look after you.

• For friends, family and supporters who need standard life insurance cover, the process is the same, just no need for a pre-assessment.

In today's modern families we believe nobody should miss out.