The Plan B for when you're not eligible for Plan A — the next best thing to reduce your risks

Accidents change everything.

They can suddenly wipe out your ability to earn an income, endanger your family's stability and alter your confidence for the future.

It's not uncommon for accidents to become the start of unexpected financial stress that can change your way of life. They can push you into more debt to pay for unexpected medical procedures, drain your cashflow, and can even force you to sell off investments or assets to cover debts, at the worst possible time.

The last thing on anybody's mind should be money and returning to work.

What to do when you don't qualify for comprehensive insurance cover?

For many people, a surprise major medical bill or the sudden loss of their income is understandably overwhelming.

• Most people simply protect themselves and their families with comprehensive Income Protection and Disability Insurances.
• But if you don't qualify for this type of comprehensive insurance cover, the next best option may be Accident Only Insurances.

No one's immune from life-changing accidents that can remove their earning capacity and destabilize the financial security of their family.

Why use Accident Only Insurances?

Accident Only Insurances are the next level of personal insurance policy designed to protect against the financial impact of an unexpected accident - whether that involves a Long term Disability, Loss of Income, or even an unexpected Death, as defined in the policy.

• Accident Only Insurance cover as the name suggests pays a benefit in the event of an accident occurring and you needing to claim.
• Accident Only Insurance cover can be a helpful part of your protection strategy when you simply don't yet qualify for comprehensive insurance coverage but still need some level of cover to reduce your risks.

What types of Accident Only insurances are available?

The three main types of accident only covers available are:

• Accident Total & Permanent Disability (ATPD) - pays a lump sum benefit if you are totally and permanently disabled as a result of an accident. There are different types of cover from any occupation or the higher grade own occupation category of claim, and even special definitions to help protect your non-working partner too.
• Accident Income Protection (AIP) - pays up to 75% of your income per month (and can reimburse your employer’s super contributions too) if you’re working and totally or partially disabled as a result of an accident.
• Accidental Death (AD) - pay a lump sum of money if you died from an unexpected and unintentional accident.

Pro Tip: Only a small number of insurers offer this type of specialist cover. Like all specialist insurance cover, this is not suitable for a DIY approach or a simplified online comparison service. Get professional advice from the risk insurance specialists at Unusual Risks Insured.

When you may need an Accident Only Insurance option

There are times when you may not be eligible for a comprehensive life insurance policy, but you still need protection.

This could be for:

• Temporary reasons - while you recover from an existing injury or complete planned surgery or therapies, or
• Ongoing reasons - due to a previous or permanent health issue or even your type of occupation.

There are different grades of Accident Only Insurance cover, all with varying levels of medical assessment and they can become a practical alternative if your current health or occupation makes getting comprehensive cover unavailable.

Who this is especially relevant for?

Many people for very different reasons simply do not qualify (or don't yet qualify) for a comprehensive insurance policy to protect themselves or their families, but still need an insurance alternative.

This is especially relevant for people living with:

• a complex medical history - like leukemia
• a very recent medical procedure where the long-term outcomes are not yet known - like very recent gastric banding, very recent mental health support, and organ transplant recipients
• difficult to manage medical conditions - where the risk of ongoing management makes them commercially uninsurable - like Dysplastic Nevus Syndrome where a person can have so many moles on their skin, that the risk of missing one during a routine examination for melanoma is overly high
• family genetic conditions where the statically increased risks make them not commercially viable for comprehensive insurance cover
• high-risk occupations - like Crane Drivers, Tree Loppers, High Voltage Linesmen and frontline Emergency Services Workers
• self employed occupations with very long hours who don't qualify for comprehensive insurance cover or
• who want to minimise their out of pocket expenses in the event of a workplace accident occurring

Whatever the reason, an Accident Only Insurance policy can be the next best thing (when you don’t qualify for the best thing) and you can still protect yourself from the financial effects of accidental death, disability or loss of income an accident can create.

We specialise in helping people with well‑managed HIV or Diabetes (and other complex health conditions) get their life insurances and income protection sorted.

Life Insurance means financial protection to those you love, at a time when they shouldn’t have to think about money.

Income Protection means you safeguard your able to continue to earn a living, and keep your lifestyle until your recover.

And we help their family members get all their life insurances sorted too, so nobody misses out

• We also help medical professionals and emergency service workers protect themselves from the financial effects of contaminated sharps injuries, and
• We provide Australia wide financial advice and insurances for Surrogates so intended parents can provide the highest quality personal insurances to help protect and support the surrogate parent providing surrogacy services.

These days HIV or Diabetes doesn't have to be a life sentence

But most insurance companies still treat you like it is.

People with pre-existing well‑managed health conditions have, up till now, been prevented from accessing quality Life Insurance and Life Insurance products like Income Protection, simply because of their conditions.

We believe everyone deserves a fair go and equal access to financial advice Drew Browne Founder Unusual Risks Insured

How would you answer these 5 quick questions?

1. Are you or someone you love living with HIV or diabetes?
2. Do you need to learn more about blood-borne disease protection?
3. Want to learn how to protect your partner, family and even your business from the unexpected?
4. Are you just looking for help to get your life insurance sorted?
5. Not sure if it’s even possible?

Here's the great news!

You'll be pleased to know that now there's an Australian company that can offer life insurance services to those who really need it - and you found us.

On our site, you'll be able to:

• learn why many LGBTQIA+ people and our Allies choose to use our services
• learn everything you need to know about how to get your life insurance sorted if you have well-managed HIV or diabetes or using PrEP to manage your health.
• learn how to protect yourself from the effect of a contaminated sharps injury if you're a medical professional
• take our anonymous pre-assessment to find out if we can work with your situation

So what are the different types of Life insurance products available to you here?

Life Insurances is a name that covers a range of personal insurances designed to protect people from the known statistical risks of life.

These include:

• Death and Terminal Illness cover
• Total and Permanent Disability cover
• Crisis Recovery insurance for serious medical conditions
• Income Protection cover for sickness and illness stopping you from earning your income

For business owners and key people in business, we have additional personal insurances designed to protect business people from the known statistical risks of business life too.

These include:

• Business Key Person and Key Debt protection
• Business Fixed Expensesprotection
• Business Owners and Professional Partnerships protection
• Business Owner and Partnership ownership transfer protection.

Investing in the health and well-being of another is an act of service, greater than ourselves and in many ways it's what makes us human - Drew Browne

For us, this is not just about getting a Life Insurance policy, this is an equality and human rights issue

We believe that every Australian should have equal access to high-quality Life Insurance products, no matter what their sexuality, gender, race, age or beliefs. We believe this is not just about getting Life Insurance, this is a human rights issue.

For our clients, it's about protecting and providing for those they love and simply getting on with living a full and adventurous life.

Life Insurance can help you be certain your loved ones are provided for, children's educational needs are taken care of, and that your family of choice won't have to worry about their future if you’re not there to continue to protect and provide for them.

A sad but all too common experience

Often, when a couple set up life insurance to protect each other, one person has their application accepted, but the other is refused because of a pre-existing health condition. Both are left feeling that a wedge has been driven between them and that their needs and choices were not understood, honoured or valued. At unUsualrisks.com.au our mission is to change this.

Life insurance offers financial protection to those you love at a time when they shouldn’t have to think about money

An insurance payout can help your loved ones:

• Stay in the family home by either paying out the mortgage or providing enough funds to allow then to remain in the community where they're most comfortable
• Maintain the same standard of living by providing funds to be invested and used over time
• Provide for future planned expenses for loved ones or maybe leaving a legacy that makes your difference in the world
• If you're in business life insurance can help protect your revenue, secure bank loans and make shareholders and Key people to the business feel more secure too.
• If you're sorting out your estate planning, life insurance can help equalise the value of an estate so that heirs are treated equally, just in case.

When does life insurance payout?

Life insurance will normally payout upon the death of the life insured or diagnoses of a terminal, illness in the last 24 months.

• It can help their dependents cope financially if you unexpectedly pass away, and
• It can help you in practical financial ways if you suffer a terminal illness

Many people don't know that high-quality life insurance also pays out upon the diagnosis of a terminal illness in the remaining 24 months, making it a strong part of a backup plan.

Most people don't know 30% of life insurance claims are made for terminal illness

For Health Professionals and Emergency Services Workers, contaminated sharps injury protection offers financial stability to you at a time when you need to focus on your ongoing health

An insurance payout can help you:

• Pay you an immediate cash amount to use in any way to need
• It can help pay out debts and remove financial stressors from your life
• It can provide a financial cushion to your loved ones or yourself and help provide time for you to consider your next step
• It can fund a change in your professional career, protect business shareholders and provide you with space to take time to consider what your next step needs to be

So if you're living with HIV, managing diabetes or protecting yourself from these types of conditions (like using PrEP), we can help you with complete privacy, discretion and great advice.

Enjoy your time here on our site, and feel free to get in touch and say G'day.

And if you have sensitive questions or just prefer to chat with a person first, strike up an email conversation here or give us a call direct and ask to speak with Drew.

Be careful what you Google for, when searching for simple answers to complex questions like; Can people with HIV or other complex health conditions can still qualify for life insurance?

Google Search is part of our modern-day lives.

Who hasn’t made a quick Search for the bio of an actor, the secret to a killer Bearnaise sauce or asked, ‘Is there a sequel to Game of Thrones?’

Search is also a growing part of our personal health management. People's tendencies for a late-night search session with Dr Google self-diagnosing potential medical conditions —by searching for symptoms —are known to trigger many an anxious night of misinformation and questionable comparisons.

The reality is many of our late-night search results usually add to our anxiety and uncertainty.

The new skill of knowing ‘when to consult a professional’ is becoming the new 21th Century survival skill to learn.

Yes

Life is complicated.

Getting on with life is even more complicated; so it's important to talk about what matters most and know where we stand.

• In 2019, around 3.4 million Australians reported using an illicit (recreational) drug in the last 12 months.¹

So how does having a history of personal drug use affect your ability to create a safety net for yourself and your family?

Here's what you need to know ahead of time when you're needing to get your life insurances sorted.

Intersex Remembrance Day

'Pink is for girls and blue is for boys. Girls are princesses and boys are pirates. Girls like only boys and boys don’t kiss other boys... — These are just a few restrictive ideas of gender and gender identity that have seen many queer people marginalised and scrutinised for centuries'.
(National Geographic Magazine - Jan 2017 issue)

If there is anything we know, it's that life is not black and white - and not everyone is neatly defined by an Acronym LGBTI.

COVID-19 & Life Insurances FAQs

Our top frequently asked questions by clients about life insurance policies and COVID-19 and vaccinations

Australia is now in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

With rolling lockdowns and much general uncertainty ahead, as we race towards the nation's next mass vaccination target, it's only natural people are looking for certainty and asking important questions about 'whether COVID-19 affects their life insurance policies in any way?'

Well we have some good news to share.

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions we’ve received about life insurances and COVID-19 and COVID-19 Vaccinations.

Crisis Recovery insurance means you can focus on getting better, without worrying about how you’re going to get by once you recover.

Crisis Recovery insurance (also called Critical Illness Trauma Recovery insurance) is designed to pay a specified lump sum (or in some cases installments) to you if you’re diagnosed with a specified serious illness or injury that's covered by the policy such as cancer, heart attack, stroke, and breast or prostate cancer.

Up until now, this was simply not possible for people with complex health conditions.

• Poor health can destroy wealth quickly. Hits to our health are often far worst than other financial losses because they often dry up our income-making capacity too.
• Today people often use it as part of a backup plan to fund their major medical expenses, reducing (or even paying off) debts and maintaining their lifestyle while they recover.
• Crisis Recovery insurance is a useful backup plan when you don't have access to savings or large sums of disposable cash when you may need it the most.

An uncomfortable reality

Today's rising cost of sophisticated medical treatments and pharmaceutical interventions means that having a health crisis now equates to having a financial crisis.  Money has become a potent treatment tool as advances in medicine.

This is where Crisis Recovery insurance can be a powerful safety net.

Depending upon the level of cover you choose, it can even allow you to make permanent lifestyle changes like not needing to return to work full time.

Key Terms to know

• The benefit amount is the amount the policy covers you for as chosen by you.
• The defined conditions (listed in the PDS) are the specified conditions the policy is designed to pay out for.

Practically speaking - 'remove the worry of paying bills while you recover from a serious condition'

Why you may need Crisis Recovery insurance

Crisis Recovery Illness insurance (aka Trauma Recovery insurance) is especially important for single people who may not have dependable family support, for people with dependents or who might have a non-working partner.

• Most Australian's just don’t have ready access to at least 6 months of emergency savings at hand that can continue to pay all their debts and normal living expenses.
• Add to this the increased financial burden of unexpected medical and rehabilitation costs and a medical crisis can quickly become a financial crisis too.

It’s especially relevant for:

• Singles with low family support
• Young families with large debt obligations and low salable asset values
• People who are the major income earning in a relationship
• People with low emergency savings at hand

Take a moment to consider how much immediate cash reserves you have on hand today to put towards paying for a serious medical issue (particularly where you may need to stop work due to serious medical trauma or injury).

• What's your realistic plan to cope with the mortgage repayment or the weekly rental, the car loan and credit card repayments and everyday expenses - on top of sudden medical costs for treatments and rehabilitation?

Real Life Statistics

• An estimated 145,000 new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in Australia this year, with that number likely to rise to 150,000 in 2020.^{Cancer Council – Facts and Figures}
• Almost half a million people are hospitalised each year as a result of injury, and a further 12,000 people die due to injury. ^{Australian Institute of Health and Welfare – Injury, June 2017}

The average lifetime Cancer Management¹ costs for people 15 years and over are:

• $95,460 for head, neck and thyroid cancers
• $74,600 for lung cancer
• $51,460 for bowel cancer
• $36,800 for prostate cancer
• $36,040 for breast cancer
• $20,360 for melanoma skin cancer

Data source 1 Zurich, the Cost of Care whitepaper, pp.11 – 12

• Read the video transcript below.

He's a big fan of the party life and 'works hard so he can play hard'. If you ever got into a serious conversation with him, he's an open-minded no-labels kind of guy.

His work ute looks as good as he does and he's in high demand on Saturday night - and always swipes right - if you know what we mean.

Do I need life insurance if I'm Single and LGBTQIA+?

The answer is probably Yes, and here's why

Many LGBTQIA+ singles are taking control of their own lives and getting their Life Insurance sorted sooner than many of their straight allies, who traditionally risk leaving such important decisions until they’re married with children.

And that’s because LGBTQIA+ folk often face more unique challenges than our straight friends.

Many LGBTQIA+ people understand the importance of having their own Income Protection insurance in place because it helps protect their ability to continue to earn an income, to live, to love (and to party). However many LGBTQIA+ people have additional Life Insurance needs and challenges.

Life still goes on, even in the middle of a Pandemic.

Yes, it makes perfect sense to think about life insurance today - especially today - because life still happens to us all, all the time, even during difficult times.

One of the dangers of living through difficult times (and the LGBTQIA+ Community is no stranger to surviving difficult times) is we can sometimes fixate on the biggest issue and ignore the most important issue - our life, love, and relationships continue regardless.

Our innate adaptability can lead many LGBTQIA+ couples to embrace wildly different financial goals, styles and circumstances in our partners.

Are you living with a hidden complex health condition?

It's time for a fresh look at living with a multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis and getting your life insurance and income protection sorted.

MS affects approximately 2,5 million people worldwide, but when you live with multiple sclerosis (MS), it may already feel tough to relate to people who don’t have the condition. As people with an often hidden condition, they face challenges because of their disability but if they're also identifying as LGBTQIA+ the 'double whammy' of feeling like a “minority within a minority” can feel like more discrimination.

Life Insurance is a complex area with no second chance to fix a mistake

Once you have a Life Insurance policy in force, it can't be taken away from you. But of course, there's the problem of getting one in the first place...

Life Insurance is an 'underwritten financial product'. This means that levels of risk are often measured by insurance underwriters in 'likelihoods' and '% of chance'. Until recently, for HIV research, insurance underwriters had limited data to make predictions from so they simply refused to offer Life Insurance in circumstances where people were diagnosed with HIV.

Why you need a specialist adviser from Unusualrisks.com.au

When you have a pre-existing medical condition, getting high-quality Life Insurance requires the expertise of a specialty Risk Insurance Adviser because of 4 key reasons;

• The different medical underwriting requirements are complex
• The assessment criteria change constantly 
• Not all insurance providers are able to work with pre-existing medical conditions (but they don't tell you that up front so the resulting formal 'application declined' goes on your permanent record)
• We specialise in navigating through this complex area

4 Incredibly important things you need to know about life insurance

Here are 4 significant differences that are often overlooked when setting up specialty life insurance.

• Once a Life Insurance policy is in force, it's considered to be 'non-cancellable' by the insurance provider (as long as you continue to pay the premiums)
• It's automatically renewed each year without any further assessment, for the life of the product (regardless of any changes in your health, occupation or personal situation)
• You may have the option to select level premiums for the life of the product. This can mean savings of thousands of dollars over the life of the product. The earlier this is done, the greater the savings that can be achieved.
• You may be able to pay the premiums from your superannuation fund balance. When done in combination with level premiums, this can be a very cost-effective strategy for most people.

When taking time means good value to you

These are also 4 reasons why Life Insurance companies spend a lot of time in the initial assessment of the policy — because once you have a policy, it can't be taken away from you. So, now you can see the value in having a non-cancellable Life Insurance policy that's right for you.

The typical scenario

Sadly, we come across situations where people have already applied for life insurance only to be refused based upon their lifestyle and their medical conditions.

• Every time they apply for insurance again, (any type of insurance covered by the Duty of Disclosure laws) they are legally required to disclose all past insurance refusals otherwise an insurance company can refuse a claim based upon non-disclosure.
• If they apply for insurance again, they are then legally required to disclose past insurance refusals. This often becomes a real cycle of pain.

Our anonymous pre-assessment process prevents this damage from happening.

Why the standard life insurance application form works against you when you have specialty needs

If you're health-conscious, eat and exercise well, maintain your weight and have an active lifestyle, this is important information that should also be taken into consideration by a life insurance underwriter. But with a standard application form, none of this is taken into account, so the result is almost always an automatic 'no'.

The disturbing reality is that the safety of your data is not safe when you don't use a specialist like Unusual Risks

One of the common practices for general advisers and employed advisers is to simply 'send your health information around to different insurance companies' in the hope that one of them might be interested and provide feedback on whether they can help. The ugly inside truth is that many of the risk insurers don't admit they don't both or provide helpful feedback because of vested interests and concerns over commercial intelligence.

• Unless you're a specialist adviser, you don't have the time to research and stay on top of the changes that occur on a monthly basis.

So now you can see why you need the specialist team at unusualrisks.com.au to get you the result safely, efficiently and confidentially.

Everything we do is all about giving you the best chance of success without the risk

At Unusual Risks, we understand the underwriting processes and the medical requirements that insurers need to work with. We can present you in the most favourable light so that your chances of success are the highest.

• We use technology to help us anonymously pre-assess your medical position so that potential difficulties can be dealt with — without the need to identify you and create a permanent record that might influence a future application.

In reality, someone living with HIV or diabetes is still more likely to be turned down for life insurance by mainstream insurers than someone who doesn't have these conditions. If you are offered cover, you'll pay about the same premium as other people with pre-existing conditions such as cancer, certain kinds of heart conditions, or smokers.

Our anonymous pre-assessment processgives you the absolute best chance of success.

How we do it?

• We start by providing up-to-date, high-quality relevant information about what's now possible for people living with diabetes or HIV.
• Then we provide an anonymous online pre-assessment service so that people can quickly find out if their medical condition is one we can work with.
• Finally, we check your medical information with you to confirm if you were to make a formal application for life insurances, you'd have a very significant chance of success.

10 Good reasons to choose Unusual Risks as your specialty risk adviser

1. You control the conversation
2. Easy online pre-Assessment
3. The ability to be pre-Assessed anonymously
4. The ability to complete personal and private questionnaires securely online
5. Our expertise and deep understanding of HIV and diabetes issues
6. Our skill at matching the right clients' health profiles to the right insurance providers
7. Our ability to talk about anything without judgment or embarrassment
8. Our No-surprises No-BS Guarantee
9. All our practices, procedures and interactions with our clients are Trauma Informed
10. Your choice of communication method: Video-to-Video, phone-to-phone or face-to-face (or just old-school email).

Tell us how we can best work with you, and we'll make that happen.

This question has always intrigued me because it sounds similar to the equally difficult-to-answer question, ‘how long is a piece of string?’

I suppose the answer is, ‘as long as it needs to be and as much as you need to have’.

But that's probably not going to move the answer along much, so here is a good place to start your thinking.

An interesting question we're often asked is,
'Who are the most uninsured people in the community?'
The answer might surprise (and sadden) you.

Young male P plate drivers? Young Tradies? Army Reserve personnel? Single mothers? No.

The Australian LGBTQIA+ Community is one of the most underinsured and underserved markets with financial services.

This of course then leaves them and their families at greater vulnerability than their straight counterparts.

Protecting yourself from sickness and injury – so you can keep on earning a living.

We help people living with well-managed HIV, diabetes or other complex health conditions get high quality Income Protection cover

Previously, people with complex health needs were excluded from high-quality Income Protection - now that's changed for our clients.

• Income Protection is an insurance cover for one of the most important assets of all – your ability to continue to keep on earning a living.

Explaining Income Protection

Income Protection insurance as the name suggests is designed to protect your ability to continue to earn an income and pay up to 70% (previously 75%) of your income if you're unable to work due to sickness or injury. It can provide cover worldwide 24/7 and can even protect 100% of your employer's super contributions too.

• The waiting period is the number of days before the income benefit payments start. It can be as short as 14 days and can be as long as 12 months (or even more), whatever you choose.
• The benefit period is the length of time you’ll receive payments while you’re unable to work due to sickness or injury. These can often be for set periods of 2 years or more, even up to age 65 (and now in some cases age 70), depending on what you choose.
• The payment method is the way you agree to pay the insurance premiums. These can be from your personal funds, perhaps from your super fund or even a combination of both, depending upon whatever you choose.

There are so many different options available with Income Protection.

Your financial advisor from unusual risks is the expert to best help you understand your options and cut through what can often feel an overwhelming process to find your unique solution.

Our income drives our lifestyle - not just paying rent, mortgages, car loans and credit cards, but living a full and interesting life Drew Browne

Practically speaking - always protect what you cannot afford to lose

Why you may need income protection

The financial engine of our lifestyles is our continuing ability to earn our incomes.

Over the course of a lifetime, most people will earn a small fortune (and rely upon their super contributions for their ability to eventually retire).

Protecting your ability to continue to earn an income makes clear financial sense.

It’s especially relevant for:

• Single people who might not have strong family or relationship support
• People in relationships depending upon dual incomes
• People with ongoing debts, like a mortgage, rent, credit cards and personal loans that couldn't be paid if they were unable to work due to sickness or injury.
• People who have regular family expenses like food, household bills, council rates or strata fees, school fees, vehicle costs (and perhaps child support payments or IVF treatment costs) and who don't have immediate access to substantial savings to use to replace their lost income if needed
• People who want an effective backup plan in place if one (or both of their incomes) were to stop due to sickness or injury

A special note for self-employed people

Self-employed and business people have different needs and restrictions on their incomes so if that's your situation, relax, the professionals behind Unusual Risks Insured can talk you through your special options too.

Real Life Statistics

• 20% of all mortgage defaults in Australia are ‘due to illness or accident in household'
  ^{(Mortgage default in Australia: nature, causes and social and economic Impacts, Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute, March 2010)}

Business Owners and Professional Partners have unique risks and needs not usually adequately covered by their private family insurance plans.

Business is filled with uncertainty. Now you can plan for that.

While the risks to businesses are seemingly unending, the personal risks to Owners and Professional Partners can usually be found in 4 areas.

• Business Key Person and Debt protection
• Business Fixed Expenses protection
• Business Owners and Professional Partnerships protection
• Business Owner and Partnership Succession protection.

These become increasingly sensitive and complicated issues for business owners and business partners who may have specific personal medical issues that deserve an enhanced level of privacy and are kept totally separate from their commercial activities.

• Company directors may need to use life insurance to protect the company trading debts, the director's account (when Director's funds have been lent to the company) or to protect the capital investment.
• Business partners may need to use insurances to limit becoming personally liable for company losses as their personal homes are often cross-securing the company debts.
• Partnerships and Investors may require company key-persons to use a range of insurances to help protect capital invested.

Why is this really important?

Personal insurance applications are one of the very few areas in business life where an individual's personal health and lifestyle is mandatorily required to be disclosed.

• Your private health and lifestyle history is considered an integral part of the insurance application and assessment process. This is because personal insurances are contracts between the life insured/policy owner and the life insurance company, so there's a legal duty to take reasonable steps not to mislead under Section 20B of the Insurance Contracts Act, requiring the full and frank disclosure of all personal sensitive medical and personal health data.
• Should an application for insurance be formerly declined, this can have unintended and long-lasting effects on so many areas that it becomes a risk to all future insurance.

This is why you need a specialty financial adviser from unusualrisks.com.au to help an individual and their company through the process.

How it all comes together.

Business Key Person and Debt Protection

The death or disablement of a key person could have a significant impact on the revenue of a business and therefore its ability to meet its day-to-day expenses.

• This could be because the key person for example, has a unique skill or has particular knowledge relevant to the business or has relationships with key clients nationally or internationally.

Business Fixed Expenses Protection

Business Overheads cover, (also known as fixed business expenses cover), allows a business to continue to pay its fixed expenses if one of the business owners becomes sick or injured.

• This type of cover usually pays a monthly benefit to the business, to meet its day-to-day fixed costs, generally for up to 12 months, if the insured person is disabled and is unable to work in the business at their full capacity.
• All family businesses need an insurance firewall to reduce business liabilities becoming personal liabilities.

Insurance policies to cover business overheads are generally owned by the business entity, sole traders or partners (in the case of a partnership and the policy premiums are generally tax-deductible, and the proceeds are treated as assessable income to the business.

Building protection into your business planning is one of the most important decisions you can make.

Business Owner and Professional Partnerships protection

At some point, many businesses will borrow money from a financial institution or a director – this may be to provide a business with capital for a major purchase or improvement, or simply to provide a source of working capital.

The purpose of business debt reduction insurance is to protect the business against its debts and to protect the guarantor and their estate against any claim over their personal assets.

• If the Key-person or Guarantor to a business loan experienced a serious illness, accident or worst - an unexpected death - a business could experience significant financial difficulty and may find it hard to continue to meet all of its loan repayments.
• A loan default could result and then trigger a 'call-up' of the business loan facility (usually 7 days notice) with a demand for the loan to be repaid in full.

Most 'at call loans' deem a Key Person death or disability as an automatic trigger event to call up the loan.

Business Owner & Partner Succession Protection

If you own a business with other people, it’s important for everyone to agree on how the ownership of the business will be transferred, should one of the owners (or principals) pass away, become disabled, or leave the business for another reason; eg: resignation or retirement.

• This is referred to as business continuation or succession, planning.

How that is made possible is usually heavily dependent upon;

• successfully applying and establishing personal insurances for protecting business risks, and
• involves the full and frank disclosures of all personal sensitive health and lifestyle information.

These create multiple specialty risks.

Unusual risks are the experts to manage and protect the information security and advice structures required by these business owners and professional partnerships.

Good News for Australians taking PrEP for HIV prevention.

People taking PrEP are now eligible for the full range of Life Insurance products stigma-free: if you know specialist Financial Advisor Drew Browne, the person behind unusualrisks.com.au

This means people using PrEP can get a full range of insurance covers;

• Life Insurance
• Income Protection
• Crisis Recovery Protection
• Total & Permanent Disability (TPD), and even
• past formal declines on insurance applications for Life Insurance or Income Protection cover

All policies are now available to Australians taking PrEP - stigma and attitude free - through the specialist financial advisers behind unusualrisks.com.au

So what is PrEP?

You may have already heard about PrEP or perhaps you're looking for more information about how it affects your chances of getting Life Insurance or Income Protection cover?

Either way, PrEP is a medical breakthrough that's already playing a vital role in the efforts to End HIV by 2020.  Now the medication is listed on the PBS (Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme), just about anyone can now get on it.

Taking PrEP is a highly effective medication for preventing exposure to HIV.

• PrEP is an acronym that stands for pre-exposure prophylaxis. It involves HIV-negative people taking antiretroviral drugs to protect themselves getting HIV and prevent HIV infection – in just one tablet a day.
• PrEP is, as the name implies, a pre-exposure strategy, unlike post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), which is taken after potential exposure to HIV has occurred.

Who is taking PrEP?

Whether exposure to HIV is through sex or needlestick injuries, there are many people using PrEP to prevent them from being exposed to HIV and taking control of their sexual health and future well-being. 

• Studies show PrEP is effective but the uptake of PrEP has been slow with research showing that's partly due to Stigma and Discrimination concerns - something the team at unusualrisks.com.au understands and provides a complete solution for when you need to apply for Life Insurances or Income Protection.

In Australia, lots of people use PrEP for lots of reasons

• Some sexually active gay and bisexual men, transgender people and heterosexual people with an HIV positive partner who doesn't have an undetectable viral load, are part of the population groups at higher risk.
• Similarly, Medical Professionals, Police, Fire, Ambulance and Emergency Services Workers are all at higher risk of occupational exposure to blood-borne viruses through sharps and needlestick injury.

Real Life statistics

• In Australia, approximately 30 needlestick injuries (NSI's) per 100 beds occur per year.
• At least 18,000 healthcare professionals suffer from an NSI every year.
• And 80% of reported NSI's involve a contaminated needle. ^{The Alliance for Sharps Safety and Needlestick Prevention in Healthcare}

Research shows that the medication used for PrEP is highly effective at preventing HIV transmission among these population groups.

You can learn more about PrEP here.

What's the problem with PrEP and getting Life Insurance?

Up until now, Australians taking PrEP have faced uncertainty, stigma and discrimination from Life Insurance companies towards the use of PrEP (and routinely find they also have to be the educator about PrEP).

• People applying for insurance through online comparison websites report completing the application with full lifestyle and medical disclosures, only to feel insulted when a formal decline is issued due to 'lifestyle considerations'
• People applying for insurance in their Superannuation fund report being routinely knocked back (and usually after having to disclose a full medical and lifestyle history) as the insurance provider doesn't 'deal with PrEP users'.

Most insurance companies and super funds simply do not provide underwriting for people with unusual occupations, hobbies, pastimes or lifestyles - if you get what we mean.

That's why people use the expertise of unusualrisks.com.au to get their insurances sorted - stigma-free.

How have Life Insurance companies treated people taking PrEP?

The New York Times broke the story of Dr. Philip Cheng, a urologist in Boston taking PrEP and being denied full insurance cover until he stopped taking, Truvada (the pharmaceutical brand name for PrEP) to prevent HIV infection.

• Many people applying for Life Insurances when disclosing they are taking PrEP to prevent them from being exposed to HIV have found themselves discriminated against and received forced formal declines on insurance applications for Life Insurance or Income Protection cover.

When American News is not accurate or helpful for Australians

Today as many people get their news from the internet, the growing risk is it may not always be relevant in Australia.

• Many American Life Insurance companies take a discriminatory approach to how they underwrite the use of PrEP and outright deny any form of insurance coverage.

• Many Australian Life Insurance companies and Superannuation Funds formerly decline applications for insurance by people using PrEP and discriminate in a similar way against people with well managed HIV or Diabetes.

Good news for Australians taking PrEP

The good news is Australians using PrEP and who need Life Insurance or Income Protection, now have a clear pathway to getting their cover sorted - stigma and discrimination free - through unusualrisks.com.au

If you're thinking about life insurances, chances are you have something worth protecting.

These days HIV or diabetes doesn't have to be a life sentence

But most insurance companies still treat you like it is.

People with pre-existing well‑managed complex health conditions have, up till now, been prevented from accessing quality Life Insurances and Income Protection cover, simply because of their conditions.

Explaining Life insurance cover

Life insurance (also called term life or death cover) is designed to protect against the financial impact of unexpected death and pay a specified amount of money to your beneficiaries, helping to make sure they’re looked after in the event should that occur.

• The benefit payout is either paid to the owner of the policy, your nominated beneficiaries, or your estate.
• High-quality life cover can also payout upon diagnosis of a terminal illness in the final 24 months.

Practically speaking - don't leave your debt to people you love

Why you may need life cover

Most people don't know that 30% of all life insurance payouts have been for terminal illness

Expenses to protect could include:

• How much would be needed to pay off all your debt upon your unexpected death?
• How much would your surviving partner (and any dependents) need to pay living expenses?
• How much do children need to complete education and how will this be funded?
• If you unexpectedly passed away, would you want your partner to need to downsize and move to a cheaper location?
• Would you want them to have the stability of being able to remain in a familiar environment and help any children complete their education with the advantage of having a parent at home to look after them?
• And what are the practical cost for end-of-life expenses and how will this be funded?

Real Life Statistics

• 30% of all life cover claims are for terminal illnesses.
• 43,477 deaths were attributed to cardiovascular disease in Australia in 2017 and kills one Australian every 12 minutes. ^{Australian Institute of Health and Welfare – Injury, June 2017}

This is not just about getting a Life Insurance policy, this is a human rights issue.

We believe that every Australian should have equal access to high-quality Life Insurance products, no matter what their sexuality, gender, race, age or beliefs. We believe this is not just about getting Life Insurance, this is a human rights issue.

Life Insurance can help you be certain your loved ones are provided for; your child's educational needs are taken care of and your chosen family won't have to worry about their future if you’re not there to continue to protect and provide for them.

When does life insurance payout?

Life insurance will normally payout upon the death of the life insured and can help their dependants cope financially after you die.

Many people don't know that high-quality life insurance can also pay out upon the diagnosis of a terminal illness in the remaining 24 months, as well making it a strong part of a backup plan.

A sad but all too-common experience

Often, when a couple establishes a life insurance policy to protect each other, one person has their application accepted, but the other is refused because of a pre-existing health condition.

Both are left feeling that a wedge has been driven between them and that their needs and choices were not understood, honoured or valued.

At Unusual Risks Insured our mission is to change this and be the change we want to see in the world.