SPEAKER_01 0:10

If you have lots of pre-existing conditions, but you work for a company and you think, oof, what can I do there? Well, this is the episode for you. Or if you own a company and you've got more than 10 employees, we've got something special for you. This is an episode around the group scheme insurance. So listen up. Hello, Blake.

SPEAKER_00 0:28

Hello, Zabanisa.

SPEAKER_01 0:30

I just threw this at you. That's okay. And I think this is really, really important. It's always been a little bit of my pet project on the side that I always think about when I come across certain insurance terms that are given to my clients. And let's say I give you an example, a bus driver got diabetes, got heart conditions, sedentary work, you know, so usually they're uninsurable. But I know there is a way around it. And I've discovered there's a way around it if the employees takes out a group scheme cover. And under that group scheme cover, they can actually help their workers to get at least a minimum type of cover, you know, and that it all depends on what sort of group scheme you're doing. But there is a roundabout way, right?

SPEAKER_00 1:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:18

Yeah. So tell me what you know.

SPEAKER_00 1:21

So I mean, group group insurance is very common in a lot of companies. It's I guess it's an added incentive to be an employee for certain companies. And depending on the insurance company, and depending on what uh what insurance product you might be looking at, there's generally what they call an automatic acceptance level where you don't have to apply for, sorry, you don't have to run through medical questions or financial questions to a certain limit. And that's a great way to get people who might have existing terms taken away on a new policy, or someone like you mentioned, your bus drivers or bus driver, not all bus drivers have diabetes.

SPEAKER_01 2:03

No, just the ones I came across.

Leaving Your Job And Continuing Cover

SPEAKER_00 2:07

To get them important cover. The beauty of this is if they leave that company, and it each company has its own rules and regulations around how it works, but generically, if you leave that company, you can take out what's called a continuation option where you continue the cover with no terms, as it was, and you're covered as long as you you'd have to start paying the premiums. So it's a really good way to get cover in place.

SPEAKER_01 2:34

Yeah, which is really, really uh cool, but important to remember, usually you get given like 30 days to tick that box. Yeah. If you don't tick that box to continue that cover, then that disappears and can not get that again.

SPEAKER_00 2:46

Yeah, and that's actually a really good point as well. If no one's got hold of you from that company, get hold of Ziboniso and myself, because we can actually put those continuations in place for you as long as the coverage is outside of resolution life because it's all locked in there. Yeah. But the the and the reason that I suggest that is giving you the ability to keep important insurance cover, especially at no terms, is important. So as long as someone puts it in place for you, that's the main outcome.

SPEAKER_01 3:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:22

Or the the main goal. Because that protects you.

Why Employers Offer Group Insurance

SPEAKER_01 3:25

Yeah. Which is really, really cool because the way I see it, there is a really cool benefit to the employer to do that, because that makes them seen as someone who cares about their workers. It gives instant perks, really, to the people that work there. And also, if you can't afford right now to give them a pay increase, you could potentially introduce the group scheme as part of their paying package.

Exclusions Like Back And Mental Health

SPEAKER_00 3:51

That's exactly right, and that's really great points you make. Another, and to further add to that, for example, I know Southern Cross Health Insurance if you're part of a group scheme, generally your family will get a 25% discount off market rates as being part of that group scheme. Some employers might off extend the offer to not just their employees, but they might offer it to their friends and other sorry, their families as well. But that just depends on the company and what they're wanting to take out. But at the minimum, you should get a discount thing associated with a member of a group scheme. So there's some there's a lot of incentives to do it for sure.

SPEAKER_01 4:31

Yeah, but I guess the main main main one for me has always been around covering those predisclosed conditions.

SPEAKER_00 4:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 4:40

Pre-existing.

SPEAKER_00 4:41

Yeah, it's an excellent way to do it. And I don't think a lot of people maybe it's because they don't understand insurance, and I think a lot of people might have just been in a group scheme from day one and not realize that how important and how lucky that is, because they've never had to apply outside of that. The insurance gets let's go, they don't take so they move employees, they don't take it with them. Then they buy a house, they have a family, and all of a sudden insurance is forefront of mind, and then they're excluded for this or excluded for that, or in a worst case, they're deferred or declined because of could be BMI, it could be medical conditions.

SPEAKER_01 5:17

Look, for me, it was my back, you know. When I was working in my twenties, I was working at university, and part of my job I had to travel all around New Zealand, all around the world, and I had to do different expos and meet people. And I always had to carry very, very heavy boxes, you know, of materials of the brochures and all sorts. And and I actually injured my back a few times doing that because I didn't know to bend and lift with your knees. So very important. Yeah, very important. And my core muscles were non-existent. Not that I've got much core muscle now. But like my back was one of my biggest uninsurable points in my insurance journey, where I had to prove a lot that hey, now I've had done a lot of work on my back, you know, and it's good now. And can I please get a cover of it?

SPEAKER_00 6:04

Did you?

SPEAKER_01 6:05

I think so.

SPEAKER_00 6:06

That's good. I need to have a look. Lumber spine is one of the biggest exclusions that in mental health. It's very uncommon. Uh it's very common and it's very hard to get them taken off, especially lower back or any back injury.

SPEAKER_01 6:21

Yeah. But you're right, mental health was the other one that I've been seeing a lot. Like if any of my clients ever took antidepressants or have been prescribed antidepressants, you know, immediately it's a big red flag for the insurance company. So they might go, actually, I'm not gonna cover you for this. But if you are under the group scheme, then you're covered. And look, those group schemes, again, we're talking different companies might have a different deal with whatever provider sets it up for them. Right. But the ones I've seen in the past is it could be minimum of 200k life cover, for instance, it could be trauma cover of two times of your salary, for instance.

SPEAKER_00 7:02

Yeah, life insurance, two or three times your salary. Yeah, that's right. Yeah, and then income protection, 75%.

SPEAKER_01 7:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 7:08

Yeah. Basic but good.

SPEAKER_01 7:10

Basic, but at least it's something rather than nothing.

SPEAKER_00 7:14

Exactly. And that's the point, isn't it? Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 7:16

So if you guys are listening to this, and if you working in a small environment or even a big environment, you know, go and talk to your boss, get them to listen to this episode, and uh reach out to us because I feel like this is something that could be so helpful to so many people out there. And employers, there's also, I believe, a tax benefit to that as well. You know, you could actually offset some of your cost by allocating, I mean, you're already paying that anyway, expense somewhere else. So you might as well look after your people.

Underwriting Changes And Policy Reviews

SPEAKER_00 7:47

100%. Yeah. And I guess further to touch on the mental health aspect there is just because you might have if you've got existing insurance, and just because you might have a mental health exclusion, or maybe there was an increase in premium added when you applied, or maybe you were declined. And that could have been 10 years ago since. That might not be the case now. Medical underwriting with insurers changes all the time. And what was once deemed maybe too major or net or resulted in terms being added might not be the case now, or you might have been symptom free for X amount of years that you don't need those terms on your cover anymore. I guess that gets down another track, but that's make why it's important to review your insurances.

Talk To Your Boss And Reach Out

SPEAKER_01 8:33

Yeah, exactly. Awesome. Well, Blake, thank you so much for this very, very important topic.

SPEAKER_00 8:38

You're welcome.

SPEAKER_01 8:38

Until next time.

SPEAKER_00 8:39

Thanks for having me.

SPEAKER_01 8:40

Bye.