AIG pushes good health

AIG is pushing for risk advisers to increase clients’ life cover by declaring they are in good health.

Advisers have to get their clients to sign a declaration of good health to qualify for the increase in life cover of up to $1 million.

The risk company has selected which advisers have potential clients that could meet the criteria of the special underwriting concessions.

AIG head of adviser services David Mounsey said the six-week campaign, ending on September 12, would involve more than 2,200 advisers.

“The campaign provides advisers with an opportunity to present their eligible clients with a very easy way to increase their life insurance cover,” he said.

“From August 1, clients will have the opportunity to increase their life protection by up to $1 million and their TPD [total and permanent disablement] cover by up to $750,000 without going through the usual underwriting procedures required for such a significant increase.”

The other condition of the campaign is policies must be less than three years old.

Mounsey said the campaign was designed to encourage clients to increase their cover to more realistic levels.

“While $1 million of life insurance cover sounds like a lot, once the client pays off a mortgage, car loans and credit cards, it does not leave a lot for a family to live on,” he said.

“If $2 million in cover was in place for the same family, it would mean any funds left over after paying off debt could be invested to provide a reasonable income in the absence of a breadwinner.”

Mounsey said the typical Australian attitude of ‘it won’t happen to me’ should be countered with the fact that AIG expects to pay out about $100 million of claims this year to existing clients.