In an Australian first, grandparents can now assist in financially protecting their whole family by taking out critical illness cover for their grandchildren.
In an Australian first, grandparents can now assist in financially protecting their whole family by taking out critical illness cover for their grandchildren.
Marking the second anniversary of the Aviva brand in Australia, Aviva today announced this change as one of a number of upgrades to its market leading Protectionfirst insurance range.
Aviva’s general manager products, Tim Cobb said the decision to extend the purchase of Child Critical Illness Benefit to grandparents is in recognition of the important role they play in an extended family.
“Many families around the world have recognised the importance of Critical Illness for children. Aviva in the UK, Hungary and Czech Republic have all reported high sales so it is sensible to bring this feature to Australia,” said Tim.
According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, families caring for a child with chronic disease frequently find it is very costly and the costs are magnified because the illness continues over a long period of time[1].
While the instance of childhood cancer is still thankfully rare, with less than 1% of cancers occurring in children, the financial costs for those families affected can be significant[2].
Accidents during childhood can also have a significant impact on families. Each year in Australia, 6000 children visit hospitals for treatment for burns[3].
The critical illnesses covered by the Aviva policy include Aplastic anaemia, blindness, cancer, cardiomyopathy, encephalitis, heart attack, open heart surgery, out of hospital cardiac arrest, primary pulmonary hypertension, renal failure, liver disease, major head trauma, major organ transplant, paralysis, major burns and stroke.
“Our experience from Aviva’s European businesses is that parents are often unable to cover their own protection needs and those of their children. So instead it is the grandparents who have been keen to take out Critical Illness cover for their grandchildren, just as these days they often make a contribution towards school fees,” said Tim.
With Aviva, families can cover children until their 21st birthday, with a minimum cover of A$10,000 and maximum of A$100,000.
Further enhancements to Aviva’s Protectionfirst range announced today include:
- The addition of an Accidental Death benefit to provide extra client protection, and
- The option to take Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) cover with Critical Illness without requiring clients to take life cover.
“We are very proud of the Protectionfirst range of products. Since launching this range our business has grown considerably and we believe this is due to a focus on regular enhancements and service delivery which puts Aviva ahead of our competitors,” said Tim.
Aviva was recently awarded the Money Management / DEXX&R Risk Company of the Year, which is based on feedback from financial advisers.
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For further information please contact:
Bernadette Collins
Public Affairs Manager
Phone: (03) 9829 8818
Notes to editors:
- Aviva Australia is a group of two specialist financial services companies: Navigator and Norwich Union Life Australia Ltd. Portfolio Partners is the Australian funds management arm of Aviva plc. Through these companies we provide products and services in the areas of wealth creation and wealth protection for more than 300,000 customers throughout Australia.
- Globally, Aviva Australia is part of Aviva plc, the world’s sixth largest insurance group, the largest insurer in the UK and one of the top five life companies in Europe. Aviva was formed in May 2000 through the global merger of CGU plc and Norwich Union plc.
- Aviva is a leading provider of life and pensions products to Europe and has substantial businesses elsewhere around the world. Its main activities are long-term savings, fund management and general insurance. It has premium income and investment sales from continuing operations of A$78.6 billion, and more than A$645 billion of assets under management (as at 7July 2005). The group has more than 60,000 employees and 30 million customers worldwide.
- The information in this document reflects Aviva Australia Holdings Limited ABN 38 095 045 784 understanding of existing legislation, proposed legislation, rulings etc as at the date of issue. In some cases the information has been provided to us by third parties. While it is believed the information is accurate and reliable, this is not guaranteed in any way. The information given in this document is of a general nature and has not taken into account the investment objectives, financial situation or particular needs of any particular person and it is not a substitute for professional advice. Applications to invest in a financial product issued by Aviva, or any of its related entities, must be made by completing the application form attached to the applicable Product Disclosure Statement ("PDS"). A PDS is available from Aviva or your financial adviser. Before making an investment decision on the basis of the information above, a prospective investor needs to consider, with or without the assistance of a professional adviser whether the information is appropriate in the light of their particular investment needs, objectives and financial circumstances. Aviva does not receive any remuneration in relation to the provision of information available from this press release which is of a general nature only.