Casualties are a part of life! A simple walk to the park could turn into an accident, or even a fall while cleaning the top shelf in the room could lead to broken bones. Every year, nearly half a million people are hospitalised due to injury, as per a report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.
You can only avoid them to an extent, but you can take insurance that covers you when these accidents or illness happens. So, it’s worth knowing what sickness and accident insurance in Australia covers, its benefits, the claim process, and other things.
#1. What Does Sickness and Accident Insurance Cover?
Personal accident and sickness insurance cover you in accidents or illnesses when you suffer from a severe injury or health issues and prevent you from working. This type of insurance helps to cover your expenses and the gap in your income if you cannot work because of an accident or illness. It covers costs related to treatment for injuries sustained in an accident. It may include other coverages, such as medical expenses for family members injured in the same incident.
#2. Advantages of having accident and sickness insurance
Some of the benefits of having accident and sickness insurance are:
- It saves you from paying a considerable sum out of your pocket for medical expenses when you’re injured or sick.
- You can avoid stress for yourself and your family, knowing that all the bills will be paid and your family will not be burdened when you cannot work.
- You can avoid long waits in emergency rooms because your insurance services online will cover most costs associated with your treatment as well as any prescription drugs you may need.
#3. Is Personal Accident and Sickness Cover Worth It?
Accidents can happen even when you least expect it, to anyone, at any time. If you think, “it won’t happen with me,” think again and safeguard your life and those who depend on you. It’s important to have insurance that will protect your finances from unexpected costs and ensure that your health is always taken care of.
These include hospital stays, emergency room visits, doctor appointments, prescriptions, tests—basically anything medically necessary as a result of an accident or illness.
If the policy is renewed on time, it will guarantee that all eventualities, including your kid’s education, marriage, loan repayment, and income stability for the spouse, are covered.
Especially in an accident or illness, it makes sense that you would want some sort of protection in place and insurance policies are the best life saviour if you get the right one.
#4. How Much Personal Accident Insurance Should You Have?
The amount of insurance coverage you need depends on several factors: what kind of job or business you have, how much money you make per year, whether or not someone else is dependent on you, whether someone else in the family can handle the expenses if something happens to you, etc.
The insurance policies come with a predefined level of coverage, so you need to consider how much income you might have to replace or how much sudden expenses you might need to cover during an emergency. Also, note the premium size of the insurance coverage and how much you can afford to pay in a year.
#5. How Do These Insurances’ Claim Process Work?
The process of claiming insurance services online is mostly straightforward. Here is a brief overview of how you can claim your accident and sickness insurance coverage in an emergency.
Documents Required for Claim Process
Keep the below-mentioned information ready to initiate the accidental claim process:
Registered mobile number
- Policy number
- date/time of the accident
- Injured insured’s name and contact information
- Where did the accident happen?
- Describe the accident/loss with its location and how it occurred
- The extent of the loss
To file a sickness insurance claim, you will need to submit the following documents:
- Identity proof and a claim form completed by the person insured
- A copy of your insurance card (or any other proof that you are a policyholder)
- All the invoices generated in the hospital related to the emergency treatment, pharmacy, and tests you went through.
Cases when you can’t Claim Personal Accident Insurance (Exclusions)
You can’t claim personal accident insurance if:
- You were involved in a car accident, and you were driving under the influence of alcohol, drugs or other intoxicants.
- You were riding a bicycle or motorbike without wearing a helmet, protective clothing, or a valid driving licence.
- You can’t claim the insurance if you have a similar medical condition related to the same issue.
Conclusion
Every situation is unique, so you should always know your coverage options when you’re in doubt. At the very least, keep yourself and your family informed about your policy, how it works, the claim process, who can be the nominee etc. It will save you from unnecessary headaches in the future.
