Insurance and inactive member accounts

DID YOU KNOW YOU HAVE INSURANCE THROUGH YOUR SUPER ACCOUNT?

As of 1 October 2012, everyone with a MySuper account was automatically opted into Life and Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) insurance as part of the Federal Government’s Stronger Super reforms. This was introduced by the Government to tackle the problem of many Australians not having suitable cover in the case of injury, serious illness or death.

Insurance through super means that 13.5 million Australians, like yourself, have peace of mind knowing that if the worst were to happen you have some protection in place.

• Important changes to insurance inside super
• What do I have to do to keep my insurance?
• What cover do I have?
• How much do I pay for it?
• What are the advantages of insurance through super?
• Who benefits from insurance through super?
• Will you decide to stay protected?
• Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Important changes to insurance inside super 

Federal Government legislation introduced on 1 July 2019 means that super members whose accounts have not received a contribution or a rollover (i.e. have been inactive) for 16 months could lose their insurance in super.

The Treasury Laws Amendment (Protecting Your Superannuation Package) Regulations 2019 have been brought in to make sure that:

• arrangements for insurance in super are appropriate, and
• members are not paying for insurance that they do not know about or paying premiums that inappropriately erode their retirement savings.

As a result, we will need to cancel your First Super insurance cover if your account has been inactive for 16 months.

You will receive a communication from us:

• if your insurance could be cancelled within the next four weeks, OR
• if you are at risk of being impacted in the near future because your account has been inactive for 9 months or more.

How do I keep my insurance?

If you want to stay protected and keep your automatic level of insurance with First Super, the good news is that you’re in control. You can elect to stop your insurance from being cancelled, but you need to let us know before the cancellation date.

You can keep your cover by:

• returning the opt-in form enclosed with the letter we send you
• completing the online opt-in form
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  Keep your First Super insurance

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  Yes, I want to stay protected with my insurance inside First Super

  I confirm that I would like my insurance cover within First Super to continue in the event that my super account has not received any contributions or other amounts for a continuous period of 16 months. This election will apply to all insurance cover through my account, including any cover for death, total and permanent disablement, and income protection.

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  Today's date: 12/04/2025
  ; or
• making a contribution to your account, which will make it active again.

Click this button to opt in now (it’s an easy two-minute process):

If we don’t hear from you or receive a contribution, your First Super insurance cover will stop on the given cancellation date.

What cover do I have?

When you joined First Super, you automatically received a ‘default’ level of cover for Death and Total and Permanent Disablement (TPD). The level of default cover you receive depends on your age and employment type. Full details can be found in our Insurance Guide.

If you are not sure what insurance you have or how much cover you have, it’s detailed on your Annual Member Statement. Alternatively, you can check by calling our Member Services Team on 1300 360 988 or logging into your firstonline account.

Here’s a breakdown of the protection most members have through their First Super account:

• 4 units of Total and Permanent Disablement cover
  This type of insurance pays you a lump sum if you become seriously disabled and are unlikely to ever work again. It can be used for your ongoing bills (such as mortgages and living expenses) and for your medical expenses.
• 4 units of Death cover
  This type of insurance is for the benefit of your family or any dependants who will receive it when you die. It can be used for your debts, paying towards your funeral, or to help your family pay the bills that keep coming in.

Members aged 34 and under have $200,000 of cover. This amount reduces from age 35 onwards each year down to $5,400 at ages 65 to 69. You can find full details of the default value of 4 units of cover, and how First Super’s insurance cover works in our Insurance Guide.

More details on First Super’s insurance inside super products are available in the Insurance Options section of our website.

How much do I pay for my insurance?

Most members pay $10.76 per week from their superannuation account. This costs less if you have changed to our low-risk or professional insurance rates.

What are the advantages of insurance through super?

1. You’re protected. Rest easy knowing that you’re protected in case of serious illness, injury or death.
2. Better cash flow. Insurance paid for through your super account means you don’t feel the hurt of paying for your insurance each month. You’re making contributions as part of your pay, which you’ll barely notice.
3. It’s cheaper. Our bargaining power enables us to negotiate competitive fees for our members – which means you’re paying less for your level of cover than if you were to buy insurance as an individual outside of super.

Who benefits from insurance through super?

People like you. Over the past 10 years, First Super has paid out more than $149.3 million* in claims to help members and their dependants at their time of need.

Below are anonymised examples from real-life First Super insurance claims cases in recent years.

*Figures provided by SBA / MetLife for the period 1 January 2009 to 31 March 2019.

Decision time: considering your next steps

Based on queries from other members, there are some things to think about to help you decide whether or not keeping your First Super insurance cover is right for you.

How can you check your First Super insurance cover?

You can find information about your level of Death and Total Permanent Disablement cover, and how much you pay for it, in your Annual Member Statement. Otherwise, you can contact our Member Services Team for your details.

What would you do if something unexpected happened?

How would you pay bills, loans and living expenses if you were no longer here to provide for your family, or suffered an injury that meant you couldn’t work anymore?

Stop and think about it for a second. Would you have enough savings or other income for the long term? In the unfortunate event of your death, how would your dependants be financially affected?

Your First Super insurance cover would provide a lump sum payment in the event that you died, or if you were unable to work due to total and permanent disability. This money could be used for unexpected expenses, as well as paying for general living costs and bills.

Do you have multiple insurance policies through super?

If you have more than one super account, you may be paying for several insurance policies. So it may be in your best interests to keep just one insurance in super policy, depending on how much cover you want/need.

On the other hand, one super fund’s policy may offer more valuable benefits than another.

What’s more, there can be advantages to having several super accounts with insurance cover attached. The more super accounts you have, the more insurance benefits – such as TPD – you may have available to claim on.  This means boosting your potential benefits without having had to go through underwriting, as is generally the case for policies outside of super.

We recommend checking the level of cover you have from all sources – including any policies outside of super – and seeking financial advice if you need help to work out the best level of protection for your circumstances.

Our Financial Advice Team can review your current cover and advise you on the level of insurance cover you should have based on your personal and financial circumstances. Book a call here.

If your insurance is cancelled, then you decide at a later date that you want it again, how would you get it back?

Unfortunately, it is not as easy as just switching your insurance back on again. You will need to meet some conditions, such as being in active employment on the last day of the 24-month period after reinstatement. If not, then limited cover continues until you return to active employment for 30 consecutive days.

IT’S YOUR CALL – WILL YOU DECIDE TO STAY PROTECTED?

FAQs

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