Insurance cover changes for Personal Account members from
3 July 2021
From 3 July 2021, we’ll be introducing occupation ratings for Personal Account members. Occupation ratings adjust your premiums to reflect the level of insurance risk based on your usual type of work.
The four occupation ratings will be:
- Professional/office work
- Light manual
- Heavy manual
- Special risk.
We’ll also be introducing some restrictions on cover for members with a Heavy manual or Special risk occupation rating. These members won’t be able to apply for:
- an increase in cover due to a Life Event or Salary Increase, and
- Income Protection cover with a five-year or ‘to age 65’ benefit period.
Finally, new Personal Account members won’t be eligible for additional default cover when applying to join UniSuper.
Determining your occupation rating from 3 July 2021
If you apply to become a Personal Account member or apply to modify or increase your insurance cover on or after 3 July 2021, we may ask you to select the occupation rating that best reflects your usual type of work from the following list:
Professional/office work
- Professional (your work requires a university qualification), administrative, managerial or clerical roles
- No regular manual work
- Your work doesn’t fall into the Special risk classification (see below)
Example occupations: professor/lecturer, lawyer/solicitor, administrator, medical doctor, bookkeeper, IT systems operator, classroom teacher.
Light manual
- Regular light manual work (light weight lifting, carrying or stocking only)
- No regular use of heavy machinery or heavy equipment
Example occupations: chef, electrician, field surveyor, florist, retail, nurse, physical education teacher, plumber.
Heavy manual
- Involves the regular use of heavy machinery or heavy equipment
- Manual labour, such as regularly bending, lifting or carrying heavy loads
- Driving a motor vehicle for most of the day over short distances
Example occupations: labourer, bricklayer, cleaner, short distance courier/driver, farmer, gardener/landscaper, tailor, wait staff.
Special risk
- Duties are hazardous (risky or dangerous)
- Hazardous locations or working environments such as long-distance driving, working at heights, underground, at sea, underwater or in an aircraft
- Work in industries that rapidly change or are unpredictable, e.g. professional sportspeople, entertainers, creative artists, and media personalities
Example occupations: crane operator, diver, shipyard worker, long distance bus/truck driver, pilot, actor, model, professional sportsperson, radio/TV presenter, underground/offshore miner, social media personality.
Please call us on 1800 331 685 if you are unsure about which occupation rating applies to you. Our insurer may adjust your rating if, at a later stage, it becomes apparent that you’d selected the wrong one.
How to calculate the cost of your cover using occupation ratings
From 3 July 2021 onwards, the cost of your cover will depend on your occupation rating as well as your age, cover type and amount of cover. To calculate the cost of your cover, you’ll need to multiply the premium rate applicable to your age, cover type(s) and amount of cover in the premium tables in the Insurance in your super document, by the applicable occupation rating factor(s) in the table below.
| Cover type | Professional/office worker | Light manual | Heavy manual | Special risk |
| Death-only cover | 1.0 | 1.3 | 1.7 | 2.0 |
| TPD-only cover | 1.0 | 1.5 | 3.0 | 5.0 |
| Death and TPD cover | 1.0 | 1.4 | 2.3 | 3.0 |
| Income Protection cover | 1.0 | 1.5 | 2.7 | 3.5 |
Example: unitised Death and Total and Permanent Disablement (TPD)
Amalia is 38 with a Professional/office work occupation rating. She has one unit of Death and TPD cover. Based on her age, she has $181,000 of cover. Her level of cover will change according to her age.
- Annual base Death and TPD premium rate = $108.16
- Amount of cover = 1 unit
- Professional/office work occupation rating factor = 1.0
Amalia's annual premium is $108.16 ($108.16 x 1 x 1.0), or $2.08 per week.
Example: Income Protection
Scott has 15 units of Income Protection cover with a two-year benefit period and a 60-day waiting period. He is 49 years old and has a Light manual occupation rating.
- Annual base Income Protection premium rate = $26.83
- Amount of cover = 15 units
- Light manual occupation rating factor = 1.5
Scott’s annual insurance premium is $603.68 ($26.83 x 15 x 1.5), or $11.61 per week. His premium will change according to his age.
Answers to some common questions
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What does this mean for new members who apply on or after 3 July 2021?
If you apply to become a Personal Account member on or after 3 July 2021 and want to elect to receive insurance cover, you’ll need to select the occupation rating that reflects your usual occupation. You’ll be able to elect one unit of Death and/or Total and Permanent Disablement cover (known as default cover) and up to 23 units of Income Protection cover without providing health evidence to our Insurer. See the Insurance in your super document for more details about the cover you can get as part of your Personal Account application.
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What does this mean for existing Personal Account members with insurance cover on 2 July 2021?
We’ll automatically apply the lowest risk occupation rating, ‘Professional/office work’ to your existing cover, regardless of your current occupation. This won’t change the cost of your existing cover and you won’t need to provide us with any information about your occupation unless you decide to apply for or modify your cover in the future.
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What does this mean for Personal Account members making changes to their insurance or applying for insurance on or after 3 July 2021?
If you apply:
- for new cover,
- to change your existing cover, or
- to transfer any existing insurance cover you hold elsewhere to UniSuper
on or after 3 July 2021, we may ask you to select an occupation rating that reflects the type of work you usually do.
If you advise us of a change to your occupation rating during the insurance application process, your occupation rating will be updated and the new occupation rating will apply to all of your cover, whether or not your application is successful. If your new occupation rating is a higher risk rating than your current rating, then the cost of your existing cover will increase (assuming you make no other changes to your cover). Conversely, if you change to a lower risk occupation rating then your premiums will decrease.
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When do I need to update my occupation rating?
You may only need to update your occupation rating when you apply for more cover or to modify your existing cover. If you aren’t making any changes to your insurance cover then you don’t need to tell us of any change to your occupation rating. However, if you’d like to update your occupation rating you can do so at any time from 3 July 2021 using the Updating your occupation rating form.
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Why are you introducing occupation ratings?
Occupation ratings helps us more accurately reflect the insurance risk associated with individual members in the cost of their cover.
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What does the introduction of occupation ratings mean for Accumulation 1, Accumulation 2 and Defined Benefit Division (DBD) members?
These changes don’t affect Accumulation 1, Accumulation 2 and DBD members, as occupation ratings won’t apply to their cover.
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What happens to my insurance if I transfer to another UniSuper product?
If you’re a Personal Account member and you start working in the higher education sector, and are then transferred to one of our other products, occupation ratings will no longer apply to your premiums. There may be changes to your insurance cover(unrelated to occupation ratings) if you transfer to another UniSuper product. Please refer to the Insurance in your super document for more information.
Still have questions? We're here to help
If you have any questions about these changes, please call us on 1800 331 685 or email us.