Overview
If you have been injured no matter the cause of the injury, you may be entitled to lodge a claim on your superannuation policy for either Income Protection or a Total and Permanent Disability claim (see below).
You will first need to make sure you are ensured for the benefit under your superannuation policy. You can do this by checking your last superannuation annual statement or contacting your superannuation company.
If you are entitled to bring either or both of these claims, you should obtain a copy of the Product Disclosure Statement (i.e. the terms and conditions) before coming in to see us so that you can provide us with a copy. We can obtain them if necessary. Each policy will have a separate Product Disclosure statement. They can usually be found on the superannuation companies website or by contacting the superannuation company and asking them to email or send you a copy.
We conduct these matters on a, “no win, no fee basis” and your solicitor will discuss our costs with you in detail and provide written costs advice to you as required by law.
Income Protection Claims
You or one of our solicitors will need to check the terms of this policy carefully but generally speaking, the policy usually pays a percentage of your income (for example, 80%) for a period of time if you are injured and cannot work at all at your normal job.
Most policies require you to establish that you were injured and cannot work at all as a result of the injury.
The process usually involves you and your medical treaters filling in a form but our solicitors can assist you with this process.
You do not usually need to show that an employer was negligent if you are injured at work.
Total and Permanent Disablement Claims
Again, one of our solicitors will need to check the terms of this policy carefully but generally speaking, the policy usually pays a lump sum, which depends on your level of cover if you are unable to work at all as a result of your injury AND this is likely to be permanent. That is, it is likely that you will never be able to work again.
Again, the process usually involves you and your medical treaters filling in a form but our solicitors can assist you with this process.
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Superannuation and TPD FAQs
Can you lodge an income protection claim or Total and Permanent Disablement claim whilst on weekly payments from WorkCover of the Transport Accident Commission (TAC)?
You can but some policies require repayment if you are entitled to weekly payment benefits from Workcover or the TAC. Our lawyers will be able to advise you in relation to this and when the best time is to lodge either or both an income Protection claim or a Total and Permanent Disablement claim.
How long do these claims usually take?
Unfortunately this is a difficult question to answer as most policies do not specify a time limit for how long a superannuation company has to lodge a claim but our solicitors will make the process as quick as possible and regularly follow up the superannuation company to ensure any insured benefits are paid to you as quickly as possible.