Financial Hardship Policy
Life Insurance Financial Hardship Policy
OnePath is committed to supporting and providing practical assistance for customers who are facing financial hardship.
Financial Hardship refers to a circumstance where the individual has or may have difficulty meeting their financial obligations to us.
Financial Hardship may be due to (but not limited to) a death of a family member, injury, illness, involuntary unemployment, change in personal circumstances or a natural disaster.
How can we support you
If you tell us, or we identify, that you are facing financial hardship, we will work with you to identify how best to support your individual circumstances to make your premiums more affordable, which could include:
- Altering or reducing your cover amount.
- Changing your payment frequency.
- Reviewing any premium loadings.
- Increasing the waiting period.
- Temporary suspension of premium payments.
- Switching off inflation protection.
There may be circumstances (such as a Natural disaster) which might mean you may not be able to provide the required documentation or may be impacted financially by the events.
OnePath will apply a practical approach to assist you during this time and as early as possible we will take actions that are appropriate to your situation, such as:
- Prioritising financial hardship support requests.
- Being flexible with requests for information.
- Providing additional support where you are a victim of domestic or family violence – see the Domestic and Family Violence Policy.
- Where appropriate, referring you to specialist external financial hardship services.
- Enabling authorised people to act on your behalf (including a lawyer, family member, carer, interpreter or friend) to make a Financial Hardship support request.
- Recording the support provided to you, and any information agreed with you such as communication preferences and security measures, which you can access as per the OnePath privacy policy.
- Providing options for identification where this might be difficult for you, where possible in line with Austrac verification guidance.
- Training our staff to identify and support customers who are vulnerable and refreshing training annually to maintain staff support for vulnerable customers.
Our priority is to provide options which suit your unique needs, while being fair, sensitive and timely in how we support you.
We will explain the effect on your insurance cover if you do make any changes to your policy.
We will contact you before any expiry of a flexible support option on your policy and discuss with you what you would like to do with your cover ongoing.
We will periodically review the support options we have for customers and make available any new support options we can provide, including how we let you know of these options.
Support at claim time
If you tell us, or we identify, that you are experiencing Financial Hardship during the claims process because of the condition that has caused the claim, we will prioritise the assessment of the claim, and:
- Where possible consider making an advance claims payment.
- Confirm the outcome in writing within 5 business days of the hardship being demonstrated.
- If we need further information as evidence, such as financial information, so that we can understand how best to support you, we will get in touch and only ask for evidence we need to assess your request for financial hardship support.
- If you have a Group Life Insurance Policy, we will let you know who you need to contact for urgent assistance.
Financial Aid Services
| MoneySmart - ASIC provides tips and advice on managing money | Website: https://moneysmart.gov.au/ |
| National Debt Helpline - free, confidential financial counselling service |
Phone: 1800 007 007 Website: https://ndh.org.au/ |
| Legal Aid Commissions – each State and territory provide legal assistance services, including some that is available free of charge for certain individuals |
Website: https://info.australia.gov.au/information-and-services/public-safety-and-law/legal-aid Website: www.probonocentre.org.au |
| Kildonan Uniting Care – provide financial support programs and child, youth and family support (website provides option to select language) |
Phone: 1800 002 992 Website: www.unitingkildonan.org.au |
| The Salvation Army Moneycare - free, confidential financial counselling service |
Phone: 1800 722 363 Website: https://www.salvationarmy.org.au/need-help/financial-assistance/financial-counselling/ |
| Mob Strong - a free legal advice and financial counselling service about money and financial problems for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from anywhere in Australia. |
Phone: 1800 808 488 Website: https://financialrights.org.au/getting-help/mob-strong-debt-help/ |
Complaints
OnePath is committed to assisting you when you need us most
OnePath is committed to providing a high level of service and we have arrangements in place for resolving any complaints our customers may have. We will always endeavour to address your concerns as a matter of priority and will work with you to resolve your complaint.
If you wish to make a complaint about any OnePath service or product, you can lodge a complaint through our website onepath.com.au/about-us/complaints or using one of the ways to contact us below. We recommend having an email address and phone number on hand, and a policy number if applicable.
By phone:
OneCare Life Insurance products: 133 667
All other life insurance products: 132 062
International callers: +61 2 9995 3077
OnePath Investments : 1800 646 706 / +61 2 9995 3777
8.30am-6pm AEST Monday - Friday
By email:
insurancefeedback@onepath.com.au
By mail:
Dispute Resolution Manager
GPO Box 4148
Sydney, NSW 2001
OnePath Complaints Policy:
Further information about the processes we have in place to help you with complaints is set out in the OnePath Complaints Policy. We also have the policy available in other languages.
Customers needing additional help
OnePath will confirm that we have received your complaint and work with you to provide an outcome as quickly as possible.
If we need more than 5 days to review your concerns, we will refer you to our Dispute Resolution Team who will undertake further investigations.
Your dedicated contact will keep you regularly updated with the progress and will work with you to discuss options to resolve your complaint.
Once we have come to a decision on the outcome of your complaint, we will discuss the proposed outcome with you.
A written response outlining our complaints decision will be provided no later than 30 calendar days where your complaint relates to a life insurance policy, or 45 calendar days if it relates to a superannuation product.
Hearing and speech impaired customers can contact OnePath via the National Relay Service on 1300 555 727.
Customers requiring translation assistance can contact the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450 and request they contact us on your behalf.
The OnePath Complaints Policy is also available in the following languages:
What if I’m not satisfied with your proposed decision or resolution to my complaint?
If you are not satisfied with our response, you can lodge a complaint with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA). AFCA provides fair and independent financial services complaint resolution that is free to consumers. AFCA’s contact details are:
Website: www.afca.org.au
Email: info@afca.org.au
Telephone: 1800 931 678 (free call)
In writing: Australian Financial Complaints Authority, GPO Box 3, Melbourne VIC 3001
Time limits may apply to lodging a complaint and you should act promptly or otherwise consult the AFCA website to understand if and when the time limit relevant to your circumstances expires.
In some cases where the complaint is about a Life insurance Policy a superannuation fund trustee owns, you will be advised if the trustee is required to give you a final written response about your Complaint. Where this applies, you will receive this within 45 calendar days of us or them receiving the Complaint. This response will include:
(a) Identification and response to the issues raised in the Complaint with a summary of the information relied on; and
(b) The action/s taken to resolve the Complaint or the reasons for the decision.
You will be able to ask for a copy of the documents and information relied on in assessing your Complaint. You will also have the right to take your Complaint to an External Disputes Resolution Body if you are not satisfied with the trustee’s decision.
Our Promises to You
When you take out life insurance, it’s important that you get the highest standards of service in all your dealings with us.
That’s why we have adopted the Life Insurance Code of Practice. It’s the life insurance industry’s commitment to mandatory customer service standards and it’s designed to protect you, our customer.
Visit onepath.com.au/licop for more information.
OnePath Life Limited (OnePath Life) ABN 33 009 657 176, AFSL 238341
RKEH-024345-2026