Your most valuable asset - YOU

Many people consider their home, car or boat to be their most valuable asset, but none of these can be maintained without earning an income. What would life be like without your income? How would you cope financially if you were seriously ill or injured?

For most Australians, the ability to work is your most valuable asset because it directly impacts your lifestyle. Your ability to earn income enables you to live a comfortable  life - to pay the rent or meet mortgage commitments, to raise and educate children in a way that gives them the best possible start in life and generally to pay for the things that make life worth living. These things are important and should be protected. It is important to be well informed of your options and be cost effective in removing the risk of unexpectedly losing the ability to earn income.

Income protection insurance replaces up to 75% of your employment income when you are unable to work because of an injury or illness and can vary greatly in coverage and cost. In the event of a claim you receive monthly payments. This form of cover can be paid via a monthly premium payment and is wholly tax deductible.

Each income protection policy has a waiting period. This is a period of time after the injury or illness occurs where you do not get paid a benefit - effectively, an excess period. Waiting periods range from14 days to 2 years with the premium cost reducing with a longer time frame.

There is also a benefit period. This is the maximum period for which the monthly claim payments are made. Q Invest generally recommends policies that provide for payments to be made until you reach age 65. Many people don't realise that they hold policies which only pay for a limited period of time (eg 2 years). 

When you seek advice from Q Invest we will recommend an appropriate waiting period and benefit period, taking into account your overall commitments and personal situation. We undertake extensive research into the insurance products we recommend to ensure that the policy is priced competitively and is a good quality contract where a legitimate claim will be honoured. In addition to establishing the policy for you we also help when you need to claim to ensure that the experience is a positive one.

Employing the services of a Q Invest adviser reduces risk, saves money and ensures that the things most important to you are retained even when personal injury or illness occurs. Q Invest strongly believes in the protection of your income, assets and dreams and will rebate commissions. This reduces the insurance premium by as much as 30% and this represents a significant long term cost saving for Q Invest clients.

To protect your lifestyle and the people that mean the most to you there may also be other forms of insurance that are needed, most commonly:

• Life insurance – payment made in the event that you die
• Total and permanent disability – payment when you are unable to work as a result of a permanent disability
• Trauma – payment made when diagnosed with a critical illness.