Australia is a great place to both live and work. A growing economy, world-class education system and a great healthcare system are just some of the incredible benefits you reap from living and working within such an amazing country.
One benefit that Australians reap from working in this country is compulsory workers’ compensation. This luxury is often overlooked, but the reality is that workers in many other countries do not receive this benefit.
Workers’ compensation is a compulsory statutory form of insurance for all employers in every state and territory in Australia. It provides protection to workers if they suffer a work-related injury or illness. The compulsory nature of this insurance is the law in Australia, under the Workplace Injury and Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2013.
Any Australian business that employs workers, no matter their employment type, must have workers compensations insurance that cover all of their workers. This does not exclude anyone, including casual workers and apprentices.
Luckily for Australians if they happen to suffer from a workplace injury or workplace-related disease, a compensation scheme is provided to the injured/sick worker in the form of weekly benefits, medical and hospital expenses, rehabilitation services, certain personal items or a lump sum payment for permanent impairment, depending on what is provided under that particular State/Territory and/or Federal Workers Compensation Scheme.
It can also cover return to work expenses and dispute resolutions depending on the circumstances of the injury or illness. Australians are in an extremely lucky and privileged position to be covered while we are at work, so that if something does happen to us, our families won’t be burdened by this and can continue to have a secure financial future.
However, we aren’t at work 24/7, which means you can still put your financial future at risk if you suffer from an injury or illness while not at work. If this happens and you are unable to return to work, the financial burden can be life changing.
Fortunately, you can be always be covered for illness and injury, even when you aren’t at work. Just because Australian’s are automatically covered at work, doesn’t mean we don’t need to invest in our own futures and get insurance to cover us all the time – if you want to be covered 24/7 then Income Protection Insurance is your answer.
Getting an Income Protection insurance policy will mean that you can be covered if you happen to suffer from an injury or illness, while not at work, that leaves you unable to work as usual. It will replace the majority of your regular income if you happen to be left unable to work.
Protecting your regular income is at the heart of sound financial planning, especially if you want to protect your family from the impacts of losing your income.
The best way to have financial security is by having cover from injuries and illnesses 24/7; at work you are protected by Workers Comp and when you’re not at work you can be protected by income protection insurance policies, from a reliable insurer such as Aspect Underwriting.
The mix of Workers’ compensation and Income Protection insurance is great for securing you and your family’s financial security, in the case of any unfortunate events that lead to temporary disablement. While being covered is great and having income protection is also a great choice, there are more ways you can financially protect yourself and your family from the unknown.
You can also get Total Permanent Disability (TPD) insurance, Trauma insurance and Accidental Death insurance from Aspect Underwriting. Either all three or a mix of them, plus your workers compensation and income protection will ensure that nothing will get in your way when it comes to providing your family with the utmost financial security in the event that you are injured/sick.
Australians are incredibly fortunate because not every country has laws that mean it is compulsory for employers to provide workers compensation. It means that the process of covering yourself from injury and illness, no matter if you are at work or not, is a much simpler process. Our straightforward laws around compulsory worker’s compensation throughout the country, and our ability to easily access Income Protection Insurance, is another great benefit of living and working in Australia; A benefit that will protect you 24/7.
