Insurance group cuts underwriting for young professionals

In a statement, PPS Mutual said it had launched a new income protection underwriting offering allowing newly qualified professionals to increase their monthly income protection benefit by a maximum of 50 per cent in a two-year period, without the need for additional health or medical underwriting.

To be eligible, newly qualified professionals needed to have received their qualification within the last three years, be working a minimum of 20 hours per week, and be generating an income. Proof of income would be required to increase the monthly benefit without underwriting, PPS said.

“For professionals, time is – quite literally – money, and having to undertake several time-consuming medical assessments within a short period of time is not the best use of that time,” PPS Mutual national underwriting manager Gabi Varnier said.

The company said the product would “fill a gap” in the market left by APRA’s current restrictions on income protection coverage, which had banned the sale of new agreed value policies from 31 March last year.

“Further, PPS Mutual sees the opportunity to engage and incentivise professionals to take out insurance cover at the beginning of their professional careers, in turn helping to combat underinsurance amongst an age cohort where it remains prevalent,” the group said.