AIA Australia has officially replaced Suncorp Life as the insurer for Sunsuper, with the launch of the new insurance offering kicking off last week.
The new insurance offer has been in the works since February last year, and the decision was made in December to award AIA the mandate.
The changes include tailored insurance options to suit members’ gender, age and life-stage, as well as an increased level of default cover.
In particular, women will benefit from the changes, with new gender-based premiums giving women significant discounts of up to 50 per cent.
The deal, effective for members from last Friday, 1 July, is expected to generate annual insurance premiums of around $160 million per year.
Representatives from AIA Australia are now based in Sunsuper’s head office with the aim of speeding up claims resolution.
Sunsuper chief executive Tony Lally said the updated insurance products seek to better align with members’ needs. Women, who are generally at lower risk of TPD and early death, will have the premium rates structured accordingly, Lally said.
Young members will also have their premiums adjusted, as they don’t require high amounts of death cover. “Our new insurance offering will help members under the age of 30 to build their superannuation account balances while still providing a safety net of insurance cover,” Lally said
The insurance company has joined this year’s awards as a principal partner.
The $135 billion fund has transitioned away from TAL Life Insurance following an “extensive tender process”.
The $80 billion fund is facing legal action over allegedly signing up new members to income protection insurance by default without active member consent.
In a Senate submission, the Financial Services Council has once again called for further clarification that the government will assess the consumer outcomes of group insurance against the enshrined objective of superannuation.