Budget Direct Life Insurance review

A high maximum cover limit, decent policy add-ons and fully underwritten cover make Budget Direct Life Insurance a strong option.

Our verdict

  • It's fully underwritten and issued by NobleOak, the Finder Awards winner for Best Life Insurance.
  • You can be covered for up to $15,000,000 – the second highest sum insured compared on Finder.
  • It's good for price. On average, it's among the cheapest life insurance policies available on Finder.
  • Looking for a little flexibility? Total and permanent disability (TPD), trauma insurance and income protection are optional add-ons.
  • It only offers stepped premiums (these increase in price as you age).
  • Funeral advancement is only $15,000. It should be enough for most but TAL and Australian Seniors both have higher benefits.

Maximum Cover

$15,000,000

Maximum Age

69

Total & Permanent Disability Cover

Trauma Cover

Why compare life insurance with Finder?

  • You pay the same price as buying directly from the life insurer.

  • We're not owned by an insurer (unlike other comparison sites).

  • We've done 100+ hours of policy research to help you understand what you're comparing.

Read a more detailed review

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Key points of Budget Direct Life Insurance

Budget Direct's life insurance is a product designed for Australian residents aged from 16 to 69 that meet Budget Direct's health and lifestyle requirements. It comes with the following benefits:

  • Life insurance. Your beneficiaries can receive up to $15 million when you die, subject to underwriting.
  • Terminal illness benefit. You can claim all of your life insurance benefits if you're diagnosed with a terminal illness. Most insurers offer this benefit.
  • Funeral advance benefit. Budget Direct will quickly advance $15,000 of your cover to assist with funeral expenses.
  • Future increases benefit. If an allowable event occurs, you can increase your cover by the lesser of $100,000 or 20% of your original cover amount, without the need to provide further medical evidence. This includes the birth of a child or if you take out a mortgage.
  • Premium freeze benefit. If you're finding it difficult to afford your premium payments, you can stop your premiums from increasing with indexation. However, in exchange, your sum insured may be reduced.
  • Financial advice benefit. Budget Direct will reimburse up to $2,000 for the cost of a qualified financial adviser for benefits in excess of $200,000.
  • Grief counselling benefit. Some other insurers offer this. You can get up to $1,000 for grief counselling for you or your loved ones.

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Optional add-ons

You can add the following optional extras to your Budget Direct life insurance policy:

  • Total and permanent disability insurance. This can pay you a lump sum of up to $5,000,000 if you become permanently disabled. The benefit will reduce your life insurance or Trauma cover. After you reach 65, your TPD benefit will be reduced by 10% each year until you are 75.
  • Trauma insurance. Available as an add-on to your life cover or as a standalone Trauma policy. You can choose up to $2 million worth of cover to be paid as a lump sum if you suffer a serious, listed medical condition. Main events covered include certain cancers, heart attack and stroke.
  • Disability income insurance. Cover to help replace a share of your income in case you can't work due to sickness or injury. You'll receive a benefit of up to 70% of your lost income up to $30,000 per month. You may also insure up to 10% of your sum insured as a superannuation contribution.
  • Business expenses insurance. If you're self-employed you can choose cover of up to $25,000 per month in the event you can't work due to sickness or injury.

Compare Budget Direct with the other 2023 Life Insurance award winners

Finder's data and insights experts created a rating algorithm to compare 10 life insurance policies in Australia across pricing and key features. Our 2023 winners are:

Budget Direct Life Insurance logo

Budget Direct Life Insurance


Maximum Cover

$15,000,000


TPD Cover

Yes


Trauma Cover

Yes

TAL Accelerated Protection Life Insurance logo

TAL Accelerated Protection Life Insurance

2nd place in Finder Awards

Get Quote


Maximum Cover

No set limit


TPD Cover

Yes


Trauma Cover

Yes

Medibank Life Insurance logo

Medibank Life Insurance

Get Quote


Maximum Cover

$2,500,000


TPD Cover

Yes


Trauma Cover

Yes

Applying for cover

To be eligible for Budget Direct life insurance you must be an Australian resident between the minimum and maximum ages shown below:

Type of insuranceMaximum coverMinimum age at applicationMaximum age at applicationCover expiry age
Life insurance$15,000,000166999
Total and Permanent Disability$5,000,000165975
Trauma insurance$2,000,000185970
Disability Income Insurance$30,000 per month185565
Business Expenses Insurance$25,000 per month215965

See how Budget Direct's claim acceptance rate stacks up against other life insurers

This is the percentage of claims a life insurer pays out. It's based on data from Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) covering the 12-month period from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022. Taken from 18 Australian life insurance underwriters (of direct policies).

What is excluded?

All policies have exclusions. These are some of the main exclusions Budget Direct will not cover:

  • Suicide or intentional self-harm within the first 13 months of taking out the policy or increasing the amount of cover
  • Liver failure as a result of drug or alcohol abuse
  • Neurosis and other psychiatric illnesses
  • Loss of speech due to any psychological cause
  • Drug-induced parkinsonism
  • Any exclusion specific to you and noted in any special acceptance terms when you sign up

Please note that this is not an exhaustive list and other exclusions may apply. It's important to refer to the product disclosure statement (PDS) for a complete list of exclusions and to understand the terms and conditions of the policy before purchasing it.

Compare direct life insurance policies below

Name Finder Score Funeral Benefit Optional TPD Cover Optional Trauma Cover Maximum Cover Apply
Medibank Life Insurance image
Finder Award
Best Rated Brand
Finder score
Funeral Benefit
$15,000
Optional TPD Cover
$1.5 million
(maximum cover)
Optional Trauma Cover
Maximum Cover
$2.5 million
Our verdict: Medibank offers a higher payout limit ($2.5 million) than 15 other providers. It also won Most Loved, Best Value and Legendary Service categories in the Finder 2024 customer

⭐ Current offer: Save 10% on your first year of Medibank Life Insurance when you apply by 3 March 2025. T&Cs apply.
ahm Life Insurance image
Finder score
Funeral Benefit
$15,000
Optional TPD Cover
$1 million
(maximum cover)
Optional Trauma Cover
Maximum Cover
$1.5 million
Our verdict: ahm offers a simple application process. Be approved online or over the phone. No medical or blood tests needed to apply.

⭐ Current offer: Get 10% off your first year of ahm life insurance when you apply by 3 March 2025. T&Cs apply.
AAMI Life Insurance image
Finder score
Funeral Benefit
$10,000
Optional TPD Cover
Optional Trauma Cover
Maximum Cover
$1.5 million
Our verdict: There’s flexibility with AAMI as you can add another adult to your cover, with a competitive limit of $1.5 million. Easy application process with no medical exams.

⭐ Current offer: Take out an AAMI Life Insurance policy and get a $100 eGift card after 4 months of cover. Offer ends 03/03/2025. T&Cs apply.
Suncorp Life Insurance image
Finder score
Funeral Benefit
$10,000
Optional TPD Cover
Optional Trauma Cover
Maximum Cover
$1.5 million
Our verdict: Competitive maximum cover limit of $1.5 million. Suncorp lets you change your cover amount by up to $100,000 after a big life event, such as having a baby.

⭐ Current offer: Take out a Suncorp Life Insurance policy and get a $100 eGift card after 4 months of cover. Offer ends 03/03/2025. T&Cs apply.
Real Family Life Cover image
Finder score
Funeral Benefit
$10,000
Optional TPD Cover
$1 million
(maximum cover)
Optional Trauma Cover
Maximum Cover
$1 million
Our verdict: The application is simple; it can be done with 1 phone call and there are no medical exams. But households with larger debts may need more than a $1 million payout.

⭐ Current offer: Get back 10% of the premiums you’ve paid after 1 year.
Zurich Ezicover Life Insurance image
Finder score
Funeral Benefit
$15,000
Optional TPD Cover
Optional Trauma Cover
Maximum Cover
$1.5 million
Our verdict: Good if you want a cheap policy from a well-regarded insurer – its 98% claims acceptance rate is higher than any other provider on Finder. Zurich keeps things simple: unlike others, it doesn’t go in for optional add-ons such as TPD or trauma cover.

⭐ Current offer: Policy discounts include 10% off for your partner if you sign up for a joint policy. You can also get 5% off income protection if you buy it alongside your life cover.
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Finder Score - Life Insurance

Life Insurance is a little complicated and a lot overwhelming. That's why we made the Finder Score, to make it easier to compare Life Insurance products against each other. Our experts analysed over 30 products and gave each one a score between 1 and 10.

But a higher score doesn't always mean a product is better for you. Your situation is unique, so your policy choice will be too. Don't think of Finder Score as the final word, but as a good place to start your life insurance comparison.

Read full Finder Score methodology

Frequently asked questions about Budget Direct life insurance

Compare other products from Budget Direct

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Written by

Writer

Cristal Dyer is a travel writer at Finder. She has been writing about travel for over five years and has visited over 40 countries around the world. Cristal currently travels full-time, writing about her favourite cities and food finds, and she is always on the lookout for amazing flight deals to share. See full bio

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