To receive the payout, 2 medical practitioners must certify you have less than 12 (or 24) months to live.
What is terminal illness insurance?
Terminal illness insurance is a type of life insurance policy that pays out if you're diagnosed with a severe illness you aren't expected to recover from within a certain time period (often 12 months). Examples of such diseases can include advanced cancer or heart disease. Generally, you'll be eligible for terminal illness insurance unless you have a linked pre-existing condition that may shorten your life.
The payout from terminal illness cover is designed to help with any end of life care you may require, as well as any preparations you may want to make before you pass away.
Compare life insurance with terminal illness benefits
All of the life insurance policies below come with
Data taken from brand product disclosure statements on August 2022. Benefits, conditions and amounts are subject to change at anytime.
What’s considered a terminal illness?
A terminal illness is a condition which cannot be cured and is likely to lead to someone's death.
To be eligible for a terminal illness payout:
You must be medically certified, by 2 registered medical practitioners, jointly or separately, as having a terminal illness that is likely to result in your death within 12 or 24 months.
1 of the registered medical practitioners must be a specialist practicing in an area related to your illness or injury.
What can I use a terminal illness benefit for?
There are no restrictions on how you can use a terminal illness benefit. While a large portion of the proceeds will most likely go towards providing for your family after you’re gone, you might also want to use some of the benefit for the following:
To cover the cost of specialist medical treatment
To pay for accommodation close to specialist medical facilities
To pay for the cost of transport to and from medical facilities
To cover the cost of palliative care
To replace the income of a family member who takes time off work to become your full-time carer
To take a holiday with your family or tick some other items off your bucket list
Why you can trust Finder's life insurance experts
You pay nothing. Finder is free to use. And you pay the same as going direct. No markups, no hidden fees.
You save time. We spend 100s of hours researching life insurance so you can sort the gold from the junk faster.
You can trust us. We say it like it is. We aren't owned by an insurer and our opinions are our own.
Frequently asked questions
Terminal illness insurance is a type of life cover that pays a lump sum if you get diagnosed with an illness which cannot be cured, such as advanced cancer. In general, you'll be eligible for terminal illness insurance unless you have a linked pre-existing condition.
Yes. Most life insurance policies will come with terminal illness cover. This means it will pay you a lump sum before you die, if you're diagnosed with a terminal illness and have less than 24 months left to live. Terminal illness benefits can range from around $1 million to as much as $25 million in Australia.
Yes. If you have a terminal illness and a life expectancy of less than 12 months, you may be able to access your life insurance lump sum benefit from your superannuation fund, so long as you have a policy in place. Reach out to your super fund to find out more.
You will need to follow a few simple steps to make a terminal illness claim under your life cover policy. After contacting your insurer, you will usually need to provide the following:
A completed claim form. Your insurer will send you a form to complete. Your treating doctor and specialist will also need to fill out sections of the form.
Proof of ID. You will need to provide a certified copy of your birth certificate, your current Australian passport or your driver's licence.
Policy details. Next, you will need to provide your original policy document and policy schedule.
Medical information. Your insurer will also need copies of any relevant medical reports, test results and investigations performed.
Once you've submitted all the required information, your insurer has 10 days to respond.
Typically, no. If you have already been diagnosed as terminally ill, it's very unlikely that an insurer will agree to cover you. Life insurance provides financial protection for your loved ones against the unexpected, not for when you find out you're sick
Critical illness insurance, (also known as trauma insurance) can be bought as either a standalone product or as part of your life insurance policy. It pays out if you're diagnosed with any one of the critical illnesses listed in the policy document.
No, a terminal illness lump sum payment is tax-free, so if your benefit amount is $1 million, that's exactly how much you'll receive.
Gary Ross Hunter was an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio
Gary Ross's expertise
Gary Ross has written 725 Finder guides across topics including:
James Martin was the insurance editor at Finder. He has written on a range of insurance and finance topics for over 7 years. James often shares his insurance expertise as a media spokesperson and has appeared on Prime 7 News, WIN News, Insurance News, 7NEWS and The Guardian. He holds a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification and a Tier 1 Generic Knowledge certification, both of which meet the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio
James's expertise
James has written 255 Finder guides across topics including:
Find out what life insurance policies are on offer from MLC and receive a free quote for cover. Apply securely with the help of an insurance consultant.
Feedback
How likely would you be to recommend Finder to a friend or colleague?
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Very UnlikelyExtremely Likely
Required
Thank you for your feedback.
Our goal is to create the best possible product, and your thoughts, ideas and suggestions play a major role in helping us identify opportunities to improve.
Important information about this website
finder.com.au is one of Australia's leading comparison websites. We are committed to our readers and stands by our editorial principles
We try to take an open and transparent approach and provide a broad-based comparison service. However, you should be aware that while we are an independently owned service, our comparison service does not include all providers or all products available in the market.
Some product issuers may provide products or offer services through multiple brands, associated companies or different labeling arrangements. This can make it difficult for consumers to compare alternatives or identify the companies behind the products. However, we aim to provide information to enable consumers to understand these issues.
We make money by featuring products on our site. Compensation received from the providers featured on our site can influence which products we write about as well as where and how products appear on our page, but the order or placement of these products does not influence our assessment or opinions of them, nor is it an endorsement or recommendation for them.
Products marked as 'Top Pick', 'Promoted' or 'Advertisement' are prominently displayed either as a result of a commercial advertising arrangement or to highlight a particular product, provider or feature. Finder may receive remuneration from the Provider if you click on the related link, purchase or enquire about the product. Finder's decision to show a 'promoted' product is neither a recommendation that the product is appropriate for you nor an indication that the product is the best in its category. We encourage you to use the tools and information we provide to compare your options.
Where our site links to particular products or displays 'Go to site' buttons, we may receive a commission, referral fee or payment when you click on those buttons or apply for a product. You can learn more about how we make money.
When products are grouped in a table or list, the order in which they are initially sorted may be influenced by a range of factors including price, fees and discounts; commercial partnerships; product features; and brand popularity. We provide tools so you can sort and filter these lists to highlight features that matter to you.
Please read our website terms of use and privacy policy for more information about our services and our approach to privacy.
We update our data regularly, but information can change between updates. Confirm details with the provider you're interested in before making a decision.
You pay nothing. Finder is free to use. And you pay the same as going direct. No markups, no hidden fees.
You save time. We spend 100s of hours researching life insurance so you can sort the gold from the junk faster.
You can trust us. We say it like it is. We aren't owned by an insurer and our opinions are our own.