This week’s post addresses an issue recently raised with us by an adviser, focusing on the ability to access insurance proceeds from a superannuation fund on an event of permanent incapacity.
The
particular issue raised involved the fact that best practice often dictates
that clients should obtain insurance protection on the basis of an inability to
work in their ‘own’, as opposed to ‘any’ occupation.
The
satisfaction of the ‘own’ occupation test is obviously easier than the
condition of release set out under the superannuation legislation, being that a
member must be incapable of working in ‘any’ occupation.
Where
insurance is owned via a superannuation fund there is therefore a risk that
while the fund will receive an insurance payout, it will be unable to release
it to the member until some other condition of release is satisfied (for example,
reaching the retirement age).
Historically
therefore, the conservative view was undoubtedly that own occupation insurance
should always be owned outside super. Importantly, since 1 July 2014, own
occupation insurance is no longer available via superannuation, subject to a
grandfathering for arrangements already in place before that date.
For those
pre-existing arrangements, there appears to be a pragmatic approach adopted,
particularly by those with policies via a self-managed superannuation fund.
This approach involves assuming that a trustee (who will also be a member of
the relevant fund) will adopt a liberal interpretation of the ‘any’ occupation
definition under the superannuation legislation and therefore always allow the
release of insurance proceeds.
Until
next week.
Image credit: panshipanshi cc