Merry Xmas to All

It's that time of year again, and everyone at Spratt Financial Services would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Our office phone line will be closed between the 23rd December and the 6th January, but still feel free to email anytime at enquiry@sprattfinancial.co.nz. It should be another big year in the world of insurance and investment and we look forward to keeping you posted with what you need to know.

When Insurance Works - Our Recent Claims

Insurance is sometimes regarded as protecting against something that's never really going to happen to us. We can however assure you that couldn't be further from the truth. We help manage our clients' claims all the time and we see that critical illness is a real and ever present danger. We've in the past had 16 claims in a single month, and we manage several dozen long term claims, some that have been running for as long as nine years.

Here is a section of our processed claims during 2013. 

Trauma/Critical Illness Claims

1. Bowel Cancer.
2. Loss of Hearing
3. Breast Cancer
4. Leukaemia
5. Cancer (Undefined)
6. Cancer (Undefined)
7. Cancer (Undefined)
8. Parkinson's Disease 

Income Protection Claims

1. Mental Health
2. Severe back Injury
3. Chemical Sensitivity
4. Automobile Accident
5. Stroke
6. Post concussion syndrome.
7. Back Injury
8. Heart failure/Cardiomyopathy
9. Lung Cancer
10. Prostate Cancer
11. Stroke
12. Hand Injury/Surgery
13. Wrist Injury/Surgery
14. Mental Health
 

Life Insurance Claims

1. Cardiac Condition
2. Cancer (Undefined)
3. Cardiac Arrest
4. Cancer (Undefined)
5. Bowel Cancer
6. Cardiac Arrest
7. Cancer (Undefined)
 

Permanent Disability Cover (TPD) Claims

1. Pneumococcal Meningitis
2. Post Concussive Epilepsy
3. Severe Hip Injury

Other Claims

1. Business Overheads Cover: Hand Injury/Diverticulities
2. Waiver of Premium: Back/Neck Injury

Sometimes, clients are unaware of the conditions of their cover and don't make a claim when they in fact, could. We're here anytime to take a look for you and answer all your claims questions as well as manage your claims and take the stress out of your hands. If you need help with any claims issues, don't hesitate to get in contact with us anytime. 

Have any claims or insurance questions you have answered anytime.

Special Offer for Teachers (APPA).

We at Spratt Financial are more than proud to announce our new Insurance, Investment and Saving deal for teachers and educators, in association with the APPA (Auckland Primary Principals Association).

Take a look at more information on our official website here.

All the aspects that our specialised Teachers Insurance Scheme (TIS) can give to you. Pick and choose as many or as few as you need.

We value New Zealand's great teachers and school faculty members highly, and we're glad to give them the best possible deals on their insurance and investment needs. If this sounds like you, don't hesitate to make an enquiry today.

Contact us for more information.

Visit the official website of the APPA.

Sovereign's New Trauma Insurance

Sovereign Insurance, one of New Zealand's foremost insurance providers, is launching a new Trauma Insurance policy called Progressive Care.

It differs from traditional Trauma Insurance policies in that it is introducing a new severity based payout system, intended to mitigate costs and allow the insurance to be offered at a lower cost to customers. With Progressive Care, an impressive number of medical conditions are covered (62 in total), however, based on the severity of the illness suffered the payout can range from between 10% of the agreed sum assured all the way to the full amount.

Sovereign's New Progressive Care is aiming to be a more affordable trauma product.

The Progressive Care product would payout less overall, but would be more accessible to people who cannot afford current Trauma Insurance premiums, which tend to be higher than other forms of insurance such as Life or Total Permanent Disablement. If people don't like the idea of having insurance that could result in only a partial payout, the traditional forms of Trauma and Critical Illness cover will remain available from numerous sources on the marketplace.

Any questions? Contact us for more information.

Visit the official website of Sovereign Insurance.

Kiwisaver Advice

Kiwisaver has been a hot button topic around the internet lately. Here are a collection of articles designed to keep you up to date and give advice on Kiwisaver and how to get the most out of it.

1. What is Kiwisaver? - An A-Z guide. - Sorted

2. Helen Twose answers Kiwisaver Questions - NZ Herald

3. Diane Clement reflects on Poor Kiwisaver Decisions - NZ Herald

4. Buying your first home with Kiwisaver - Housing New Zealand

5. More Kiwisaver Questions Answered - NZ Herald

6. One Third of Kiwisavers Don't Know Balance - NZ Herald

If you feel you need more personalized advice relating to Kiwisaver or other investments, our Authorized Financial Adviser is standing by to help anytime. Give us a call on 09 307 8200 or email at enquiry@sprattfinancial.co.nz.

The Importance of Reviews

The New Year is a time of change and a time for resolutions. Each year, if possible, we like to take a look at our clients' insurance to see if there's anything that can be improved and we urge them to do the same thing. Here's why.

In the insurance business, things are in flux regularly. New products, new conditions and new regulations come and go in the marketplace, meaning that often we can find you are now paying too much for your insurance or can improve your cover. This year for instance, a number of new Southern Cross health insurance plans are in the works and Tower Life and Health Insurance has changed hands, with the Life branch now owned by Fidelity Life and the Health branch now owned by Newcastle Industrial Benefits. (NIB).

People’s lives are in flux as well.  Perhaps you have a new job, are acquiring your first home or are thinking of having children? Your insurance needs will thus change, and there may be better and more effective options out there for you to cover your new needs. We urge you to make sure your cover is up to date, and that you have the best current deals the marketplace has to offer.

Whether you need to expand or simplify your insurance, whether you're an existing client or not, we can review your insurances free of charge with no obligation.

Visit our official website for more information.

Meet our team.

Staying Healthy: The Health Benefits of Honey

One thing that insurance brokers often do not focus on (and perhaps should) is how to keep their clients and their potential clients healthy. The healthier you are, the less loading you will have on your life and medical insurance policies and the cheaper your insurance will be. More importantly, staying healthy is just as important in all your other areas of life; work, play and achieving your goals. So we're putting together a series that will keep you updated on the latest medical discoveries and advice on how to keep yourself in tip top shape.

First off, since everyone usually kicks up up a stink about unrealistic and untasty diets that health professionals sometimes demand, here's something we all like. Honey!

Honey has been around thousands of years, with even ancient cultures apparently aware of its health benefits.

The use of honey in medicine and treatment goes back a long way. Four thousands years plus actually, when honey was used in ayurvedic medicine by early societies to balance material impurities in the body. In Ancient Egypt, honey was applied to treat wounds, there is mention of it in the Quran and in the records of the Ancient Greeks as a food which could improve longevity. Now, modern science is coming to the same conclusion.

Here is a typical honey profile, according to BeeSource:

• Fructose: 38.2%
• Glucose: 31.3%
• Maltose: 7.1%
• Sucrose: 1.3%
• Water: 17.2%
• Higher sugars: 1.5%
• Ash: 0.2%
• Other/undetermined: 3.2%

The slightly acidic pH level of honey (between 3.2 and 4.5) is what helps prevent the growth of bacteria, while its antioxidants get rid of free radicals.

So how can honey help?

- There is anecdotal evidence of its efficacy in treating burns and wounds.

- Alleviating allergies - one conducted study showed that it was significantly more effective than a placebo at alleviating ocular allergy.

- A study published in the journal Microbiology revealed that Manuka honey is effective at treating chronic wound infections and may even prevent them from developing in the first place.

- A study published in the journal Pediatrics, which compared honey to placebo in helping children with cough during night time, found that honey was superior.

- Honey is great for your skin and can be used to smooth and remove skin impurities.

- Honey is all natural and a healthier dietary option than synthesised, artificial spreads.

Other articles in our Staying Healthy series:

How to lose that troublesome belly fat.

Can chocolate help prevent obesity and diabetes?

Weight loss tips from the experts.

Health Insurance Top Claims 2013

In the past week, Southern Cross has released the statistics for the top five claim areas for men and women in each age band between 20 and 70.

Southern Cross Chief Executive Peter Tynan explains that the results show that people who are taking out health insurance need to check to ensure their policies cover what they need. Each age band was highly different in the type of surgeries or medical procedures that were most common, and knowing this information should inform your health insurance decisions.

Males between the ages of 20-30, whom Peter remarked often felt invincible and in our experience are the group that neglects health cover the most, nonetheless required claims most often for hernia repair, colonoscopy and excision of skin lesions. Women of the same age range claimed most often for freeing abdominal adhesions or ovarian cyst surgeries. These costly procedures required by people so young demonstrate the costs of being un-insured or underinsured, and we urge everyone to bear this in mind. I myself thank my lucky stars I got health insurance when I was young (or more accurately, my conscientious mother insisted on signing me up) because I've actually had to claim for a colonoscopy and a surgery, as well as many specialist visits after the age of 20 which I could never have foreseen.

It is also crucial that you think about medical insurance while you're healthy, as the presence of pre-existing conditions makes things very awkward, complicated and expensive, whilst it is clear sailing if you don't have any at the time of taking out your insurance.

Top 5 procedures, 20-29 age band

Women: Removal of teeth, endometriosis surgery, freeing abdominal adhesions, ovarian cystectomy, excision skin lesion.

Men: Removal of teeth, excision skin lesion, septoplasty, hernia repair, colonoscopy.

Top 5 procedures, 30-39

Women: Endometriosis surgery, hysterectomy, excision skin lesion, cholecystectomy, removal of teeth.

Men: Removal of teeth, colonoscopy, excision skin lesion, hernia repair, septoplasty.

Top 5 procedures, 40-49

Women: Hysterectomy, hysteroscopy, excision skin lesion, colonoscopy, endometriosis surgery.

Men: Colonoscopy, excision skin lesion, hip replacement, hernia repair, coronary angioplasty.

Top 5 procedures, 50-59

Women: Colonoscopy, hysterectomy, hip replacement, excision skin lesion, knee replacement.

Men: Hip replacement, colonoscopy, excision skin lesion, coronary angioplasty, hernia repair.

Top 5 procedures, 60-69

Women: Knee replacement, hip replacement, colonoscopy, cataract, excision skin lesion.

Men: Knee replacement, hip replacement, excision skin lesion, coronary angioplasty, colonoscopy.

Top 5 procedures, 70 plus

Women: Cataract, hip replacement, knee replacement, excision skin lesion, colonoscopy.

Men: Knee replacement, cataract, hip replacement, excision skin lesion, coronary angioplasty.

Contact us for information and the best deals on your health insurance.

Visit our official website for more information.

Read how health insurance helped me out when diagnosed with Crohn's Disease.

Trauma Insurance Part Two: Add Ons

Following on from our earlier post dealing with what you need to know about Trauma Insurance in the wake of its growing popularity among New Zealanders, this post will deal with the different types of Trauma Cover, and the optional add-ons to your cover that can help you get the most out of your insurance.

Most providers trauma insurance comes in two distinct types; Comprehensive and Essential (these names will sometimes vary between insurance companies). Comprehensive provides you with insurance cover for a large number of defined medical conditions, with the full payment of your sum assured if you suffer any of these conditions. Essential provides you with insurance cover for the same amount of conditions, however, you will only get paid out the full sum assured for small group of those conditions. For the others, you will only receive a partial payment. Think of 'comprehensive' as exactly what it says. It covers almost everything, but it comes with a higher cost. Think of 'essential' like 'the bare essentials', less cover but at a lower cost.

Cheaper with partial payments? Or more comprehensive with higher premiums? The choice is yours.

Now let's explore the add-ons to your insurance that can be arranged for either comprehensive or essential trauma insurance.

Specialist and Diagnostic Testing

This add-on benefit is designed to pay for your consultations and appointments with a specialist, which gives you the freedom to avoid the public health wait, get immediate treatment and have it paid for by your insurance. With a Sovereign policy for instance, each person covered by the policy get your specialists and diagnostics covered by $3,000 per policy year.

Children or Maternity Benefit

If you have children and you would like them to be protected under your trauma insurance policy, this is the option for you. If you purchase this add-on and your child suffers one of the defined conditions, it will provide a financial buffer to support you, which generally means that if you have to stop work or your child required specialised care, you are financially covered.

Buyback Benefit

This benefit allows your policy to be reinstated once again after you have claimed on it for one of the defined medical conditions. This is an option for those who wish their policy to continue or if there is more than one person covered to ensure that the others still have protection after one member has to make a claim.

Business Safeguard

This is an option that you can purchase if you are attempting to insure a growing business. Basically, it allows you to increase your sum assured as your business grows or your own personal value to your business increases.

Waiver of Premium Benefit

Perhaps one of the most important add-ons and the one that we certainly recommend the most. Waiver of Premium means that if you are injured or ill, but not with one of the conditions that will trigger your insurance claim, waiver of premium will pay your trauma insurance premiums for you, so that you can keep your insurance cover going.

Total and Permanent Disablement Benefit

If you suffer an illness or an accident that is not covered by your policy, but is serious enough to render you unable to work ever again, then this benefit will kick in and you will receive a full payment of your trauma cover.

That covers most of the add-ons that are offered in the NZ insurance market for your Trauma Insurance. If you have any further questions about trauma or any other forms of insurance cover, don't hesitate to ask.

Visit our official website for more information.

Read part one of our article about Trauma Insurance.

Defining Insurance Terminology.

Fidelity Acquires Tower Life Insurance - What You Should Know

Recently, Fidelity Life has acquired Tower Life, which means that all of the risk policies currently under Tower (Life Insurance, Total Permanent Disability, Trauma Insurance and Income Protection) will now be managed by Fidelity and be dealt with under the Fidelity name. If you have Health Insurance with Tower however, these policies will now be provided by NIB Health Cover.

The good news is that for clients with existing Tower policies, not a great deal is going to change. All of the terms and conditions on your current policies will remain the same and nothing will be renegotiated or changed. Sums assured will remain, as will any exemptions, add-ons to your policy, and no existing premiums will be altered in any way.

The changes will really only affect clients looking to take out policies in the future. With the change, the range of Tower insurance products will no longer be sold and will be replaced by the Fidelity range. If your Tower policy was acquired through us, we will remain on hand to help manage your insurance in the same ways as before and nothing will change.

For more information about the changeover or if you have any questions, feel free to call us anytime on (09) 307 8200 or by email at enquiry@sprattfinancial.co.nz.

The official announcement of the acquisition from Fidelity.

More information about our services here.