Spark New Zealand has you covered with Spark Cover Life, a comprehensive insurance package that gives you and your family peace of mind.
Contents
Copies of your Policy documents
How to get a quote or apply for additional cover
Income Protection
Income Protection cover is an Indemnity cover, meaning any claim benefit received will be taxable income. You are responsible for ensuring your tax obligations are met.
What happens if I can only return to work on a part-time basis?
Providing you have been Totally Disabled for an initial period of at least 14 days if you return to work in a lesser or reduced earnings capacity, you may receive a reduced monthly benefit to supplement your income after the expiry of the 13-week waiting period.
What happens if I have a relapse after returning to work?
If you recover from a qualifying disability and return to work but then suffer a recurrence within six months attributable to the same or a related cause, you don’t have to wait until the expiry of another 13-week waiting period. The waiting period will be waived, and you may be immediately eligible to receive the benefit again, up to the expiry of the benefit payment period or until you cease to be totally disabled, whichever is earlier.
Income Protection insured benefit and maximum benefit
“The maximum insured benefit up to age 65 is;
- 75% of the first $320,000 of Income and
- 50% thereafter up to a maximum Income Benefit of $300,000 p.a.
- The maximum monthly benefit is $25,000″.
Totally Disabled definition
“… The person insured is Totally Disabled if he or she is not capable, by reason solely of Sickness or Injury, of performing his or her usual occupation for more than 10 hours per week; and is not engaged in any other occupation or business; and is under the continuous direction and professional care of a Medical Practitioner ….”
Offsets against Income Protection benefit
The actual Income Protection benefit paid to you may be reduced if you receive any earned income, any paid sick leave entitlements extending past the waiting period, other disability income protection policy benefits or compensation for loss of future income and loss of earning capacity, entitlements under the Accident Compensation or Social Security legislation or any other legislation or award.
Underwriting
What are the automatic cover acceptance limits for Voluntary Top-Up (VTU) :
- Life – additional cover up to $300,000 will be automatically accepted.
- Income protection – if you apply to extend your maximum benefit payment period out to 5 years,
- Your additional Income Protection cover (75% of base salary) will be automatically accepted without providing health evidence up to a maximum of $132,000 p.a. benefit.
- If your salary is above $176,000 p.a., your five-year IP benefit will be restricted to $132,000 p.a., and the balance of your cover above $132,000 p.a. will be subject to an underwriting assessment.
- Income protection (age 65 benefit period) – if you apply to extend your maximum benefit payment period to age 65, the extension IP cover (75% of base salary) from 5 years to age 65 is subject to an underwriting assessment.
- Trauma – additional cover up to $10,000 will be automatically accepted.
- Cover in excess of $10,000 is subject to an underwriting assessment.
Underwriting Process
The process includes completing a personal health statement and usually a medical examination and other tests (as requested by Resolution Life).
- Resolution Life pays the cost of any standard medical tests they request.
- Resolution Life will conduct an underwriting assessment to determine whether they will accept the balance of your Income Protection cover and on what terms.
If you do not wish to progress with the underwriting assessment, your Income Protection cover will be restricted to the automatic acceptance limit of $132,000 p.a.
If you wish to apply to be covered to your full standard Income Protection cover entitlement of 75% of your base salary, please email the team at First Capital Financial Services or phone 0800 525 515.
Other Information
Employees aged 65 to 69
Employees between the above ages on the date first eligible for Life cover under the scheme will not be automatically accepted for their standard Life cover. Their standard Life cover will be subject to an underwriting assessment.
Life cover – no claim period:
A suicide exclusion applies to voluntary additional and spouse/partner Life cover for 13 months from the Life cover commencement date. The no-claim period applies only to voluntary additional and spouse/partner Life cover and does not apply to your standard Life cover.
Conditions for Automatic Acceptance
Automatic Acceptance concessions relating to voluntary top covers are subject to some conditions, including ‘At Work’ and Terminal Illness conditions (refer below).
At the date of your application, ‘At Work’ is defined as:
- properly performing all his or her normal and usual duties of paid employment (or would have been had the relevant day not been a public holiday, weekend day or a day of paid leave other than due to injury or sickness).
- not away from work (other than on paid annual leave) for more than ten working days in the last 90 days preceding the application date; and
- has not received medical advice that he or she is not expected to live more than 12 months from the application date due to an existing illness.
Trauma conditions
| Alzheimer’s Disease and other dementias Stroke* Aplastic Anaemia Major head injury Major organ transplant Surgery of the Aorta Blindness Angioplasty triple vessel* Motor Neurone Disease Benign brain tumour Cancer* Cardiomyopathy Multiple Sclerosis | Chronic Liver Disease Chronic Kidney Failure Chronic Lung Disease Occupationally Acquired HIV Coma Coronary Artery Surgery* Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Paraplegia Deafness Diplegia Encephalitis Parkinson’s Disease Loss of capacity for independent living | Heart attack* Loss of limbs Pulmonary hypertension Loss of speech Heart valve surgery Medically Acquired HIV Quadriplegia Meningitis Hemiplegia Muscular dystrophy Severe burns Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest Loss of limbs/sight Pneumonectomy |
Note: some other events result in cover termination, e.g. fraud, parental leave for more than 12 months (Income Protection) or 24 months (Life and Trauma), or other leave without pay where Resolution Life has not agreed to continue cover.
Notes relating to the Trauma benefit:
- A three-month ‘no claim’ period applies to five specified conditions or procedures – cancer, stroke, heart attack, angioplasty triple vessel and coronary artery surgery.
- These five specified conditions or procedures* are subject to a three-month no-claim period from the date of acceptance of the voluntary additional Trauma cover, which means that if you already have or develop any of these conditions or undergo any of these procedures within three months of the date of acceptance, no benefit will be payable for that Trauma condition or procedure.
- Note: 3 month no-claim period applies to both ‘standard’ and voluntary additional Trauma covers.
- The above conditions or procedures and the other listed Traumas are specifically defined in the Spark NZ Trauma workplace policy document. The Trauma cover ends at age 65.
General exclusions
General exclusions that apply to standard and voluntary additional Income Protection cover include:
Resolution Life will not pay if a person insured’s Total Disablement or Partial Disablement was caused by pregnancy, childbirth, or miscarriage – if they are uncomplicated; intentional self-injury, intentionally contracted an infection, or attempted suicide; participation in criminal acts; any act of war, whether war was declared or not; or the person insured’s service in the armed services of any country or international organisation.
Getting a copy of your policy documents
Spark Cover Life insurance benefits are insured with Resolution Life Limited. You can download the “Staff Versions” of the policy wordings by clicking on the following links:
SPARK or
Additional Questions
What happens when I go on extended leave without pay?
If you go on parental leave, you will remain covered under Spark Cover Life for:
- up to a maximum of 12 months under your Income Protection cover and
- up to a maximum of 24 months under your Life and Trauma cover.
For any other type of leave without pay (including Career Break), before you go on leave without pay, email the team at First Capital Financial Services or phone 0800 525 515. If approved, Spark will also need to agree to continue to pay your standard cover premiums over that period.
If you have any voluntary additional or spouse/partner covers, you must pre-pay your premiums for your entire leave without pay before you go on leave without pay. Please contact Payroll, who will arrange a bulk premium deduction from your final pay before you commence your leave.
When does my cover cease?
- Your cover under Spark Cover Life ceases at the earlier of:
- 65th birthday for the Income Protection and Trauma covers
- 70th birthday for the Life cover;
- When your employment with Spark New Zealand ends, or the termination date of the policies.
Note: some other events result in cover termination, e.g. fraud, parental leave for more than 12 months (Income Protection) or 24 months (Life and Trauma), or other leave without pay where Resolution Life has not agreed to continue cover.
Spouse/partner cover
Your spouse or partner can apply for voluntary Life, Income Protection and Trauma covers (during the 60-day top-up window) at favourable pricing and with the convenience of payment by salary deduction.
There are no automatic acceptance concessions for spouse/partner covers – these are subject to underwriting assessment, and acceptance of cover at standard terms, or even at all, is not guaranteed.
Your spouse/partner can apply for the following:
- Life – $100,000 blocks up to a maximum of $300,000.
- Income Protection – 75% of base salary for two years (13-week waiting period).
- Trauma – in $10,000 blocks up to a maximum of $500,000.
Important Notes:
- A spouse or partner is defined as the husband or wife or any de facto partner (including same-sex partner) who has continuously lived with the Spark employee for at least six months. If at any stage a spouse/partner ceases to meet these criteria (e.g. if a couple separates), they will no longer be eligible for their spouse/partner cover, and their cover will cease. Resolution Life must be immediately advised of any changes (a Continuation Option may be available).
- Spouse/partner Income Protection cover is only available for professional or office-based occupations where no manual labour is involved. If, at any stage, a spouse/partner’s occupation changes so that it no longer meets these criteria (e.g., moving to self-employment or a more manual occupation), then the Income Protection cover will cease. All occupation changes must be immediately advised to Resolution Life via Cammell Consulting Group. Continued payment of Income Protection premiums does not entitle a spouse/partner to IP cover if their occupation no longer meets the criteria.
- Premiums increase every year with age at the group renewal date of 1 July and will also be subject to the group premium rates, which apply at that time.
How do I get a QUOTE and apply for additional cover for myself and/or my spouse/partner?
For additional cover up to an automatic acceptance limit – visit Spark Cover Life on the intranet and click the link highlighted under top-up covers.
For a quote or to apply for additional covers that exceed an automatic acceptance limit or spouse/partner covers, see contact details below.
How do I change my top-up and spouse/partner cover?
You may make changes to your top-up cover and any spouse/partner cover only once a year between 2 May and 30 June, except for special circumstances (such as financial hardship or no longer requiring the voluntary top-up insurance). To make changes to your top-up cover and any spouse/partner cover, refer to the contact details below.
Contact details
Email First Capital Financial Services or phone 0800 525 515