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There were around 1 million Australians living abroad and in 2017, 138,000 of these were living in the UK.
Taking the plunge and moving abroad is an extremely life changing event. While it will bring about lots of excitement and adventure, there’s also a considerable amount of risk involved.
With this is mind it’s important you secure the right form of life cover for your trip, whether you plan on returning to Australia or are permanently moving – life insurance is essential to protect your loved ones.
But what cover options are available and will securing a policy be straightforward?
Life insurance experts, Reassured, are here to explain life insurance for Australian expats in the UK…
Why do you need life insurance when moving aboard?
Whether you’re moving abroad for work, education or just a life change, you’ll need life insurance to protect your loved ones from a worst-case scenario.
If you were to pass away, or become seriously ill, while abroad could they afford continue living in the UK or would they need to uproot the family back to Australia at an already difficult time?
A life insurance policy provides a pay-out to your loved ones when you pass away, helping to take care of any financial implications what may arise as a result of you passing away.
The pay-out could be used to keep your loved ones in the family home and cover their day to day living expenses, as well as providing the funds to pay for your funeral.
Life insurance for Australian expatriates
Expat life insurance isn’t a product itself, so you’ll need to find an Australian life insurance provider who will offer cover to expats.
UK life insurance providers only tend to offer cover to permanent UK residents, so as an expat you may find it hard to secure cover from a UK insurer.
When applying for cover it’s likely you will need to provide details about your emigration, such as where you are moving to, how long you’ll be living there and (if you’re working) what your job will be. These factors will help insurers to calculate your premiums.
Expats can often expect to pay inflated premiums, due to the increased risk of being abroad. Those travelling to high risk areas (such as those at war or in political unrest) can expect to pay the most for their premiums. The UK isn’t typically considered high risk, so it’s likely your premiums won’t be impacted too much.
Talking to a life insurance expert will enable you to find the most suitable policy. They’ll be able to put you in touch with an insurer who’s most likely to offer cover to expats.
If you currently have an existing life insurance policy that was taken out many years before your decision to emigrate, this policy will still be valid overseas.
Please note, with the coronavirus outbreak, no Australian life insurance providers are offering life cover to Australian expatriates. Insurers decline cover to those who are taking up residence in ‘DFAT level 4’ countries. Due to the outbreak, all countries outside of Australia fall into this category and insurers have been refusing cover to anyone living outside of Australia.
When moving aboard you may also want to consider:
Travel insurance
Travel insurance is an insurance product designed to protect you while you’re aboard and includes things such as medical cover, theft and personal liability cover.
Depending on the length of your emigration, you may be able to secure long term travel insurance as an additional layer of protection. This will help to protect you against paying extremely high medical fees if you were to become injured or unwell.
Living in the UK also provides the opportunity for lots more travel so you may want to take out travel insurance for any additional trips or holidays you may take.
Death in service
If you’re moving to the UK for work, you may be eligible for a death in service benefit through your employer.
Death in service will pay out to your loved ones if you pass away while in employment with your employer Typically the amount paid out will be a multiple of your salary.
This can be a huge benefit if you’ve struggled to secure your own personal cover due to being an expat or it can be an extra layer of protection if you have your own life insurance policy.
It’s important to note that if you leave your job (or change jobs) while you’re aboard, your death in service benefit won’t follow you. This can highlight in importance of having your own personal protection in place.
To find out if you receive this benefit, you can contact your employer or check your contract of employment.
Conclusion
Securing life insurance is essential for securing the financial future of your loved ones -especially whilst you’re aboard.
Comparing quotes and shopping around is the best way to ensure you’re not paying over the odds for a policy.
Using the help of an FCA regulated life insurance broker you can do this quickly and easily, without incurring a fee.
