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Frequently Asked Questions FAQs

While our team is available and happy to answer any questions you might have, we appreciate that sometimes it’s faster simply to find the answer yourself. That’s why we’ve created this frequently asked questions page – so that all the most commonly asked questions about Encompass Protection can be found in one central place.

Applying for life insurance with HIV

Life insurance can offer you peace of mind and provide a financial safety net during the most challenging times. We provide a range of products designed to ensure financial security in the event of death, critical illness, and disability caused by injury, or major illness.

When you apply for cover, we’ll consider your occupation, lifestyle, leisure activities and medical history to decide whether (and on what terms and conditions) insurance can be offered to you. We assess all applications for comprehensive life insurance the same way for everyone who applies. When we ask personal questions, we will try our best to ensure you feel comfortable and safe. Our industry has strict rules in place to protect you through the application process.

Can I get life insurance if I’m HIV positive?

If you’re living with HIV, you can apply for life insurance and be confident your application will be assessed. Advances in HIV treatment have improved the general health and life expectancy of people living with HIV, so the range of insurance products available is increasing.

What questions will I be asked when applying for life insurance?

When applying for life insurance with us, you’ll need to provide details about your health, medical history, occupation, employment status, income, high-risk hobbies, travel plans, and residency status. As part of the underwriting process, all applicants are asked about their HIV status. Specifically, we’ll ask whether you’ve ever tested positive for HIV or are currently awaiting test results. If you disclose a HIV positive status, we’ll ask for additional details about your diagnosis, treatment plan, viral load, and any related conditions. We don’t ask about your sexual orientation or personal relationships.

What happens if I disclose that I’m HIV positive?

If you tell us that you’re living with HIV we may request a medical report from your treating doctor. This report should include recent blood test results, CD4 count, viral load levels, and details of your treatment plan. If your test results are not up to date, we may ask you to complete a blood test, either through your doctor or a medical examiner of our choice.

What other information do I need to provide?

We require a complete picture of your medical history. This includes details about your height, weight, alcohol or recreational drug use, current and past medical conditions, treatments and any previous diagnoses of sexually transmitted infections.

While some of these questions may feel personal, they’re asked of all applicants seeking underwritten cover. Our goal is simply to gather the necessary information to assess any potential health risks.

What kinds of cover can I get and do any exclusions apply?

Depending on your health and the level of cover being applied for, we may offer Life Cover, Total and Permanent Disability, Critical Illness and Income Protection. The insurance may be subject to terms such as a higher premium (called loadings), a shorter-term policy, and/or exclusions. In certain scenarios, we may not be able to offer you cover at all.

For example, Critical Illness pays a benefit for medically or occupationally acquired HIV. If you disclose an HIV positive status, these events would be excluded from your policy, but you would be covered for a range of other critical illness events.

Note: The critical illness events of Bacterial Meningitis and Encephalitis have exclusions if they resulted due to a HIV infection.

Questions?

Your financial adviser can help you choose the insurance type that best suits your needs and provide support throughout the application process. Alternatively, you can reach out to us for assistance.

Useful resources

Please see below further resources on living with HIV.

Specialist Support Services What do they offer? Telephone Website page
Health Equity Matters Advocates awareness, understanding and proactivity around HIV prevention, education, support and research, and provides a voice for communities affected by HIV. (02) 9557 9399 https://www.healthequitymatters.org.au/
National Association of People with HIV Australia Australia’s peak non-government organisation representing community-based groups of people living with HIV (PLHIV). (02) 8568 0300 https://napwha.org.au/
Institute of Many Australia’s largest grassroots movement for People Living with HIV. A place where people living with HIV find support, online and in person. https://theinstituteofmany.org/
ViiV Healthcare Pharmaceutical company focused solely on HIV and AIDS, helping people living with or affected by HIV to thrive. (03) 9968 1002 https://www.qlaw.org.au/
ACON Supports people living with HIV to live healthy and connected lives. (02) 9206 2000 https://www.acon.org.au/
HIV/AIDS Legal Centre Not-profit community legal services. (02) 9492 6540 https://halc.org.au/

 

Tags: Applying for Encompass Protection

Your individual choices and personal circumstances are applied to our set of standard premium rates to calculate your premiums. The standard premium rates are not guaranteed to stay the same. Occasionally, we need to adjust our standard premium rates to ensure we can continue to support our customers when you need us the most – at claim time.

  • When we review our standard premium rates, we will look at factors including the following:
  • for expected future claims costs, factors can include recent claims experience, or industry trends which show a likely increase in the future cost of claims
  • for other costs of doing business, factors can include changes to tax, government or other mandatory charges, the cost of reinsurance, the costs to meet compliance and regulatory requirements, distribution costs, and changes to business operating expenses, and
  • for reasonable margins in providing the cover, factors can include changes to the economic environment such as interest rates, inflation rates and market returns, or the achievement of a fair shareholder target return for the commercial risks taken in providing the insurance.

If we make changes to our standard premium rates, we will always act reasonably and with utmost good faith, and any changes will be applied consistently for policies of the same kind.  This means your policy will not be singled out for a change in premium rates.

If your premium increases, you have a number of options to manage the cost of your cover, such as reducing your cover or changing the options on your cover.  Please speak to us or your financial adviser for assistance.

If you are affected by family and domestic violence, please know we’re committed to supporting you and treating you with empathy, compassion, and respect. We’ll seek to assist you by providing practical support if your situation makes it harder for you to access our products and services.

As we may not be able to identify if you’re experiencing vulnerability, when it is safe to do so, we ask that you contact us. We can provide you with additional support and services.

Our commitment to you 

If we identify (or you tell us) that you’re affected by family and domestic violence, we may offer the following assistance:

Communication Finding safe and alternative ways to communicate. We’ll record our interactions with you in your preferred method at a mutually suitable time and date.
Collecting information Minimise the information we require from you and the number of times you’re required to disclose the same information, where it is reasonably possible. We’ll take into account that you may not have access to your personal information, records and documents. We’ll take reasonable steps and consider alternative ways to validate your information to establish your identification*.
Extra support Engage your nominated extra support person through our communications if you advise us of their details. This may be your financial counsellor, lawyer, community services or social worker, legal aid officer, family violence specialist or any other services.
Financial hardship If you‘re also experiencing financial hardship, we’ll discuss alternative ways to help you temporarily manage your insurance arrangement.
Privacy We’ll treat all information related to your situation as sensitive and take measures to ensure its kept confidential. This is to protect your right to privacy in accordance with our privacy policy.  We’ll respect your choice not to provide evidence of an intervention order to access our assistance through this policy.
Referral If you require additional assistance, we can refer you to an external family violence and financial hardship services, as appropriate.

* under Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Rules Instrument 2007 (No.1) 2007

Our commitment to help our people help you 

Our people are key to our interactions with you. We ensure our staff, who are likely to interact with you, have role-appropriate training and reference documents.

If you are dissatisfied with our management of your situation, you can lodge a complaint.

You can access information about the complaint management process here.

We appreciate that when your client needs to make a claim, they’re often experiencing a period of uncertainty and financial vulnerability. That’s why our claims process is responsive and straightforward.

Importantly, we also understand and value the role of the adviser during claims time. Further information about our claims process is available here.

Tags: Claims | About Encompass Protection

No, we only accept online applications for Encompass Protection. You can submit an online application via our adviser portal.

However, if you’re meeting with a client and won’t have access to our online portal, we’ve created a data capture form – this form allows you to collect the information required to complete the application online when you return to your office. You can access our data capture form here or order printed copies here.

Tags: Applying for Encompass Protection

Yes, you can order printed copies of the Encompass Protection PDS via our online ordering portal available here.

To order printed PDSs, you must be a registered Encompass Protection adviser.

Not registered with us? Simply complete our ‘register your interest’ form available here.

 Alternatively, please don’t hesitate to contact our sales team directly on:

Phone: 1300 576 049

Email: adviser@encompassprotect.com.au

Tags: Adviser services

Our aim is to make life as easy as possible. We’ve therefore kept the number of forms your client needs to complete to the absolute minimum.

In the first instance, we recommend you get in touch with our underwriting, service or claims team – they’ll be able to confirm the most efficient way to manage your enquiry or request.

 Our team can be contacted on:

 Phone: 1300 576 049

Email: customerservice@encompassprotect.com.au

Tags: Adviser services

If you’re a registered Encompass Protection adviser, you can contact your dedicated NEOS service consultant for support with Encompass Protection administration or commission enquiries.

If you’re not a registered Encompass Protection adviser, simply complete our ‘register your interest’ form available here.

 Alternatively, please don’t hesitate to contact our sales team directly on:

Phone: 1300 576 049

Email: adviser@encompassprotect.com.au

Tags: Commissions | Adviser services

If you’re a registered Encompass Protection adviser, you can contact your dedicated underwriter for support with Encompass Protection underwriting questions and enquiries.

If you’re not a registered Encompass Protection adviser, simply complete our ‘register your interest’ form available here.

 Alternatively, please don’t hesitate to contact our sales team directly on:

Phone: 1300 576 049

Email: adviser@encompassprotect.com.au

Tags: Applying for Encompass Protection | Adviser services

You can now complete a quote or application for Encompass Protection using the same platform that you use for NEOS Protection (this also means you can use your existing NEOS username and password to login).

You can access the adviser portal here.

Note: you will still need to be registered with Encompass Protection to complete a client application. You can register to be an Encompass Protection adviser here.

Tags: About Encompass Protection | Adviser services

If you’re a registered NEOS Protection adviser, you can contact your dedicated NEOS BDM for support with Encompass Protection.

If you’re not a registered NEOS Protection adviser, simply complete our ‘register your interest’ form available here.

 Alternatively, please don’t hesitate to contact our sales team directly on:

Phone: 1300 576 049

Email: adviser@encompassprotect.com.au

Tags: Adviser services

No, Encompass Protection does not charge a policy fee.

Tags: About Encompass Protection

Yes, a 7.5% premium discount will apply to our lump sum covers (Life Cover, TPD Cover and Critical Illness Cover) when the insured person meets the following criteria:

  • BMI between 19 and 28.5 inclusive; and
  • non-smoker.

See our Adviser Guide for further details.

Tags: About Encompass Protection

Our application system only supports one insured person per policy. This streamlined process ensures your clients are covered as quickly and painlessly as possible.

Tags: About Encompass Protection

We know how much advisers value the experience that NEOS delivers. Whether it’s the dedicated service team, fast turnaround times or easy-to-use adviser portal, the NEOS Experience makes an adviser’s job easier and improves client satisfaction.

That’s why NEOS has partnered with MLC Life Insurance to launch Encompass Protection – a product that combines the NEOS Experience with MLC Life Insurance’s financial strength and claims service.

All Encompass Protection life insurance policies are promoted and administered by NEOS.

This means that regardless of whether you’ve recommended NEOS Protection or Encompass Protection to your client, you will:

  • Have the same, dedicated NEOS BDM, underwriter and service consultant working with you across both products
  • Quote, apply and manage your clients using the same adviser portal

Tags: About Encompass Protection | About NEOS Life

Continuity of cover means that we will renew your Encompass Protection policy each year until it expires, provided premiums are paid when due. This means we won’t cancel cover, place further restrictions on it or increase premiums because of changes to the insured person’s health, occupation or pastimes.

Tags: About life insurance | About Encompass Protection

If you feel we haven’t resolved your complaint to your satisfaction, you can then lodge your complaint with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA). AFCA is an independent organisation, which provides free assistance to customers who have complaints about financial products and services. AFCA can be contacted at:

Phone: 1800 931 678
Website: www.afca.org.au
Address: GPO Box 3, Melbourne VIC 3001
Email: info@afca.org.au

Tags: Complaints | About Encompass Protection

We’ll make every effort to try and resolve your complaint as quickly and as fairly as possible.

If you have a concern or complaint, please contact us in the first instance via the details below. We’ll endeavour to manage this to your satisfaction without undue delay. We’ll make sure we call you within two days of receipt of your complaint.

Call us: 1300 476 030

Email us: customer@encompassprotect.com.au

If we can’t resolve your complaint quickly, we’ll formally record the details, with your assistance, to ensure that it’s correctly understood and progressed through the appropriate channels. This may involve external parties such as the insurer and your financial adviser.

Our complaints manager will work closely with you to resolve your complaint and keep you updated along the way. Please note that while the law allows insurance companies up to 45 days to respond to complaints (90 days for super complaints), we’ll always endeavour to respond to you as soon as possible.

Tags: Complaints | About Encompass Protection

If you’ve made a claim, you can generally access all the information we hold about you, except for certain instances, as per privacy legislation, where we need to provide information directly to your doctor (instead of you).

Simply call us on 1300 476 030 or email us at claims@encompassprotect.com.au and we’ll organise to send you a copy of your claims file.

Tags: Claims | About Encompass Protection

If you’re concerned about the way your claim is progressing, or disagree with our response to your claim, please talk to your Encompass Protection claims consultant first. If they can’t resolve your issue, you can have the issue reviewed by our claims manager or Claims Review Committee.

Should you remain unhappy after our internal review, you can have an external body like an ombudsman or a regulator try to resolve the issue. We’ll provide you with information about the options available and how you can contact the relevant organisation.

Tags: Claims | About Encompass Protection

If you’re legally competent to apply for a claim and your claim is approved, all benefits will be paid to you or your legal personal representative. If you’re judged not legally competent, we’ll pay the benefits to whomever we’re legally permitted to make payments. If your claim is approved, all benefits will be paid to you or your legal representative.

Tags: Claims | About Encompass Protection

Yes, it’s important to continue paying your premiums while your claim is being assessed to ensure your cover isn’t cancelled.

Tags: About Encompass Protection | Claims

We promise to let you know the outcome of your claim as soon as possible. But assessing your claim may, in some instances, depend on circumstances that are outside of our control.

Some claims are simple, but others are more involved and depend on how promptly we’re able to obtain information from you and from any relevant doctors or other third parties.

When providing details about your claim to us, it’s best that you provide as much detail and clarity as you can. This will help us get back to you as soon as possible.

Tags: About Encompass Protection | Claims

We’re here, along with your financial adviser, to support you through the claims process. If you need to make a claim, we’re here to support you with personalised and compassionate attention every step of the way.

We’ll do our very best to make the process easy, and once claim conditions are met, get you paid as quickly as possible.

Get started with a claim by contacting us on 1300 476 030 or claims@encompassprotect.com.au as soon as you know you need to make a claim and we’ll get things moving. Our phone lines are open 8.00am to 6.00pm (AEST/AEDT) Monday to Friday.

Tags: About Encompass Protection | Claims

We may pay your financial adviser a commission. Any amount paid is factored into the cost of your policy. Your financial adviser will provide you with a Financial Services Guide and where applicable, a Statement of Advice, which will detail the benefits they receive for selling you your policy.

Tags: Commissions | About Encompass Protection

We recalculate the premiums for your policy each year at your policy anniversary.  We will also recalculate the premiums for your policy when there is a change to your policy.

If we make changes to your premium, including making changes to our premium rates, the change will only apply to you once a year, effective from your next policy anniversary. We’ll give you at least one month’s written notice before premiums change. If you make changes to your policy, we’ll recalculate your premium based on the rates applicable at the time the change is approved by us.

Your premiums will vary depending on several factors including:

  • your premium type – variable age-stepped premium or level premium. The level premium type ceased being available on 16 February 2024
  • your eligibility for discounts – we may from time to time offer discounts that may reduce your premiums. These discounts are not guaranteed, may be varied or removed, and may not apply over the life of your policy, and
  • the length of time since you applied for cover – when you first apply for insurance, we undertake a detailed assessment of your personal circumstances. As we know more about your situation at that time, we’re able to offer insurance to you at reduced standard premium rates. As time passes, your premiums will gradually increase to our standard premium rates.

Your premiums will also change if, for example:

  • your sum insured changes, including because of Indexation Benefit increases
  • there are changes to stamp duty or other government charges
  • there are changes to policy fees (as at the date of this PDS, no policy fee applies), or
  • we make changes to our standard premium rates, or the discounts we offer.

Tags: About my policy | About Encompass Protection

Premium payments for Encompass Protection policies are paid through direct debit, either by credit card or debit card, ensuring you don’t accidently forget a payment. You can choose to pay your premium monthly or yearly. If you pay your premium monthly, we’ll apply a premium frequency loading to your premium, which helps cover the costs of collecting your premium more frequently.

We can change the frequency loading percentages at any time and will notify you of any material changes.  Any changes will apply to your next policy anniversary.

Tags: About my policy | About Encompass Protection

Interim accident cover is designed to provide you with limited cover while your application is being assessed by us and is available free of charge. It starts as soon as we receive your fully completed application form, a completed personal statement and a completed premium deduction authority.

Tags: About Encompass Protection | About life insurance | About my policy

Guaranteed renewable means that we guarantee to renew your cover each year until it expires, provided premiums are paid when due. This means we won’t cancel cover, place further restrictions on it or increase premiums because of changes to the insured person’s health, occupation or pastimes.

Tags: About my policy

If you cancel your Encompass Protection policy during the cooling-off period and you haven’t made a claim, your policy will be cancelled from the commencement date, and we’ll refund any premiums you’ve paid. If your cover is inside super, your refund may need to be preserved within super.

If you cancel your policy after the cooling-off period, premiums aren’t refundable.

Tags: About Encompass Protection | About life insurance | About my policy

We know life is constantly changing, and you may need to make changes to your Encompass Protection policy from time to time. In many cases, general policy alterations such as changes of address or bank account details can be completed over the phone. For more complex policy alterations, we may require additional information. Either way, simply call us on 1300 476 030 or email us at customer@encompassprotect.com.au and we’ll make the process as easy for you as possible.

Tags: About Encompass Protection | About life insurance | About my policy

Your Encompass Protection policy starts when your application has been assessed and approved by us, and we have received your first premium. As soon as your cover is approved, a welcome letter will be sent to you via email, along with a policy schedule outlining the full details of your cover, including your policy’s commencement date.

Tags: About my policy | About Encompass Protection

If you’re applying for life insurance, or increasing the insurance cover you already have, it’s important you tell us about any change in your health or financial circumstances. If during this process, you’ve forgotten to tell your adviser something, we recommend you contact them as soon as possible to discuss. Alternatively, you can contact us directly by phoning us on 1300 476 030 or sending an email to customer@encompassprotect.com.au

Once you’ve been accepted for insurance cover, you don’t need to update us of any changes to your health, financial circumstances or occupation.

Tags: About my policy | About Encompass Protection

Encompass Protection policies allow for one insured person per policy, so your partner will need to apply for insurance cover under their own policy.

Tags: About my policy | About Encompass Protection

You may still be eligible for life insurance if you have any pre-existing health condition(s). Your financial adviser can help answer any questions you may have about these and guide you through the application process.

Tags: About Encompass Protection | About my policy

The setup of your Encompass Protection policy depends on many variables, such as the cover type(s) being applied for, the cover amount and any additional information we may need to assess your application including your current health and medical history. At times, we may need to wait for information to be returned to us from other providers such as your doctor(s).

Importantly, purchasing life insurance with the guidance of your financial adviser means you’re receiving expert advice and your life insurance policy is tailored to your individual needs.

Tags: About life insurance | About Encompass Protection

Your Encompass Protection policy can be owned by a super fund or outside super, by you or a legal entity. Your financial adviser can help you decide which ownership option is best for you.

Tags: About life insurance | About Encompass Protection

A beneficiary is the person (or persons) you choose to receive your benefit if you pass away while you’re covered by a life insurance policy. If you’re choosing more than one beneficiary, you’ll need to let us know what proportion of the total benefit amount you’d like each beneficiary to receive. If you wish to add or update a beneficiary nomination for your policy, you can do so at any time. Simply call us on 1300 476 030 or email us at customer@encompassprotect.com.au

Tags: About life insurance

Level premium ceased being available on 16 February 2024.

With level premiums, the premium is calculated based on the insured person’s age at the cover commencement date and the applicable premium rate for that age.

Level premiums generally start out higher than variable age-stepped premiums, but may become lower at some point in the future. This is because level premiums have the cost of providing insurance spread out over a number of years and will not increase because of the insured person’s age.

Level premiums may still increase or vary due to other reasons, such as increases to the sum insured (including increases as a result of the Indexation Benefit if applicable), changes to the cover or eligibility for discounts, or if the insurer makes changes to the premium rates. For more information, please see the FAQ on ‘How do my premiums change each year?’

Premium rates can change and are not guaranteed. If we make changes to our standard premium rates, we will always act reasonably and with utmost good faith, and any changes will be applied consistently for policies of the same kind. This means an individual policy will not be singled out for a change in premium rates.

Tags: About life insurance

With variable age-stepped premiums, the premium is re-calculated on each policy anniversary based on the insured person’s age and the applicable premium rate on that anniversary. Variable age-stepped premiums will usually increase each year in line with the insured person’s age and any increases to the sum insured (including increases as a result of the Indexation Benefit if applicable). Premiums may also change due to other factors such as changes to the cover or eligibility for discounts, or if the insurer makes changes to the premium rates. For more information, please see the FAQ on ‘How do my premiums change each year?’

Premium rates can change and are not guaranteed. If we make changes to our standard premium rates, we will always act reasonably and with utmost good faith,

and any changes will be applied consistently for policies of the same kind. This means an individual policy will not be singled out for a change in premium rates.

Please note: Variable age-stepped premiums were previously known as stepped premiums.

Tags: About life insurance

Income Protection Cover replaces up to 70% of the insured person’s income if they’re unable to work due to illness or injury. This can help you cover day-to-day expenses such as school fees or mortgage and car repayments and allows you to focus on your recovery.

Tags: Product | About life insurance

Critical illness cover provides a lump sum payment if the insured person suffers a critical illness. You can use this money for any purpose, whether it’s to seek specialised medical treatment, reduce debts or make necessary lifestyle changes.

Tags: Product | About life insurance

TPD cover provides a lump sum payment if the insured person becomes totally and permanently disabled. This can help you pay medical expenses or cover the cost of necessary lifestyle changes.

Tags: Product | About life insurance

Life insurance, sometimes also referred to as life cover, provides a lump sum payment if the insured person dies or is diagnosed with a terminal illness. You can use this to pay off debts such as a mortgage, to cover daily living expenses or save it for future needs such as school fees.

Tags: About life insurance

No, Encompass Protection is only available as an individual life insurance policy and only via financial advisers.

Tags: About Encompass Protection

Encompass Protection is issued by MLC Limited (MLC Life Insurance) ABN 90 000 000 402 AFSL 230694.

MLC Life Insurance has been protecting Australian lives for over 130 years, and in 2022 paid over $1.2 billion in claims to its customers. It has built a strong reputation for excellence in claims management. In fact, MLC Life Insurance has some of the fastest claims approval turnaround times in the industry and are known for managing claims effectively and efficiently. So, you can be confident that you and your loved ones are in safe hands because all Encompass claims are handled by the team at MLC Life Insurance.

For further information visit: www.mlcinsurance.com.au

Tags: About Encompass Protection | About MLC Life Insurance

Encompass Protection is a highly rated suite of life insurance cover types available as self-owned or superannuation owned policies that will meet the needs of most customers, at very competitive prices. The cover types available under Encompass Protection include:

Cover Available as Maximum sum insured at entry
Life Cover Stand-alone $3,000,000
Total & Permanent Disability
(TPD) Cover		 Attached to Life Cover
Linked to Life Cover
Split		 $3,000,000
Critical Illness Cover Stand-alone
Attached to Life Cover
Linked to Life Cover		 $1,000,000
Income Protection Cover Stand-alone $20,000 per month

Life Cover, TPD Cover and Income Protection Cover are available both inside and outside super.

Encompass Protection is issued by MLC Limited and promoted and administered by NEOS Life.

Tags: About Encompass Protection | Product

NEOS Life (NEOS) is a registered business name of Australian Life Development Pty Ltd ABN 96 617 129 914 AFSL 502759.

NEOS is a specialist in life insurance administration and provides administrative services for Encompass Protection.

Since their launch in 2018, NEOS has changed the way life insurance is delivered in Australia by focusing on making life insurance easy, accessible and friendly. In doing so, they’ve lived up to their mission of setting a new standard in life insurance. As a result, you can expect a truly outstanding customer experience when it comes to the assessment of your application and management of your Encompass Protection life insurance policy.

For further information visit: www.neoslife.com.au

Tags: About Encompass Protection | About NEOS Life

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