Review and Compare MLC Life Insurance
MLC provides its customers with a wide range of insurance products to choose from, including Life Insurance, Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) Insurance, Income Protection, and Critical Illness insurance. Compare policies to determine whether this insurer provides cover suited to your personal requirements.
Published September 26, 2022
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MLC Life Insurance at a glance
Since 1886, MLC has been protecting the lives of Australians. They are Australia’s fourth-largest life insurance provider, with more than 872.8k clients and 10.6 percent market share. They are partly owned by Nippon Life, one of Japan’s largest life insurance companies and the National Australia Bank (NAB), both very and reputable companies.
You might want to compare MLC with other reputable insurance companies to see which company offers the best products and prices to best suit your requirements.
Types of cover from MLC
- Life Cover: This type of cover pays a lump sum if you die or are diagnosed with a terminal illness.
- Total and Permanent Disablement (TPD) Cover: This type of cover pays a benefit if you become totally and permanently disabled and are unable to ever work again.
- Critical illness: Generally covers you if you’re diagnosed with a Critical Condition as defined by your policy documents. This type of cover is also known as Trauma insurance.
- Child Critical illness: MLC provides optional child critical illness cover which allows you to protect your child should they be diagnosed with a specified critical illness or injury.
- Income protection: Typically, this type of cover will replace a certain percentage of your income while you recover from an illness or injury. MLC offers two policy options, Income Assure and Income Assure +.
- Business expenses insurance: This type of cover typically reimburses your fixed business expenses if you are unable to work as a result of sickness or injury.
About MLC
In 1869, the National Mutual Life Association of Australasia Limited (MLC) was founded in Melbourne. In 1907 it merged with The Citizens’ Life Assurance Company Limited to form the Mutual Life and Citizen Assurance Company, also known as MLC.
In 1985, the company became a subsidiary of a multinational company called Lend Lease before being taken over by the National Australia Bank in 2000. There was even more growth in 2009 as National Australia Bank acquired Aviva for $825 million and merged it with MLC. In 2016, 80% of MLC’s shares were acquired by Nippon Life, the largest insurance company in Japan by revenue.
MLC has grown from strength to strength over the years and offers several insurance packages to suit different budgets and customer needs. They also help their customers by providing them with access to their wellness program, MLC Vivo which generally offers new clients a discount on their premium if they fall within a certain BMI range.
They also have an exclusive service called MLC Best Doctors that gives customers access to leading health care professionals if they need a second opinion regarding a diagnosis or treatment for no additional cost.
Does the company provide value for money insurance?
Whether MLC provides value for money depends on several factors, such as your budget, requirements, and lifestyle choices. They are a reputable company with a variety of competitively priced products to suit a wide range of demographics. You may want to compare them with other leading brands to see which one best suits your requirements and budget.
Pros and Cons of MLC life insurance
Advantages
- Worldwide cover: The policy is valid anywhere in the world
- 24/7 Protection: The policy is valid anytime night and day, seven days a week.
- Discounts: You can generally get discounts of up 7.5% through the MLC Vivo program.
- Cooling off Period: There is a cooling-off period of 14 days in which you can cancel your policy and get a refund. The cooling-off period is typically valid if you haven’t made any claims during the timeframe.
- Guarantee of Upgrade: Future benefits that may improve your policy will be passed on to you as long as the premiums stay the same.
- Access to MLC Best Doctors: This award-winning service gives customers access to over 50 000 medical health professionals from Australia and all over the world if you required a second opinion concerning diagnosis or treatment. This service comes at no additional cost to customers and can be used as many times as they like.
Disadvantages
- Exclusions: Certain exclusions may prevent you from making a claim, review the PDS for more information.
- Benefits: This insurer does not offer all of the extra benefits offered by other insurers.
MLC Insurance Policy Options
MLC offers a variety of insurance packages to protect its customers this includes Life Cover, Income Protection, Critical Illness Insurance, TPD Insurance, Business Expenses Insurance, and Chid Critical Illness Insurance. Many of the packages have different levels to accommodate different budgets, needs, and lifestyles. They’re also customizable, with extra benefits available at an extra cost.
Life Insurance
MLC Life cover generally pays a lump sum payment in the event of terminal illness diagnosis or death. Your beneficiaries may use the money for a range of things, such as settling medical bills, paying outstanding debts, or supporting their current lifestyle.
Entry Age: 16 years old to 70 years, depending on the premium structure and premium type- stepped or level premium.
Expiry Age: 74 years old (Inside super), 100 years old (Outside super).
Minimum Cover: $25,000
Maximum Cover: No maximum amount, but special terms may apply to benefits greater than $15 million.
Total and Permanent Disability Insurance
TPD (Total and Permanent Disability) Insurance offers you a once-off payment in the event that you were to suffer a total and permanent disability. It generally covers illness or injury that could prevent you from working on your own or any other occupation. The payout can typically be used to support your family, pay medical bills, or adjust to new lifestyle changes that may occur.
Entry Age: 16 years old to 60 years old
Expiry Age: 65 years old to 100 years old depending on the premium structure and if it is linked to other policies.
Minimum Cover: $25,000
Maximum Cover: $3 million, $2 million if linked to Critical Illness and $5 million for professional occupations such as surgeons, solicitors and accountants.
Trauma Insurance
Also known as Critical Illness insurance, this type of insurance typically pays out a lump sum payment if you have a health condition that’s deemed to be critical as listed in the MLC Life Insurance PDS such as heart attack, cancer or stroke for example. The payments can be used for a variety of reasons such as to settle medical bills or assist in mortgage repayments.
Entry Age: 19 years old to 60 years old
Expiry Age: 75 years old
Minimum Cover: $25,000
Maximum Cover: $2 million
Income Protection
MLC Income Protection Insurance typically pays out a part of your income if you are unable to work because of injury or sickness. Income Protection generally gets paid as a monthly benefit.
Entry Age: 19 years old to 60 years old
Expiry Age: 65 years old to 70 years old, depending on your premium structure (inside or outside super).
Minimum Cover: Monthly benefit of $1,500
Maximum Cover: A monthly benefit of $30,000
Business Expenses
Business Expenses Insurance typically helps business owners and partnerships to meet their business expenses like rent and electricity if they are unable to work due to an accident or health-related problems. The money can be used to keep your business running while you can’t work.
Entry Age: 19 years old to 60 years old.
Expiry Age: 65 years old
Minimum Cover: $1,500.00
Maximum Cover: $60,000 a month
Child Critical Illness Insurance
Child Critical Illness Insurance provides you with assistance in the event that your child was to become critically ill or die as a result of an illness as specified in the PDS. It can only be applied for if the parent holds one of the insurance policies listed above and you’ll generally only be able to cover a maximum of 5 children.
Entry Age: 3 years old to 18 years old
Expiry Age: 21 years old
Minimum Cover: $10 000
Maximum Cover: $200 000
What are some of the features offered by MLC insurance policies?
- Terminal illness benefit: MLC will pay you the terminal illness benefit if you are diagnosed with a critical illness as long as your policy is still in force.
- Increases without further medical evidence: In some cases, you may be allowed to increase your Life Insurance. Critical Illness, or TPD cover without supplying new medical evidence of a personal or business event.
- Economiser: You can freeze your premiums so that they will remain the same in the future, but your sum insured will be reduced.
- Advanced Death Benefit: MLC will pay a once-off payment of $20,000 to your beneficiaries to cover assist in covering funeral costs provided that you are insured for over $20,000. They must be supplied with a certified copy of your birth and death certificate.
- Financial planning benefit: Part of the costs charged by your financial advisor will be reimbursed up to a maximum amount of $5,000 if you have a lump sum benefit of $100,000 or more.
- Accidental Injury Benefit: If you sustain certain critical injuries, you may typically receive 100% of your Life Cover Insurance Benefit up to a maximum amount of $2,000,000. Examples of this include losing the use of both hands and both feet, or sight in both eyes. You can generally receive up to 25% of sum insured up to $500,000 if you have an accident and lose the use of one hand or one foot, or lose sight in one eye.
Benefit indexation: If benefits have been paid continuously for a year, your benefits and earnings before disability will be increased to match inflation.
Insurance in Super with MLC
MLC life insurance generally gives you the option to take out cover through your superannuation fund, which lets you package several types of cover within one policy. This allows you to tailor cover to suit your needs and may also let you take advantage of a number of tax concessions which are usually unavailable if your cover is outside of your super.
How to apply for an MLC life insurance policy
To apply for cover from this insurer, you’ll generally need to follow the following steps:
- Apply for a policy with MLC through our comparison site.
- To apply, you have to meet certain criteria, including health, age, and occupational parameters.
- Decide which cover meets your your budget and requirements.
- Disclose any current or past medical issues during your application. MLC may require you to complete additional medical examinations.
- When coming to a final decision, the insurer may decide to adjust the terms of your policy. They may choose to issue revised terms such as an exclusion or loading if they see you as a higher risk.
- Your policy will then be approved, and you will be issued with a policy schedule, containing all the details of your policy including special conditions, exclusions, benefit amounts, your policy commencement date and other important information.
How to lodge an MLC Insurance Claim
- Yourself or your beneficiary must notify us or contact MLC directly on 1300 125 246 between 8:30 am to 6 pm Monday to Friday.
- The consultant on the phone will then guide you through the process of lodging a claim and will supply you with a claims form.
- You must then send MLC your completed form along with any additional documents they may have requested.
- After receiving the documents, they will then refer you to your dedicated claims assessor who will then notify you of the outcome.
MLC Vivo
If you’re considering purchasing life insurance from MLC, it’s important to know about the Vivo discount program. The Vivo discount is a way for MLC to encourage customers to live healthier lifestyles. Customers who are eligible for the Vivo discount can save up to 7.5% on their insurance premiums. To be eligible for the Vivo discount, customers must fall within a qualifying BMI range of between 18.5 to 28.5. This is confirmed during the underwriting process and the discount is then automatically applied to your premium.
Frequently asked questions and answers
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What does MLC Life Insurance stand for?
MLC Life Insurance is formally known as Mutual Life & Citizens Assurance Company Limited. It was initially founded as Citizens’ Assurance Company Limited. The company has been providing Australians with life insurance products since 1869 and is one of the largest providers of life insurance products in the country. -
How do I contact MLC life insurance?
To contact MLC life insurance, you can call them on 13 65 25 or Toll free on 1800 062 061. Their offices are open Mondays to Fridays between 8.30am to 6pm. It’s generally a good idea to have your policy number and any relevant documents on hand prior to calling to ensure that you get the help that you require. -
How do I claim my MLC life insurance?
To make a claim from this insurer, there are generally a couple of options available to you. You could contact the insurer directly, fill in the online MLC claim form or you could contact your financial advisor. If you need to make a claim, it’s typically a good idea to contact the insurer as soon as possible. -
Who owns MLC life insurance?
In 2016, Nippon Life purchased an 80% stake in MLC. The other 20% is still owned by the National Australia Bank (NAB). The Nippon Life Insurance Company is one of the world’s largest mutual life insurance companies and has been around since 1889. -
How can I cancel MLC life insurance?
You can cancel your MLC life insurance policy at any time as long as you advise MLC in writing. You also have a 14-day cooling-off period in which you can cancel your policy and receive a full refund.
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If I am a director of a company, only drawing a wage for work while employed by the company, (ie: no work, no pay,) am I entitled to be paid income protection, after the waiting period?
Yours Sincerely,
Greg Hancock
Thank you for your great question.
Generally, a director of a company may be able to claim on Income Protection even though their income may be termed as ‘inconsistent or irregular’. However, the Insurer may require payment notices (proof of income received) that the director was receiving for work completed much like the common ‘pay slip’ and a copy of their previous years ‘Tax Return’ & ‘Notice of Assessment’ issued by the ATO. They may also require a copy of their work / remuneration contract with the company in which they are a director for, to understand the claimants important income producing duties and the specific remuneration paid for completing those duties.
Important to note income protection policies generally cover personal exertion income only.
The insured would also be required to satisfy the definition within the Policy Document and the PDS under Total Disablement or Partial Disablement for a claim to be assessed. It is also important to remember that any ‘offset’ clauses that may be within the terms of the policy may also reduce any benefits payable.
While this information is a general guide only it is important you check your specific policy, terms and eligibility criteria with your specific insurer.
Hi, my name is Adam
I would like Life Cover of $350,000 and Critical Illness Cover of $70,000.
I am 37 years old and operate a bulldozer for work. I am also a non-smoker.
Can you provide me with a quote? I am wanting to pay annually,
Regards
Adam.
Hi Adam
When considering critical illness cover you may also want to look out for Plus policies as they offer more cover than Standard policies (We include both policy options in our results to ensure you have full visibility). If you need any assistance in understanding the features and benefits of each policy and how they may benefit you please feel free to reach out to us on 1300 135 205.
Does this mean that existing members with MLC Life Cover will still have to pay policy fees?
Thanks Yvonne for your question. For MLCI and MLCI (Superannuation) policies, the fees have been abolished. If you have an older product such as Personal Protection Portfolio / Life Cover Super or Protection First (Aviva), the fees will still apply as per the policy agreement. Thank You
My husband has MLC superannuation. Will this make it cheaper to get life insurance, or is this covered?
Hi Susan,
Group insurance offered by superannuation funds are currently in a major state of flux, some are competitive and some are priced over the top due to wide spread claims within the superfund membership.
Therefore I would firstly understand what is covered or offered by his existing MLC fund. Then compare premiums and rates from a number of insurer’s to see if they are competitive. Please note Retail policies can generally be funded through a super fund.
Our extensive research is an indication of how much premiums can vary between, Retail, Direct & Group offering in the life insurance sector.
If you need help comparing please reach out to the team once you have his existing cover details on 1300 135 205.
Is MLC still a mutual?
Hello, William.
No, MLC is no longer entirely owned by its policy owners.
80% of its life insurance business was bought by Nippon Life, one of the world’s leading insurers. National Australia Bank Limited (NAB) continues to retain 20% of the new life insurance business.
However, the MLC brand still continues to be used across the insurance super, investment and advice offering.
NAB made the choice to enter into this life insurance strategic partnership to improve return in the MLC business while maintaining business stability, with a strong customer focus.
I have had an MLC life cover plus policy for the past 20 years. I am now planning to migrate overseas. I intend to continue paying the premiums on the cover but wish to clarify a few queries.
Firstly, will I be eligible to continue taking the policy whilst I am living outside Australia?
Secondly, will I be eligible to claim benefits upon my death while resident outside Australia?
Hello Sam,
Good question. In general, if your life insurance policy is guaranteed renewable, you should be covered worldwide 24/7.
However, this is not always the case. Please check your product disclosure statement (PDS) to confirm this. If in doubt, contact your insurer directly.
I am trying to get a status report on 2 old insurance policies taken out by my wife in the 1970’s. She is still alive so this is not about a claim. These polices were taken out in New Zealand in 1971 & 1974. We migrated to Australia in 2000 and I think the automatic premium payments may have stopped around that time. (Not sure why because other automatic payments for other policies are still being paid out of the old ANZ account in New Zealand.) My wife’s name is Sharolyn Marie Wright (nee Tosse). The policy numbers are 71-80993 & 74-88239. Can you provide a status report or can you tell me how I can?
Hi Edward,
Thank you for the question. I would recommend that you contact the insurer directly. If you would like the team to review your policy please complete the quote form above or call 1300 135 205 and a specialist will assist you.