Plan family · overview
Life insurance
“Life insurance” in everyday speech usually means term life — a lump sum if you die during the term. TPD and trauma are different promises. Income protection is a fourth job. Treat each as its own ledger row, even when they are sold in one application.
- This page
- Family overview — not a price table
- Deep guide
- /life-insurance-plans/ is the heritage how-to-choose ledger
- Not IP
- Income protection pays while you cannot work
- Super
- Group cover in super has its own guide and definitions
At a glance
Plan ledger
- 01
Term life
Lump sum on death (and sometimes terminal illness) during the term.
- 02
TPD
Lump sum if you meet a total and permanent disablement definition.
- 03
Trauma / critical illness
Lump sum if a specified medical event in the list is met.
- 04
Income protection
Regular payments after a wait — different page, different job.
Why this page exists
The 2017 site linked “life insurance” as a category and as plan pages. This rebuild keeps /life-insurance/ as a family map. The how-to-choose essay lives at life insurance plans.
Four jobs people conflate
- Term life — dependents or a business need a lump sum if you die.
- TPD — a lump sum if you are totally and permanently disabled as defined.
- Trauma / critical illness — a lump sum if a listed condition is met as defined.
- Income protection — income replacement while you cannot work, after a wait.
If you only buy the one with the lowest monthly figure, you may have bought a different job than the one you named.
TPD — the definition is the product
TPD wordings often distinguish “own occupation” and “any occupation”, and they may require that you are unlikely to ever work again in a suited role. That is a high bar. A broken arm that heals is usually an income-protection conversation, not a TPD conversation.
Read the definition as if you were explaining it to a friend. If you cannot, you do not yet understand the rider.
Trauma — the list is the product
Trauma cover pays (if it pays) because a named condition matches a clinical definition, sometimes after a survival period. Two “heart attack” labels can still differ. This is why a brochure list of conditions is not enough. The PDS glossary is the product.
Cover inside super
Many Australians hold life and TPD through super. Group definitions can be tighter, and claims go through the fund. “I have cover in super” is the start of a document hunt, not the end of the ledger. MoneySmart’s life-insurance pages are the official explainer we point to.
Where to go next
- Choosing term life as a plan: life insurance plans
- Why “cheapest” is a weak first metric: heritage cheapest-life path
- The other job: income protection plans
Questions, answered first
Direct answers first — the format answer engines and humans both need. These are general explanations, not advice.
- Is life insurance the same as income protection?
- No. Term life is generally a lump sum on death. Income protection is generally a regular payment if you cannot work because of illness or injury. See both heritage guides.
- What is TPD in one sentence?
- A benefit that may pay if you meet the policy’s definition of total and permanent disablement — often stricter than “I cannot do my current job this month.”
- What is trauma cover in one sentence?
- A benefit that may pay if you are diagnosed with a condition on the insurer’s specified list, subject to definitions, survival periods and exclusions.
- Should these be bundled?
- Bundling can be convenient. It can also hide a weak definition on one rider. Compare each promise as its own row.
Sources we point to
Official education and complaints pathways. They do not replace a Product Disclosure Statement.
Next readings
Life insurance plans
Term life, beneficiaries, underwriting questions, and why a cheap premium is a poor first metric.
Income protection plans
Waiting periods, benefit periods, and how “unable to work” definitions change the promise.
Why “cheapest life insurance” is a weak metric
A careful rewrite of a 2017 heritage path.
What is a PDS?
How to read a Product Disclosure Statement without drowning in the appendix.
Next step — education, not a quote
Open the life plans ledger
Write the event, open the PDS, line up waits and exclusions, then look at any premium you were actually quoted. We do not sell cover or invent a saving.