Vulnerable customers support
Additional support
It’s important that all our members are treated with care and respect and have a fair and reasonable opportunity to access the services that we provide.
We know that some of our members will have personal circumstances that mean they may be less able to make best use of their health insurance. In these situations, we recognise that we need to make additional efforts to ensure equality of access and care to such members.
Circumstances that may limit access might include:
- Health and physical factors – such as physical or mental health conditions
- Language barriers – for example, where English is not your first language
- Age-related issues – ranging from lack of access to technology to dementia or Alzheimers
- Situational factors such as bereavement or other intense periods of personal stress
We believe that every individual is different and has different circumstances. This means that as much as possible, we will respond to you as an individual in a way that is appropriate to your needs. Our customer-facing teams are trained to be aware of and respond appropriately to situations of customer vulnerability.
We take any complaint about treatment of our members seriously and any such complaint will be investigated fully in accordance with our complaints process.
How we provide additional support and assistance
Let us know
If you feel that you, or someone that you represent, are in need of additional support, you can let us know by contacting us.
We will always treat your information with respect, and will only use this type of information to offer any additional support you might need.
Our Support Options
We’re here to ensure that we deliver fair outcomes throughout our interactions with you. It’s important to us that there are no barriers to you accessing our products and services. As every situation is different, there is no single approach that can fit all circumstances, however, examples of where we can offer support are as follows:
Authorised caller
You can nominate an authorised caller who can assist with managing your policy and accessing medical treatment. This person is usually a family member, but can also be an independent financial adviser or other trusted person.
Enduring Power of Attorney
Setting up an Enduring Power of Attorney means that you can nominate a trusted person to manage your policy including making changes to your cover, or looking after payments should you become unable to do this for yourself.
Put your policy on hold during financial hardship
If you, or the person that you represent, are experiencing financial hardship, you can put a policy on hold for a period of up to 3 months. During this time, claims can’t be made but you’ll pay no premium and your membership stays continuous.
We continue to review our support options
There are many factors that contribute to situations of vulnerability, and we understand that our support options will not cover all the issues that our members face. Our products and services will change over time, as will the needs of the members that we serve – and we will continue to evolve our culture of care and support.