Is there anything that insurers do not cover? A question I field casually quite often so I thought I would make a short, quick and to the point blog post to cover this.

Digging a little deeper into what scenarios are often excluded from different policies. Every provider and product are different, so it pays to read your policy document in full (find a rainy day and pour yourself a cuppa to get through it).

This blog we will be fairly generalized as these are the things that are often excluded from your personal risk products.

Often with this sort of conversation it is best to be blunt and to the point, so I apologise if it feels as though I am dismissing the seriousness of these topics, that is not my intention.

Simply put these are listed here below.

Life and Disability Insurance

-          Suicide, Attempted suicide or intentional self-harm for first 13 months of cover

-          Illegal activity such as drink driving or drug abuse

-          War, terrorism, civil commotion and other similar events

-          A known pre-existing condition that was not disclosed when applying

-          High risk occupations and leisure

Health Insurance

-          Pre-existing conditions

-          Health screening

-          HIV and HIV related disorders including AIDS

-          Infertility or associated reproduction assistance (IVF)

-          Gender re-assignment and cosmetic surgery

With some of these exclusions it pays to see what government support is available for these excluded scenarios.

If you have a high BMI you are likely to have a loading which means you will have cover but it will be more expensive. As with smoking which will also result in more expensive premiums.

Some policies may cover the above, and some may have additional events not covered. It also should be mentioned that some insurers have still paid out even with these events included, which has been the case with past terrorism event where insurer still paid essentially ignoring their own exclusion to ensure best customer outcomes.

It was said at the start, read your policy document and ask questions.