It has come to FMI’s attention that Momentum circulated an article implying that there is uncertainty in the manner in which FMI assess permanent disability claims under the ‘Own Occupation’ definition.
The article suggests that FMI will terminate a permanent income claim once the claimant is able to return to their own or any suited alternative occupation, irrespective of whether the claimant is insured under the ‘Own Occupation’ or ‘Own or Suited Occupation’ definitions. The article refers to the wording policy of the Business Person Elect (BPE) and was not verified with FMI prior to circulation.
FMI wants to assure its stakeholders that such interpretation is categorically incorrect and misleading. In all cases, FMI will assess a claim relative to the Disability type selected by the client. So, where the claimant is insured under the Own Occupation definition, their claim will be assessed solely relative to their ability to return to work in their nominated or own occupation. This has always been, and continues to be FMI’s practice in assessing own occupation permanent disability claims.
However, we acknowledge that the current BPE policy wording is open to the interpretation suggested by Momentum. This is an unintentional by-product of FMI’s attempts to keep the contractual wording as simple as possible. In response, FMI will immediately update our BPE policy wording to remove the scope for this interpretation. In addition, we will be sending out letters to all our existing clients who are affected to ensure their future peace of mind.
At FMI, offering claim certainty to our clients is central to our operating philosophy. If your client has selected the ‘Own Occupation’ definition, they are insured against the risk of being unable to work in their own occupation as a result of disability. There’s no catch – it’s that simple!
We trust that this addresses any concerns or uncertainty that may have been created by this article.