For any tradie’s family there is one thing they want more than anything else, and that’s for you to get home safely each day.

Unfortunately worksites are dangerous places, and accidents do happen. You can do all the right things to stay safe, but sometimes it’s simply out of your control.

Insurance might not be able to stop these accidents from happening, but it can certainly help to look after you and your family if something was to go wrong.

What is Accidental Injury Insurance?

Accidental injury is a form of insurance which is popular with tradies looking for a little personal protection.

In the event that you suffer a serious injury on the worksite, the policy will pay you a fixed amount depending on the severity of the injury.

As an example, a policy offered by one large Australian insurance company will pay you a fixed amount of $4,000 for a broken arm, $7,500 for a fractured skull and $25,000 for the loss of a limb.

The policies offered by each insurer will have different amounts payable for each different type of injury, with the level of payout generally being in line with the severity of the injury.

How Does it Compare to Income Protection?

Although both policies involve payments to policyholders in the event of being injured, there are virtually no similarities between the two policies.

Whilst accidental injury insurance will pay you a lump sum amount in the event of suffering certain injuries, it does not pay any type of ongoing benefit and it is not based on your income in any way.

On the other hand, income protection will pay you an ongoing benefit until you are well enough to return to work, and the payment will be a reflection (generally 75%) of you usual income.

Accidental injury insurance will generally be considerably cheaper than income protection, however it also provides a less comprehensive level of protection for a tradesman or any other worker.

There aren’t too many benefits of accidental injury cover over income protection other than price, but some people do consider the lack of medical questions and tests to be a benefit.

How Much Does it Cost?

The cost of accidental injury insurance is generally quite low, starting at around $20 per month depending on which insurance company you go with.

There are a number of different factors which can affect the cost, such as your age and the type of trade work you are doing. The policy options you choose can also have an impact on the cost.

Is it Worthwhile?

Accidents happen on worksites around Australia every day, and many of these accidents result in injuries being suffered by hard working tradies.

In many of these cases there are medical expenses to be paid along with rehabilitation costs in the event of serious injuries. There is also the potential for lost income.

It’s true that workers compensation will provide some protection for workers, but if you run your own business or work as a subcontractor you will likely not be covered by workers comp anyway.

So you’d have to say that accidental injury insurance is worthwhile having as a tradie, but it’s important to keep in mind that the policy is not going to provide you with long term protection in the same way that an income protection policy can.

If you just want the absolute cheapest cover available, then accidental injury cover is certainly better than having no cover at all.

Insurance Providers

Here at Tradesman Insurance we don’t deal with accidental injury insurance. We stick with income protection and to a lesser extent sickness and accident insurance.

If you are set on taking out an accidental injury policy we have put together a list of possible options below:

Please note that we do not recommend or endorse the products listed above in any way, nor will we receive any form of commission or incentive if you take out a policy.

We have simply provided the links in good faith for any tradesman who is looking for such a policy.

For more information about any of the policies listed above please contact the relevant insurers directly.

 

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