Are you thinking of making a TPD Claim? Not sure where to start?
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TPD is short for Total and Permanent Disability. Basically, TPD is a compensation benefit for someone who can no longer work due to a permanent mental injury, physical disability or ill health.
The generic definition for TPD is that due to your ill health, it is unlikely that you would be able to be employed in a job that you are reasonably qualified by education, experience or training. (Please note: TPD definition may vary depending on your insurance policy).
Now that you’re clear on what defines TPD, let’s walk you through the 5 steps to making a TPD Claim.
These are the steps you will need to go through in order to lodge a claim directly yourself:
STEP 1: Contact your superannuation company: Inform them of your health condition and the date that you were last employed. Ask them for all the necessary TPD forms to fill out including the Initial claim form, Medical Attendant Statements, Certificate of Releases; Employer Statement; and any authorities that the Super Fund require you to sign.
STEP 2: Complete all the requested TPD forms: These forms may include request for two different doctors (ie; your GP and/or your specialist doctor) to complete your Medical Certificate. Other forms maybe requesting your previous employer to confirm your work capacity, job duties and number of hours you previously worked. In summary, complete any or all forms that they asked you to complete and then request the other forms to be completed by the requested by others like your doctor or employer. You maybe requested to provide your tax return records, centrelink details (if you are claiming any centrelink benefits) and your previous medical records.
STEP 3: Submitting all forms back to your superannuation company: Once step 2 is completed, you will then need to submit all the completed forms back to the insurer. If you have any questions related to the forms, you can always contact your superannuation company and request them to clarify. Ie; what to do if your previous employer’s business no longer operating?
STEP 4: Liaise your TPD claim with your assigned Claims Assessor: Generally, once everything has been submitted to your superannuation company, your Claims Assessor (person handling your matter) will get in contact with you regarding your claim. They may request you to provide further information or they may just give you an update regarding your TPD matter. Little Tip: The superannuation company are required to contact you every 20 business days to give you an update regarding your matter. If they don’t then you can lodge a complaint against them.
STEP 5: Finalising your TPD clam:
Your superannuation company are required to make a decision on your TPD claim within 6 months of receiving all the claim forms. They can then make one of the three decisions as follows:
- Accept your claim: If they accept your claim then that means your entitled to your TPD lump sum compensation.
- Decline your claim: That means they are not satisfied that you are either permanently ill or injured, or you do not meet their policy eligibility and/or definition.
- Procedural Fairness: This means that based on the information they have, they will most likely decline your claim however they wish to give you an opportunity to provide any further documents that may support your claim. Usually they provide 28 days.
Our purpose of sharing the 5 Steps to Making a TPD Claim with you is to educate and spread our knowledge with you. We know often contacting the superannuation company is difficult enough, let alone lodging a claim with them. Hence, we anticipate our 5 steps TPD guide was helpful for you.
If you still have questions and need some legal advice, then feel free to contact us. We provide a FREE 30 minutes consultation where you won’t pay us a cent for the call.
If you’re undecided about whether you should use a lawyer for your claim, read our next blog benefits-of-choosing-a-tpd-lawyer-to-help-you-with-your-tpd-claim/
If you’d like to learn more about how we can help you with your TPD claim, contact one of our friendly lawyers at (02) 9854 5552
