Air Crew Insurance
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These questions and answers apply to Aircrew Insurance’s Pilot Loss of Licence cover only. For our other products, please visit the relevant product page.
You can only apply for cover under this policy if at the date of application, you:
Yes. You can still apply for cover if you have been grounded by CASA or if you have a pre-existing medical condition(s). However, you must declare your pre-existing medical history anddetails of your grounding during your application.
Your application will be individually assessed and depending on the nature and circumstances of the condition(s), we may offer cover with a specific medical exclusion, or in some casescover without any exclusion at all.
Once a condition has been fully disclosed and we've agreed in writing to provide cover, it is no longer treated as pre-existing under your policy.
Yes. Before you take out a policy with us, you have a legal duty under the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 to take reasonable care not to make a misrepresentation, meaning your answers toour questions must be true, complete, and not misleading, even for conditions you consider fully resolved. This duty also applies whenever you renew, extend, or make changes to your policy.
If you don't meet this duty, we may reduce the amount we pay on a claim, change the terms of your cover, or in some cases treat your policy as if it never existed. If you're ever unsure whether something is relevant, it's best to disclose it and let us assess it, or check with our team before submitting your application.
No. Aircrew Insurance does not disclose any medical information you provide to us to the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) or any other third party, unless required by law. All medical information submitted as part of your application or claim is treated as strictly confidential and used solely for underwriting and claims assessment purposes.
Yes. Your policy is fully portable whether you change employer, airline, union or contract type, provided you remain gainfully employed as a commercial pilot holding a valid Class 1 (or eligible Class 2) medical certificate.
The policy states that you must notify us of any arrangement to work overseas where the contract of employment is greater than six (6) months. Your eligibility to purchase or renew your Loss of Licence policy depends on the expected length of your working period overseas and whether you intend to maintain your Class 1 (or eligible Class 2) medical certificate.
We recommend that you contact our team to discuss your options.
Yes. If your Loss of Licence allowance or budget increases mid-year, you may be eligible to top up your Loss of Licence depending on your age and the completion of a new Health Declaration.
This policy provides benefits in respect of loss of licence. It does not insure against death. The effect of death on benefits under this policy is set out below.
i. Temporary total disablement (monthly benefit)
If you die during the waiting period, no monthly benefit is payable. If you die after the waiting period, any monthly benefit that accrued from the end of the waiting period up to the date of death will be payable, provided the claim otherwise satisfies the terms, conditions, limitations and exclusions of this policy.
ii. Long term disablement (capital benefit)
The capital benefit is payable only if you survive at least ninety (90) days from the date of loss and your licence is cancelled by CASA while you are alive. If you die before permanent cancellation, no capital benefit is payable. If you die after permanent cancellation, the capital benefit remains payable, provided the claim otherwise satisfies the terms, conditions, limitations and exclusions of this policy.
Any benefit payable following death will be paid to your legal personal representative, unless we are required by law to pay the benefit to another person.
The maximum sum insured available depends on your age and premium spend. If you do not have an allowance or budget, the maximum is currently $1,000,000 for pilots up to age 29, then reduces on a sliding scale in 5-year age groups.
To determine your maximum sum insured, you can enter your age, allowance/budget, and start date into our quote system.
Temporary Inability to Fly cover (Section 3) provides a monthly benefit while your medical certificate is temporarily suspended and you're unable to fly, payable for up to 24 months.
Long term inability to fly cover (Section 2) provides a lump sum capital benefit if your medical certificate is cancelled and you are unable to return to piloting.
Yes. All sections provide cover anywhere in the world, twenty-four (24) hours a day unless otherwise shown in the certificate of insurance, not only incidents that happen while you're on duty.
Yes. Your Loss of Licence policy provides 24/7 worldwide cover, so you're protected regardless of when or how an eligible bodily injury or illness occurs. This includes while flying recreationally or privately, not just during work-related flying, except undertaking activities which are prohibited under your contract of employment.
Please refer to Section 4 of the Policy Wording for the full list of exclusions.
No. Our Loss of Licence policy covers all conditions that aren't pre-existing, including mental health conditions. Pre-existing conditions can be declared and assessed individually, with cover possible depending on the circumstances.
Your policy coverage begins on the start date shown on your Certificate of Insurance, as there is no waiting period for the policy itself to become active. However, waiting periods do apply before benefits become payable following a claim.
The waiting period is the time between the suspension of your Class 1 Medical Certificate (your date of loss) and when benefit payments can begin:
Yes. If CASA places a restriction on your Class 1 medical certificate requiring you to fly with, or as, a qualified co-pilot, and this restriction prevents you from continuing your usual single-pilot duties and earning your normal income, our Co-pilot Restriction Benefit may provide a monthly benefit for up to 6 months (within your overall 24-month benefit period), subject to the policy's conditions.
If you take employer approved unpaid leave for reasons of study or holidays/travel, or maternity/paternity leave, then we may continue to provide cover under this policy for a period of up to six (6) months from the date upon which such leave commences, subject to written approval from us and provided that we continue to receive premiums.
You must give us or our authorised agent written notice of any event in the period of insurance which is likely to give rise to a claim within thirty (30) days, or as soon as is reasonably practicable. Once notified of a claim, we or our authorised agents will provide you with claim forms.
You do not need to wait for the waiting period to end before notifying us of a claim or sending us claim forms and supporting documents. The waiting period only affects when benefits start to accrue, not when you can lodge a claim.
For both long term inability to fly (capital benefit) and temporary inability to fly (monthly benefit), benefits aren't payable until the applicable waiting period has expired, all reasonable enquiries and claim assessments have been completed, and we're satisfied that all policy conditions have been met.
Yes. Once your claim is approved, we'll pay any monthly benefit that has accrued from the day after your waiting period ended, even if this is prior to the date your claim was formally approved. However, no benefit is payable for the waiting period itself.
Your monthly benefit stops from the first day you're no longer classified as temporarily totally disabled and able to perform your normal duties, whether or not you choose to return to work. If your condition later recurs within six months of your monthly benefit payments ending, this is treated as a continuation of your original claim, and the waiting period is waived for the second time.
Yes. You can hold Income Protection or TPD insurance alongside your Loss of Licence policy. However, under Section 3 (Temporary inability to fly), your monthly benefit will be reduced by any income you receive from other insurance policies, to the extent permissible by law. We'll pay the difference between what's payable under those policies and what you'd otherwise be entitled to under your Aircrew Insurance policy. This offset doesn't apply to the Section 2 lump sum capital benefit for permanent loss of licence.
As offset treatment can depend on how your other policy is structured, we recommend contacting our team to confirm how a specific benefit would be treated.
Yes. To claim under either the monthly benefit (temporary) or lump sum (permanent) sections of the policy, your Class 1 (or eligible Class 2) medical certificate must have been suspended, cancelled, or invalidated by CASA. If you believe your medical condition prevents you from safely exercising your licence, you can self-suspend, provided this is confirmed within 30 days by a temporary unfit assessment issued by CASA.
You must prove your claim. This means you must provide us or our authorised agent with a fully completed claim form(s) together with all relevant evidence of the claim and all the information and documentation that we or our authorised agent request.
Monthly benefits paid under Section 3 (Temporary inability to fly) reduce the capital benefit payable under Section 2 (Long term inability to fly). The total benefits paid under both sections combined can't exceed the sum insured shown on your Certificate of Insurance. If the total amount paid in monthly benefits reaches your capital sum insured, the policy limit has been exhausted, and no further monthly benefits or lump sum payments will be payable.
Monthly benefits are payable for up to 24 months, but payments would stop earlier if the total benefits paid reach your capital sum insured, as stated on your Certificate of Insurance. For example, if your capital benefit is $300,000 and you receive $15,000 per month, payments would reach the policy limit after 20 months, not the full 24.
If your monthly benefits stop only because the 24-month maximum period has been reached, this doesn't automatically trigger a lump sum payment under Section 2. A capital benefit is only payable if the long-term inability to fly criteria are separately met under the policy.
Your premium is based on several factors, including the level of cover you choose, your age, any policy charges, and the waiting period selected for monthly benefits.
Your premium must be paid within the agreed credit terms, or your policy won't be in force and any claim(s) made will be declined.
You will have 14 days to make payment. If payment is not received by the due date shown on your tax invoice, or if a payment is dishonoured, a payment reminder will be issued. If the premium remains unpaid after a further 7 days, a final reminder will be sent. Should payment still not be received, you will receive a letter of cancellation via email 7 days later.
Yes. Our online application system allows you to enter your Air Pilots Award or employer EBA allowance, so your sum insured and benefits are tailored to fit within the reimbursable amount. This ensures you get the maximum amount of cover that fits within your allowance without incurring any out-of-pocket costs.
Once your payment has been processed and the premium amount received into our nominated bank account, we'll provide you with a payment receipt via email, which you can use to seek reimbursement from your employer.
If you select to pay via monthly instalments, once your policy has been finalised we'll provide a payment receipt for the full annual premium amount, which you can use to collect reimbursement from your employer. While your employer may reimburse you for the amount specified in your allowance, they may choose not to reimburse the additional fees associated with using the third-party premium funding service.
No. Your policy doesn't automatically renew. Each year, you'll be required to complete a pre-populated renewal application to confirm or update any changes to your personal, employment, or medical information. No. Your policy doesn't automatically renew. Each year, you'll be required to complete a pre-populated renewal application to confirm or update any changes to your personal, employment, or medical information. %MCEPASTEBIN%
Yes. You will receive three renewal invitations via email and SMS, each containing the required information to complete your renewal application. These invitations are sent 28, 14, and 7 days prior to your renewal.
Unfortunately, we're unable to place your Loss of Licence cover on hold. However, we do allow pilots to cancel their cover mid-term, and you may be eligible for a pro-rata refund for the time on risk.
You will have an opportunity to amend any changes to your personal, employment, or health situation at each renewal. However, we encourage pilots to advise us of any significant changes, such as a new medical diagnosis, at that point in time so we can update our records and respond quickly if the situation later develops into a claim. For minor changes to your details, such as an address update or salary increase, these can be updated at your next renewal.
Yes. If you request cancellation within 21 days of your policy's inception, we'll refund all premium paid. If you cancel your policy after the cooling-off period, you may be required to pay a portion of the premium for the time on risk. If you cancel your policy during the cooling off period, you will be unable to make a claim.
You may cancel this policy at any time by notifying us in writing. The cancellation will take effect from 4:00pm on the day we receive your written notice of cancellation or such time as may be otherwise agreed.
If the policy is cancelled by you or us, we will refund the premium for the policy less a proportion of the premium to cover the period for which insurance applied. However, we will not refund any premium if we have paid a claim or benefit to you under the policy.
Yes. Virgin will be invoiced directly for every pilot who purchased or renewed their policy within the bulk billing period, up to the benefit amount provided for in the Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (EBA).
All Virgin Australia pilots share a common start/renewal date of 1 May each year. The bulk billing period opens on 1 April and closes on 31 May (may be subject to an extension). All Virgin pilots are encouraged to complete their online application to purchase or renew their policy within this period to be included in the arrangement. To finalise your application, you'll still need to select 'Pay via Invoice', but you won't be charged directly.
Yes. You can purchase a Loss of Licence policy mid-term, as our application system will automatically pro-rata the policy period and premium to align with the common renewal date of 1 May the following year. You'll need to pay the premium directly via credit card or bank transfer and then seek reimbursement through V-Claim using your payment receipt which we will provide. From your next renewal, you'll automatically be included in the bulk billing process.
Yes. Under Aircrew Insurance's arrangement with Virgin Australia, Virgin pilots can purchase or renew Loss of Licence Insurance with cover for both accident and illness up to age 64, provided the policy continues to be renewed each year.
Yes. If you require more cover than is available within your Virgin Australia EBA allowance, you can apply for additional (top-up) insurance. Any premium above the allowance will be payable by you and won't be covered under the bulk billing arrangement. To arrange top-up cover, please contact Aircrew Insurance directly.
This insurance is underwritten by Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, led by Canopius Managing Agents Ltd, Syndicate 4444. You can obtain further details of the syndicate numbers and the proportions of this insurance for which each of the underwriters at Lloyd’s is liable upon request to us.
