Many Australians already have some life cover through their super. Here is how to find out what yours is, and who it would go to.
Last reviewed · For readers in Australia
In short
Most super funds give members aged 25 and over some life cover automatically.
Cover on an account with no money going in for 16 months is generally cancelled, after the fund contacts you.
Your statement or your fund’s website shows what you have, and your nomination says who receives it.
If you have super, there’s a good chance you also have some life insurance inside it. The premiums come out of your balance, so it’s easy to forget it’s there. Checking it is a gentle job, because it mostly means reading what you already have.
This guide explains how insurance inside super generally works in Australia. It’s general information only. Whether your cover suits you is a question for your fund or a licensed financial adviser.
What you might already have
Moneysmart, the Australian Government’s money guide, explains that most super funds offer three kinds of cover. Life cover, also called death cover, pays a lump sum or an income stream to your beneficiaries when you die, or if you have a terminal illness. Total and permanent disability (TPD) cover pays a benefit if you become seriously disabled and are unlikely to work again. Income protection pays you a regular income for a set time if illness or injury stops you working.
Self-managed super funds are the exception. If you’re in an ordinary fund, Moneysmart says most will automatically give you life and TPD cover once you’re 25 or over, and some add income protection too. You can usually get this default cover without medical checks.
When cover can stop
Moneysmart notes that TPD cover in super usually ends at 65 and life cover usually ends at 70, although each fund sets its own rules.
Cover can also stop on an account that has gone quiet. By law, funds cancel insurance on accounts that have had no contributions for at least 16 months. AFCA, the free complaints body for super and insurance, explains that an account counts as inactive when no contribution or rollover has gone into it for 16 months in a row. Your fund has to contact you before the cover is cancelled and explain how to keep it, which is called opting in. Some funds have their own rules that also cancel cover when the balance gets too low. If you’d like to keep cover on a quiet account, perhaps an old one from a previous job, Moneysmart says you can tell your fund or add money to it.
How to check yours
Moneysmart suggests three ways to see what you have. You can log in to your account on your fund’s website, call your fund, or read your annual statement alongside the fund’s product disclosure statement, which is the document that explains who the insurer is, what’s covered and the claim rules.
You’ll usually be able to see:
which types of cover you have
how much you’re covered for
what you’re paying in premiums
when the cover ends or can be cancelled.
If you have more than one super account, you may be paying for more than one policy. Moneysmart points out that you may not be able to claim the full benefit from each, depending on the policies. It also cautions that you should check your insurance before you combine accounts or close one, because people over 60 or with a health condition may not be able to get the same cover again.
If you’re not sure how many accounts you have, you can see them all through myGov when it’s linked to the ATO, or by calling the ATO’s automated super search line on 13 28 65. Moneysmart is clear that you don’t need to pay anyone to do this.
Who it would go to
Moneysmart explains that your super doesn’t automatically form part of your estate, and the amount paid when you die includes both your balance and any life insurance held inside the account. So the cover goes wherever your super goes, and that is decided by your beneficiary nomination, not by your will.
With a binding nomination, the fund must pay the people you’ve named, as long as the nomination is valid. Some binding nominations lapse after three years unless you renew them. With a non-binding nomination, or none at all, the fund’s trustee decides. You can nominate your spouse or partner, your children, someone financially dependent on you or in an interdependency relationship with you, or your legal personal representative, which brings the money into your estate so your will can deal with it.
When you check your cover, it’s worth checking your nomination on the same visit. Moneysmart suggests looking again whenever your annual statement arrives, and whenever life changes such as a marriage or a separation.
Writing it down for your family
Once you know what you have, a short note makes it far easier for the people who’ll look after things. Write down the name of each fund, the member number, the kinds of cover and who you’ve nominated, and keep it with your will. Our my wishes checklist has a place for it, and getting your affairs in order shows how this fits with your will and powers of attorney.
Each fact in this guide was checked against these official pages on 23 October 2026. Rules and forms change, so please check the source for your own situation.
This is general information, not legal, financial, insurance or medical advice. For your own situation, please speak with a qualified professional or the official body named above.
