What is Extras cover?
Extras insurance covers you for the everyday services you might need to stay healthy, like dental, physio, optical and natural
therapies. These services are generally not covered by Medicare so without private health insurance you could incur large
out-of-pocket expenses for them.
How much money do I get back?
The amount you can claim back (known as a ‘benefit’) depends on the level of cover you’ve selected. Nearly all Extras insurance
policies will only cover services to a limited extent, so you’ll usually pay for some of the service yourself.
Benefits for Extras services are usually a set amount or a percentage of the service cost. Generally, benefits for Extras
services have a maximum amount (known as an ‘annual limit’) that you can claim per year.
Find out how much you’ll get back for an upcoming treatment by checking your product sheet in myHBF.
Your annual limits
An annual limit is the maximum amount of money you can claim for a particular service within a year. Annual limits only apply
to Extras services (there are no annual limits for any procedures or services you receive in hospital) and they generally
reset on 1 January. That means if you bought and claimed a pair of glasses in December, you will be able to buy and claim
a new pair in January.
Annual limits when you switch funds
If you’re switching from another health fund and you’ve already used some of your benefits there, we’ll adjust the balance
of your annual limits to reflect this. If you’re unsure how much of your annual limit is left, contact us before you use your cover.
Annual limits when you change your HBF cover
If you’re already an HBF member and you change your Extras cover, we’ll adjust the balance of your annual limit according
to the value of your new policy. Remember, your Extras limits are annual which means they won’t reset until the new year,
even if you do switch policies.
Limits for long-standing members
To reward long-standing HBF members some annual limits are based on the length of your membership, so you may see an increase
after your first year. For more information please view your personal product sheet in myHBF.
Combined annual limits
A combined annual limit is the maximum amount of money you can claim, distributed across a group of services. For example, HBF's Saver Flexi Extras has a combined limit of $350 - $500 (depending on your time with HBF) which you can use to help you cover the cost of Chiropractic and Osteopathy services.
Annual sub-limits
A sub-limit is the maximum amount of money you can claim for a specific service, deducted from your larger combined limit.
For example, a policy might have a combined annual limit of $500 for dentures, crowns and bridges, with a sub-limit of
$300 for each service – so you’d only be able to claim a maximum of $300 for any one of those services in the year.