The answer to this question is not a simple Yes/No response as every person’s circumstances and beliefs are different.

Depending on the insurance contract you have, it is often necessary to transfer children when they reach a specified age to their own policy. This is a simple process where a letter is sent from the policy owners (usually yourselves) parents and child to the insurer, requesting that your child’s benefits be transferred to their own policy....

If the option to transfer the cover to a new policy is not actioned, and no application is made to another insurer for a different cover, the benefits on the child will no longer be in force.

Some parents choose to retain the cover for their child on their policy and continue paying the premiums, whereas other do not, as they belief their child is now earning an income, and can make the personal choice of whether to keep this cover in place or not.

The questions I always ask when this conversation is had with parents are,

"What was the purpose of having the insurance in place initially, and has this purpose changed?"
"Would you feel financially obligated to cover treatment costs if a medical event arose?”

Again, the responses I receive are different, but generally I am told it is to ensure that, should their family member be diagnosed or suffer from medical conditions covered under their policy, they can have access to private treatment. It is acknowledged that a medical insurance policy provides options and choices for treatment and can substantially alleviate wait periods that often occur through the public health system for non-acute procedures.

The last thing I ask of parents is that before a final decision is made as to whether to keep existing insurance benefits in place or not, to have the discussion with their child and, if appropriate, have their child discuss the relevance of the cover with an Advisor.