Financial Security is not Greed

In the Olympic commentary recently, Cate Campbell praised Kaylee McKeown for being the best Australian swimmer who no one recognises because she concentrates on swimming rather than courting sponsors. 

The praise of Kaylee’s strong work ethic and lack of interest in money concerned me.  She is a young woman who has delayed her career in pursuit of Olympic gold.  She has a small window of opportunity to draw on sponsorship money to fund the inevitable pivot from elite athlete to her post swimming career.

I get it.  Greed is Un-Australian.  Obvious conspicuous consumption is cringe and tone deaf especially during a cost-of-living crisis (or #cozzielivs for our Gen Z followers).  However, there is a very important difference between excess and securing your financial future.  We need to change the dialogue.

Our clients are not greedy.  They are seeking compensation for injuries which threaten their financial future. 

It can be difficult especially for people entering the labour market for the first time to realise that their greatest asset is their capacity to work.  Any impact on that asset can have compounding major consequences on their life choices. It could mean the difference between staying in an exploitative or toxic workplace or finding a job which is fulfilling.  It could mean the difference between stable housing and not.  It could mean having the choice to leave an abusive relationship without experiencing homelessness.  It could mean the difference between having a family or deciding that their circumstances are too fragile to introduce children into the equation.

Sometimes people tell me that our clients should have been better organised and had income protection insurance. 

Many of our clients do have income protection insurance but there are limits on how much they can recover under those policies.  You cannot insure yourself against lost increases in your income before you are earning those amounts.  A young person on a low wage cannot take out insurance to cover their loss of a much higher income that they could expect to receive in the course of their lifetime.  Income protection insurance is also not available to everyone.  Some people who have pre-existing medical conditions or who work in particular industries can find it very difficult to obtain insurance at all.  There is always a discount from a person’s pre-injury income and the benefits they receive to act as an incentive for the person to return to work despite the fact that they have usually also incurred additional expenses due to their injury.  Then there is the ongoing need to repeatedly convince the insurer that you are actually unfit to work.

For older people who may have left the workforce, an injury can mean a loss of independence much earlier than anticipated.  Care and assistance is expensive as is entering a nursing home earlier than usual.  Increased medical expenses can quickly burn through life savings of even the most prudent of retirees.

Financial security is about choice.  It is not about fancy cars, lavish jewellery or holidays.