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Also known as “Critical Illness Cover” – provides a lump sum payment if you’re diagnosed with a specified illness or condition
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Also known as Critical Illness Cover, it’s designed to provide a lumps sum payment if you’re diagnosed with a specified illness or condition. A critical illness diagnosis can significantly impact both your work and personal life.
It’s likely that such a diagnosis will affect your ability to earn, and you and your family may face extra costs as you adjust to the situation. Critical illness Insurance is designed to ease that financial strain.
Being diagnosed with a critical illness can have a significant impact on your finances
It isn’t just your physical and emotional wellbeing that’s affected by a critical illness – it’s likely to have a significant impact on your family and finances too. A critical illness often means lengthy periods of time off work for treatment and recovery. Your loved ones may also need time off work, to help you, or take on additional responsibilities within the family.
Critical Illness Insurance can help bridge the gap between your savings and lost income.
However, there are other protection products that may be more suitable for your needs. For example, if you rent your home, an Income Protection Policy could provide you with a monthly income, should you be unable to work due to illness or injury.
Our expert advisers will talk through your circumstances and work out the most appropriate protection option/s for you based on your priorities and budget.
Most policies cover at least 40 different illnesses
The illnesses covered vary between insurers. Your policy will only pay out if you are diagnosed with a condition, to the severity that’s detailed in your policy. That’s why it’s essential to speak with an experienced protection advisor before purchasing a policy – to ensure you know exactly which illnesses you are covered for, and to what severity.
Most policies cover at least 40 illnesses. Below are some of the most commonly claimed for conditions:
Many Critical Illness Insurance policies offer Children’s Critical Illness Cover automatically.
If a condition isn’t listed then you won’t be covered for it
Each insurer is different, but your policy documents will make it clear which conditions are covered.If a condition isn’t listed then you won’t be covered for it.
Typically not covered, are:
Ideally you’d have enough financial support to cover several years of your essential expenses during treatment and recovery.
Having a small amount of Critical Illness Cover is better than having none at all.
The amount recommended is usually determined by your budget, outgoings and any saving or assets you have. Since a serious illness could force you to stop working, the cover should be enough to sustain you and your family’s lifestyle – to cover your mortgage or rent payments and other essentials while you recover.
It tends to be more expensive than Life Insurance because claim rates are higher.
See claims statistics
There are a lot of factors that can influence the cost of a Critical Illness Insurance policy. These include, but are not limited to, the amount of cover you’d like (the benefit amount) and how long you’d like the policy for (the policy term). Personal details such as your age, your health, smoker status and family history will also affect your premium.
We can design a policy to suit both your needs and budget. Give us a call to find out more.
Combining Life Insurance and Critical Illness Cover is generally recommended, essentially providing the broadest cover. It’s designed to protect you and your family in the event of you being affected by a specified illness, or if you die.
Most Insurers offer multi-benefit products, which can offer more flexibility, consolidating differing coverage needs under one policy. For example, allowing you different amounts of cover for Life Insurance and Critical Illness cover. If you make a successful claim on the Critical Illness part of the policy, the Life Insurance part of the policy will continue.
Children’s Critical Illness cover is insurance that can pay a lump sum to help families if a child becomes seriously ill with a specified critical illness. It’s designed to help with the financial strain of caring for a seriously ill child, to help with medical costs, home adaptations or to help make up lost income. Some Insurers offer Children’s Critical Illness cover as an optional ad on to Life Insurance. Whilst most Critical Illness (link to Critical illness cover) policies cover children automatically, not all do, and some insurers will offer it for an additional fee. It is also possible to take out a standalone Children’s Critical Illness policy if you don’t have a Critical Illness policy yourself that covers your children. Our advisors can help with this too.
It’s possible to have a joint policy with someone. If you’re married, in a relationship or cohabiting, you can choose two individual policies, or one joint policy.
If you have two single policies, you will pay two separate monthly premiums, and each partner will be covered fully.
The main difference between the two is that joint policies typically end after one payout, so the other policyholder will no longer be covered. Some insurance providers offer Dual Cover products that continue to insure the other person after one has claimed.
You, the policyholder (the person covered by the policy) would be the recipient of the payout, receiving a lump sum, following diagnosis of a covered critical illness. In most cases it will be a one off payment for you to use as you wish.
Critical Illness Insurance pays out a lump sum if you’re diagnosed with a specified serious illness listed in the policy, regardless of whether it prevents you from working.
Income Protection Insurance provides you with a regular income if you’re unable to work due to illness or injury, typically covering a portion of your salary.
Whilst Income Protection offers ongoing financial support during periods when you cannot work, Critical Illness Insurance provides a lump sum payment to help cover financial needs that may arise.
Claiming on a protection insurance policy is something you hope you never have to do, but it’s the ultimate reason for the cover in the first place
Insurers do not look for a reason to not pay out. It is very important when initially applying for insurance that you answer all questions accurately and honestly as non-disclosure could affect the amount your policy will pay out or invalidate it.
Insurers publish annual claims statistics. See Critical Illness Insurance claims statistics
If your vapes contain nicotine, then yes, insurers will consider you a smoker if you’ve used any tobacco or nicotine products in the past 12 months, including vapes, cigars, roll-ups, tobacco, and patches.
While some insurers may be more lenient about vaping, it’s crucial to be truthful on your application. Providing false information could result in your policy not paying out if you ever need to make a claim.
Whether a critical illness policy covers terminal illness depends on the specific terms of the policy. Some policies may include terminal illness as a covered condition, while others may exclude it.
Although it can be more difficult to get Critical Illness policy if you have a pre-existing health condition, because insurers will deem you a higher risk, in most cases it’s still possible to get cover. All insurers will assess your circumstances in a slightly different way. You may be offered a policy that excludes anything related to your pre-existing condition or you may be offered full cover but with a higher premium, due to the increased risk.
To determine the options available to you, we’ll need to understand the nature and severity of your health condition, then our experienced advisors will be able to tell you what’s possible and at what cost.
There are a few insurers that will allow you to take out a Critical Illness policy up to age 69 and some that offer a term that runs until you are 90 years old. However, this does vary quite significantly from insurer to insurer and typically the older you are when you start a policy and/ or the higher the age your policy runs until is likely to make your monthly premiums more expensive.
Our expert advisors will be able to advise which polices would best suit your needs.
Yes, you can have multiple Critical Illness policies. Your circumstances can change over time—debt or living expenses may increase, you might move to a more expensive home, or your family could grow. In these situations, it’s a good idea to review your finances and ensure your Critical Illness policy still meets your needs. You may need to adjust your coverage by amending your current policy or purchasing an additional one to fill any gaps.
The important thing is to have enough cover to meet your needs, at a cost that’s affordable to you.
Taken from Aviva’s 2024 Claims and Wellbeing Insight report
91.6% of all Critical Illness claims paid£362 million paid out5,048 claims paid£71,833 was the average payout
Claims not paid
Today’s insurance policies offer so much more than just a claim payout for the insured event
As well as inclusive benefits, there are optional extras too. See examples
Insurers also offer options for enhancing your cover for an additional amount.
A valuable benefit particularly for those that are manual workers, self-employed or have limited employer sick pay. An injury like a broken bone could put you off work for weeks, if not months. Fracture Cover provides a financial cushion that allows you to concentrate on getting back on your feet and will help with the extra costs an injury can cause, such as childcare, travel costs or equipment for mobility.
Available as an optional add on with many providers and as a core benefit of some income protection policies. The cover varies significantly between providers in terms of the monthly cost, the payouts and policy conditions. It’s important to be aware of any exclusions, commonly related to high risk activities such as rugby, horse riding and martial arts.
Launched in May 2024, Accelerate provides access to experts from around the world to offer a package of medical care services for cancer, heart and neurological conditions. It gives you more choice than standard medical care in the UK, with fast access to consultations, diagnostics and second medical opinions. It can also help you access the latest precision cancer medicine and clinical trials; as well as treatment abroad at some of the leading hospitals in the world.
Accelerate is comprised of six individual services;
You can use as many or as few as you like and can access these at any point. You don’t have to follow a linear path and you can choose to combine Accelerate with services offered by public healthcare or your current healthcare provider if you want to.
Accelerate is a complementary service to both public and private healthcare and is not intended to replace either. It gives you an alternative route and should be taken up in consultation with your GP. It’s all about giving choice and offering greater control over your healthcare decisions.
Anyone using the services are also supported by case managers who provide reassurance and help to navigate your healthcare journey. If you choose to receive treatment abroad, Accelerate will organise the travel, accommodation and daily allowance as well as providing you with the option to be supported by two travelling companions.
Children’s Critical Illness Cover is insurance that can pay a lump sum to help families if a child becomes seriously ill with a specified critical illness. It’s designed to help with the financial strain of caring for a seriously ill child, to help with medical costs, home adaptations or to help make up lost income.
With Children’s Critical Illness being the fourth most common reason for a claim on Critical Illness Cover (source – Aviva 2024 Claims and Wellbeing Insight), an increasing number of insurers are offering Children’s Critical Illness as a bolt on to any adult policy. Cover is available from £10,000-£100,000 with options including Standard and Enhanced cover.
Whilst many Critical Illness Policies cover children automatically, not all do, and some insurers will offer it for an additional fee. Some Insurers offer Children’s Critical Illness cover as an optional ad on to their Life Insurance Policies.
It is also possible to take out a standalone Children’s Critical Illness Policy if you don’t have a Critical Illness Policy yourself that covers your children. Our advisors can help with this too.
We’ll help find the policy that works best for your individual situation.
Aviva’s Global Treatment provides clients with access to international facilities, doctors and treatment all over the world. Having access to medical experts and treatment globally could make a difference to your outcome. Global Treatment gives you the option to pursue recommended treatments without having to worry about arranging and paying for treatment, travel and accommodation. If subsequent trips abroad are required for follow-up treatment, these are also covered by the plan. Aviva Global Treatment will pay a maximum of £1 million a year and a maximum of £2 million over the policy term. It is provided in conjunction with Further and available as an optional extra with Life Insurance+, Critical Illness+, Income Protection+ and Living Costs Protection for an additional £3 per month (reviewable)
Here at PSG Financial Consultants, we have firsthand experience of how valuable Aviva’s Global Treatment can be. It was used by a family member of one of our advisors this year.
Kevin’s Global Treatment journey.
“I’m pleased to share my journey with Global Treatment”
As buy to let Landlords, my wife and I were advised to take Aviva Global Treatment cover as part of our protection.
Little did I know at the time that I’d need to call upon the policy. Having been diagnosed with a heart murmur, I was referred to a specialist and following further investigations, I was advised that I had a defective mitral valve. They told me I was best to have it treated sooner rather than later as it would only get worse over time. I was on the NHS waiting list for treatment but with no clear date on when they would be able to do it. This had a huge impact on my life being usually busy and active I was forced to take things easy and suffered from laboured breathing and tiredness. Not knowing when I was going to be seen left me feeling in limbo, it was around this time I turned to my Aviva policy.
Being a little sceptical about where I’d be offered the treatment, I was pleasantly surprised to be given the choice of 3 hospitals; one in Germany, one in Italy and one in America. Having researched each, I chose to be treated in the renowned Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. I was impressed with the speed and efficiency of the whole process including the travel arrangements for getting myself and my wife to New York, all expertly handled by Further Underwriting International S.L.U. We were collected from home by private car hire and taken to the airport. We were met in New York and transported by private car hire to the hotel, again the hotel of our choice from a number offered to us.
After a stay of 3 weeks, during which I had a successful operation to repair my heart valve by a renowned surgeon, we returned home. The full cost of the treatment, flights and accommodation was covered.
I have to say, for such a small monthly payment, this is a great policy. I was delighted with how myself and my wife were treated by AVIVA/Further Underwriting, with so much compassion, patience and understanding. I would have no hesitation in recommending this policy.”
From the first chat, through the entire duration of the products we recommend for you. you’ll have the ongoing support of our advisors and administrative team.
Once you’ve taken out an insurance policy recommended by one of our advisors, they will reach out to you at regular intervals during the term of the policy to have a chat about your circumstances and ensure that the cover continues to meet your needs.
Here are some common examples of when a review may be necessary:
If you’ve increased your mortgage amount, or the term of your mortgage to move home, it’s sensible to review your Life Insurance. Any change to the outstanding repayment amount or the term of your mortgage should be reflected in your Life Insurance so you have enough cover for as long as you need it.
Life Insurance and Critical Illness Cover providers often offer an option to add Children’s Critical Illness Cover to an existing policy. It’s hard to contemplate the prospect of a child becoming ill, but without a financial safety net the thought is even more sobering.
An Income Protection policy benefit amount is usually based on a percentage of your salary. A lot can happen during the term of an Income Protection policy. If you’ve had a pay rise, it’s likely there will have been changes to your outgoings too. It makes sense to review your Income Protection benefit amount in line with your increased income.
In the event that you need to make a claim on an insurance policy we’ve arranged for you, we will be on hand to help you with the claims process, every step of the way.
See Insurance claims statistics
After the death of a loved one there are some practical things that need doing, like registering the death and arranging a funeral. These tasks can be a welcome distraction, or simply overwhelming. We’ve created a practical guide to make things a little easier.
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