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Critical Illness
A
quick guide to protecting your future
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This type of insurance cover pays a lump sum if you contract and survive one of a number of specified critical illnesses. The insurance is designed to provide additional financial resources to enable you to reduce your monthly commitments by paying off outstanding debts such as your mortgage and any other loans. The cover can also provide useful funds for special health care and convalescence.
What diseases are covered?
The diseases covered by most insurance companies include the following:
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Alzheimer's
Disease
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Kidney
Failure
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Aorta
Graft Surgery
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Loss
of Limbs
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Benign
Brain Tumour
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Loss
of Speech
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Blindness
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Major
Organ Transplant
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Cancer
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Motor
Neurone Disease
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Children's
Benefits
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Multiple
Sclerosis
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Coma
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Paralysis/Paraplegia
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Coronary
Artery Angioplasty
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Parkinson's
Disease
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Coronary
Artery By-Pass Surgery
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Stroke
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Deafness
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Third
Degree Burns
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Heart
Attack
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Total
and Permanent Disability
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Heart
Valve Replacement/Repair
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HIV
Infection for personnel in emergency and health care occupations
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Other diseases covered by some insures include, Creutzfeld-Jacob-Disease, HIV resulting from a physical
assault, HIV from blood transfusion and pre-senile dementia.
How do the plans work?
Cover is set up on the application form for a selected number of years subject to the insurance company's restrictions. For example, there will be a maximum age that a plan can be taken out. Some insurers also offer whole of life plans.
Your premiums are normally paid on a monthly basis but annual premiums can be available with some insurers. Plans are also available on a joint life or single life basis and can be set up with a level amount of cover, a decreasing amount of cover or cover for the whole of your life on a level basis. Decreasing cover would normally be used to protect the outstanding loan on your capital repayment mortgage. If the cover is set up on a joint basis the plan will come to an end when it has paid out on the first claim.
If you contract one of the specified critical illnesses covered by the plan you will need to survive for a period of time before a claim can be made. This is normally for 28-30 days depending on the insurance company. Most plans provide cover for children, normally up to 18 years, subject to certain restrictions.
Once the claim has been approved the plan will normally pay out a tax free lump sum but some plans can pay an income or have the option to pay an income.
If you would like to assess your current protection requirements, please e-mail or contact us for further information.
Levels and bases of, and reliefs from, taxation are subject to change.
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