Critical illness insurance pays out a lump sum on diagnosis of an insured critical illness. It typically covers: heart attack, cancer and stroke plus a whole host of less frequent but equally debilitating conditions.
We recommend that clients check the key features document provided by the plan issuer to ensure that all illnesses of concern are covered; NB not all illnesses are covered and just because one is unable to work is NOT a guarantee that a critical illness plan will pay out. Nevertheless cover is crucial and we recommend that people have enough to cover their mortgages and then a lump sum on top.
Limited critical illness insurance is available on a relevant life basis ie your employer can pay the premiums and get tax relief on the cost – but it isn’t a taxable benefit ie no PIId. Follow link for further information.
Critical illness premiums are primarily affected by age & term – so the older you are and the later you run the plan, the more the plan costs each month.
Critical illness insurance is available as a stand alone product or as a rider to a life assurance contract – critical illness benefit (CIB).
Most people also require life assurance so it is often logical to effect the critical illness insurance plan in conjunction with life assurance.
You may take the critical illness insurance as either an accelerated or additional benefit. Accelerated benefit means that if you were to have say £100,000 critical illness insurance and £100,000 life assurance cover and had a stroke the plan would pay out on the diagnosis of a stroke and then end. If you had additional cover the plan would pay out again on your subsequent death. Unsurprisingly premiums for additional cover are higher.
Also see Life Insurance
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We are experts in critical illness insurance based in London and the South East.