Serious illness cover is a form of insurance designed to provide financial protection if you were diagnosed with a serious illness, this product does differ from a standard critical illness policy as the cover is not limited to a set 30 or so critical illnesses.
What illnesses are covered
Similar to critical illness insurance the cover is designed to pay out a tax-free lump sum however this figure is not fixed for all illnesses covered. The cover provides varying levels of tax-free cash depending upon the severity of the condition, there are over 90 illness that could be claimed for.
There are four levels of severity ranging from 25% to 100% payout, depending upon the severity of the condition you could receive a payment earlier on in your illness, even if the illness is not considered life threatening. You also have the added benefit of potentially being entitled to multiple claims if your condition gets worse of you suffer a different illness.
Serious illness cover options
Similar to critical illness insurance, serious illness cover provides a number of options on the plan. A level of child benefit is provided as standard.
Policies can also include indexation so that the real value of any payout will not depreciate over time due to inflation. The cover is set by the illness and conditions specified in the terms of the policy with this you must survive 14 days after the diagnosis of a serious illness to make a claim.
Serious illness cover limits.
The maximum level of cover is set at £500,000 while the term of the cover tends to be a minimum of 5 years and you can financially protect yourself for up to 50 years on the plan. Both serious illness insurance and critical illness cover is designed to provide you with a safety net in times of need, no-one wants to be worrying about their financial obligations when they are dealing with an illness.
Next steps
If you are in the market for insurance to protect you against unfortunate events such as illness, accident or even death then please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Dealing with insurance everyday, we are in a great position to provide you with further information, advice or quotes from the leading providers to help give you an idea of price.
Other useful resources can be found at the Financial Services Authority – Money Made Clear insurance section.
