Serious illness insurance, also known as critical illness cover or specified illness cover, offers financial protection in the form of a tax free cash lump sum payment when you are diagnosed a specified serious illness.
Serious illness can have a significant financial impact on your life and you can protect yourself and your family or loved ones with the financial support provided by serious illness cover at a difficult and stressful time.
Aspect Life offers free, no obligation advice on choosing serious illness insurance. We can offer advice on financial protection, including serious illness insurance and life insurance, as well as pensions and savings and investment advice.
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What is serious illness insurance?
Depending on your diagnosis and the prognosis or severity of your condition, serious illness insurance will pay a cash lump sum on diagnosis of one of your insurer’s list of serious illnesses.
Insurers vary in the illnesses that they cover, but all will offer protection in the event of the three most common serious illnesses. cancer, heart attack, and stroke.
You may use this lump sum to pay for any medical expenses you may incur, as well as additional expenses that arise as a result of your illness. You may also choose to use the lump sum to pay for any regular outgoings such as mortgage payments, debts, or expenses such as bills etc. while you are ill.
What does serious illness insurance cover?
If you are diagnosed with a specified serious illness such as:
- Heart attack
- Heart disease
- Heart failure
- Stroke
- Cancer – some forms
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Motor Neurone Disease
- Kidney failure
- Blindness
- Major organ transplant
- Brain tumour
- Dementia
- Loss of limb(s)
Serious illness insurance, or critical illness cover or specified illness cover, will pay a tax free lump sum. You may choose your cover amount on purchasing your serious illness policy.
Serious illness insurers vary in the illnesses covered, how they define various illnesses and health conditions, and the severity of the illness that qualifies for the cash lump sum. It is important also to note that some illness qualify for a partial payment, such as 50% of the lump sum.
If your are concerned about a particular illness, it is worth shopping around for specified illness cover to find better cover for that illness.
Standalone and accelerated serious illness cover
You may purchase serious illness cover as part of a life insurance policy or mortgage protection policy or as a standalone insurance policy.
Standalone serious illness insurance may have a slightly higher premium but offers a cash lump sum independent of any life insurance or mortgage protection sum assured amount you may have.
Accelerated serious illness cover means that any lump sum paid as a result of a diagnosis of serious illness would then be subtracted from the life insurance lump sum paid to your dependents should you die.
What is the difference between serious illness insurance, health insurance, and income protection?
At first glance, these three types of insurance appear to offer similar types of protection. However there are differences between them.
Serious illness insurance offers a tax free cash lump sum if you are diagnosed with a specified serious illness or a life threatening illness from your insurers list of eligible conditions. You may use this cash lump sum as you choose.
Health insurance will fully or partially pay medical and health related expenses, largely to your health care provider or as reimbursement for medical expenses that you pay for out of pocket.
Income protection offers a monthly payment to replace your income should you suffer an illness or injury and be unable to work, the illness or disability are not specified in your income protection policy.
Who offers serious illness cover?
A number of insurers offer serious illness cover in Ireland. These include:
What are the benefits of serious illness insurance?
Alongside the peace of mind of knowing that you would be financially protected should you be diagnosed with a serious or critical illness, serious illness, or critical illness or specified illness, cover offers a number of benefits:
If you are diagnosed with a serious illness that is included in your policy, you will be paid the lump sum which is the cover amount set up in your policy, or a partial payment if this is what is listed ion your policy.
Serious illness premiums do not benefit from tax relief but the lump sum paid is tax free.
If you do not have employer benefits such as sick pay, or other cover for illness, this lump sum can offer financial security to you and any dependents you may have.
You may choose to cover one policyholder or you may choose to include your spouse on your serious illness policy.
If both spouses are working, or if one spouse is a stay at home parent you may choose to use the lump sum to pay your expenses or for care etc. provided by a stay at home parent who becomes ill.
When you make a claim on a serious illness policy, cover will cease, whether it is for yourself or a spouse.
Serious illness insurance policies usually include children’s cover as standard.
They generally offer children’s cover at a reduced amount, eg. 50% cover. Serious illness policies may also offer life cover for a child.
Children may be covered up to the age of 25, if they are in full time education.
You may choose a conversion option on setting up your serious illness policy. This means that you can make changes to your policy, such as increasing the cover amount, without providing new medical evidence.
Premiums may be a little higher if you chose a conversion option but you will have flexibility in making changes to your policy during the term rather than having to purchase a new policy.
If you choose an indexation option, your cover amount will increase slightly over time. This is to take the effects of inflation into account.
Your premium will generally increase over the term of the policy as the cover amount increases.
Some serious illness insurers offer additional benefits when you purchase serious illness or critical illness cover.
These can include Digital GP consultations and medical second opinion services, as well as therapies, counselling and mental health and bereavement support.
Speak with us
Serious illness insurance offers financial protection at a difficult time. The cash lump sum provided by serious illness cover can leave you free to focus on your recovery rather than focussing on your finances.
Aspect Life has qualified and experienced insurance advisors who can advise you and help you to find serious illness cover for your circumstances so that you can avail of the protection that it affords,
Based, in Naas, Co. Kildare, you can contact us online, by phone or in person and we will endeavour to find you the best serious illness cover at the most affordable price.
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