No two Critical illness policies are the same. Another great reason why everyone should obtain advice when looking at this type of cover. Insurers range from covering only the main 3 claimed-upon illness’s, Heart attack, Cancer & Stroke, to over 170 illness’s. So you may set up a plan yourself that you think is really good value but when it comes to making a claim find out that the illness you are claiming for is not covered by your plan.
Uses
Critical illness can be used for anything. You can attach Critical illness to any Life cover product explained in the Life insurance section and so its best to have a good chat with an experienced adviser to work out which option is best for you based on your budget and needs. The most common uses are plans that pay off the mortgage in its entirety or plans that will provide a smaller lump sum to give you the flexibility to adjust your lifestyle whilst you are ill, allowing you to take time off work, use if for treatment, make adjustments to your home or just take the family on a dream holiday of a lifetime.
How it works
A critical illness policy provides a certain amount of cover of a period of time which is decided when you apply. Should you be diagnosed over that period with one of the critical illness’s on your particular plan and diagnosed to a certain severity then the plan will pay you a cash lump sum upon confirmation from your Doctor or specialist. Some plans also provide smaller pay-outs upon the diagnosis of less severe illness’s, many of which are additional pay-outs which don’t impact your main cover. Most providers also will cover your children for most of the illness’s that you are covered for, enabling you to adjust your lifestyle or take time off work to look after them at what would be a horrendous time for you. As with the Life insurance options you can index-link the plans ensuring that they hold their value over time. In most cases you should also be able to add “total & Permanent disability” cover to the plan. This provides a safety net for those rare cases that don’t fall into an illness category but suffer an illness that impacts their day to day living.