Extra benefits on Life Assurance…at no extra cost

Life Assurance can go beyond helping with financial protection and most companies can include several additional benefits at no extra cost when you set up a policy. Some examples of these complimentary benefits include:

1.    An option to receive a second opinion on a medical diagnosis. This service gives customers access to over 50,000 world leading experts who can double check a diagnosis, investigate alternatives, and get additional treatment options for any condition affecting a person’s quality of life. The life assurance provider will put you in touch with the most suitable expert to answer any questions you might have, give a second opinion and provide a comprehensive report to help you and your treating doctor select the best course of action.

2.    A Digital GP service – this is a private doctor service offering customers and their immediate family access to clinical advice and guidance without having to wait for a face-to-face appointment. It is not for medical emergencies but can be used in the same manner as using a local GP. They can prescribe medication and issue referrals if needed.

3.    Various specialist therapies - such as Bereavement Counselling, Speech and Language Therapy, Face-to-face second medical opinion, Mental Health Counselling, Complementary therapies or Physiotherapy for specific serious health conditions. These are just some examples of additional benefits offered with a life policy.

4.    One month's free cover - your cover starts as soon as your application is accepted but the cost of the first month is covered by the life company and your first premium starts in the second month of the policy.

5.    Stay covered for longer - you can have Term Assurance up until you turn age 91 and alternative life cover beyond that – this is the oldest age offered by any life insurance provider. People are living longer these days, so having the option to extend life cover to reflect this, is useful.

6.    A Get Fit Programme - this is another option with one life company, it includes personalised nutritional recommendations, and an exercise plan designed by a team of nutritional experts.

7.    Children’s Life Cover – many companies automatically include an amount of life cover allocated to children of the policy owner, until they reach the age of 18 (or age 21 if in full time education)

As a broker, I have access to the leading life companies and can tailor your life cover depending on your needs.

Life Assurance Cover…following Covid-19

If you’ve had COVID-19 and now want to set up a life assurance policy, you may be wondering where to start. We previously discussed the impact of Covid-19 on various protection plans and as the pandemic has evolved over the past two years, so too have the requirements for applications.

Will COVID-19 impact my ability to get life assurance?

If you had COVID-19 and did not require an in-patient hospital stay, are now back at work, and you have fully recovered with no other significant underlying condition, your application should proceed as normal. In general, people are not refused life assurance for this reason.

After having COVID-19, is there a waiting period before I can get life assurance?

The general rule in life assurance providers is that once you are one-month post-COVID, and fully recovered, you can apply as normal.

Assuming your application is accepted at standard rates, you will be quoted the normal premium rate for life assurance. Note, this one-month post-COVID period applies to applications for mortgage protection life cover as well.

Has COVID-19 altered the life insurance market?

Sadly, statistics have shown that COVID-19 deaths occur more often in elderly people, and people who have significant underlying health issues or conditions. Due to this information, the insurance market in Ireland and in the UK in general is more limited when offering cover to those with significant underlying medical conditions.

This means that a very small number of people who would have been eligible for life assurance before the pandemic are temporarily unavailable to access this cover, regardless of whether they have had COVID-19 or not. That said, most providers look at every application individually, taking all details into account, to see if it’s possible to go ahead with life cover.

What happens if I have a serious underlying condition, but I’m also fully vaccinated against COVID-19?

If you have a significant underlying condition but are fully vaccinated, this is considered a positive factor when applying for life assurance.

Does my occupation make a difference to my life assurance application?

Applications for life assurance cover are treated equally, irrespective of an individual’s job or career. For example, health care or frontline workers are not treated any differently due to COVID-19.

If a person with a life assurance policy has an adverse reaction to a COVID-19 vaccine and death occurs as a result, will the policy sum be paid to the beneficiaries?

Yes, they will be covered under their life policy should this occur.