What is Critical Illness Insurance?

Critical or Serious Illness insurance is designed to pay out a tax-free lump sum if the policy owner is diagnosed with a critical illness such as Cancer, Heart Attack, Stroke.

A Critical Illness insurance policy is there to help you and your family financially so you can focus on your recovery without worrying how the bills will be paid.

With 32% of deaths across the Armed Forces in 2019 attributable to Cancer alone, Critical or Serious Illness insurance is arguably one of the most important to consider.

It’s not the job that gets you, its the fact you’re human

Should I have Critical or Serious Illness cover?

If you don’t have a savings buffer, critical/serious illness insurance can provide financial support in the event that you become seriously ill.

Your lump sum pay-out could be used to pay for things like:

• Your mortgage
• Lost earnings
• Household bills and other outgoings
• Private medical care or specialist treatment

Don’t assume that if you don’t have dependants you don’t need cover. If you live on your own, for example, you will need to ensure your financial commitments continue to be met.

This type of cover is particularly relevant to Armed Forces personnel as it could provide some financial security in the event of a medical discharge.

You can use our tool, Shouldi to find out if Critical or Serious Illness Insurance is something you should consider.

What conditions am I covered for?

Critical/Serious Illness contracts must cover certain ‘core’ conditions such cancer, heart attack and stroke as set out by the Association of British Insurers.

However, policies vary widely in terms of other conditions they might cover.  There is huge difference in the quality of contracts on offer from one provider to another with one company offering cover for just 3 conditions, whilst another covers up to 182 conditions.

So be sure to understand your options before you purchase.

How much cover should I have?

Frankly, as much as you can afford.  No one who ever claimed on this type of insurance wishes they were insured for less.

It is however, more costly than Life Insurance, so it’s a good idea to work with an advisor to establish the level of cover you can afford.

Alternatively, you can use Shouldi to begin exploring your cover options.

Are children covered on a Critical or Serious Illness policy?

In a word, yes.  Unless you explicitly request for them not to be.  You can opt out to save money if you wish.  A policy that includes children’s cover will usually pay out if your child is diagnosed with one of the illnesses specified on the policy.  You could receive up to £125,000 depending on your choice of provider, but on the whole, most companies will pay out up to £25,000 per claim.

What next?

Here are a few ways you can explore your options with Stag Protect.