Is it worth having critical illness insurance?

Critical illness cover can be very useful, but you might decide that it’s too expensive for you or not worth the hassle. You might not need critical illness cover if you have savings or investments that could support you for a while if you are unwell. You might also have other policies (e.g. income protection insurance) which you can claim on if you can’t work. If you are considering buying critical illness cover, you should think about how much cover you realistically need and how much you can afford to pay. Some of the main reasons to buy critical illness cover include: Worried about the financial impact of serious illness on your family. Don’t have enough savings to fall back on if you can’t work due to your health. You are the main breadwinner or a single parent, so your family relies on your income. It’s always a good idea to think carefully about your own situation and what will work best for you and your family. Critical illness cover can help to boost your family’s income/savings, which can be very helpful if you can no longer work.

How much does critical illness cover pay out?

The amount that a critical illness policy pays out will depend on the amount of cover (£s) that you have chosen. It also depends on the exact illness or condition and the severity of the condition. Almost all critical illness insurance policies will split critical illnesses into two categories: Full (100%) payment: If you are diagnosed with a full payment condition, your insurer will pay you your entire cover amount. This tends to be serious conditions that will impact you for the rest of your life (e.g. loss of limb). Additional (partial) payment: If you are diagnosed with an additional payment condition, your insurer will pay out a percentage of your full cover amount. These are usually conditions that are viewed as less severe, which you are more likely to recover from.

What are the disadvantages of critical illness cover?

You should consider the pros and cons before buying any insurance policy. The UK’s top financial experts have mixed opinions about critical illness cover, and whether it is a policy that every family needs to have. This advice usually mentions disadvantages of critical illness policies like: You might already have cover from your employer, so you don’t need to buy your own policy. If your partner is the main breadwinner, they may be able to support you if you needed time off due to your health. You might have other policies like income protection insurance which pay out for more conditions.

Critical Illness Cover - Money People Online

Critical illness cover offers extra financial security for your family if a parent is diagnosed with a serious medical condition. Critical illness cover can provide £1000’s to support your entire household if you’re unable to work or need time off to recover.

Critical Illness Cover and Financial Protection for Parents

Protecting our kids is a parent’s top priority, and critical illness cover ensures that your family won’t struggle financially if you become seriously ill. When facing a serious diagnosis, the last thing your family needs is the stress of unpaid bills or expenses that they can’t afford.

It can be very handy to have some extra cash to fall back on if your condition prevents you from working or you need time off to recover and get back on your feet. Your policy will pay out a cash lump sum which can be used for everyday bills or to help with new costs related to your condition (e.g. travelling to and from hospital).

You can make a claim if you are diagnosed with a serious or ‘critical’ medical condition that is covered by your policy. It’s not always easy to understand your options for critical illness insurance, as the number of conditions covered can vary massively between insurers.

If you’re not sure whether critical illness cover is right for you, it can be helpful to speak to an experienced adviser to find out more. You can get free and impartial advice by calling our trusted insurance partners on 0800 009 6559 or CLICK HERE.

What is critical illness cover?

Critical illness cover or ‘critical illness insurance’ pays out a lump sum to support you and your family if you are diagnosed with a serious medical condition.

You pay for your cover each month, and your policy will usually last for a set number of years (term insurance). The pay out from a critical illness policy can offer much-needed support for your loved ones by helping with the cost of important expenses (e.g. mortgage payments).

You can tailor your policy to how much protection your family needs and can choose exactly how long you are covered for. You might decide to end your cover once your mortgage is paid off or your children are financially independent.

What is considered a critical illness?

Each insurer will work slightly differently, but most insurance companies have a similar view of which medical conditions are ‘critical illnesses’. This is typically a medical condition that will have a serious effect on your lifestyle, and this could be a short-term condition (e.g. heart attack) or a lifelong condition (e.g. Parkinson’s disease).

What does critical illness cover do?

Critical illness cover offers an extra level of financial protection for your family, paying out if you are diagnosed with a serious or life-changing medical condition. The number of conditions that are covered will vary, but most insurers will pay out for conditions like:

Cancer
Stroke
Heart attack
MS
Parkinson’s disease

You won’t be covered for every illness or disability, so you should check to see what each insurer will cover you for. There are 36 conditions which are covered by most critical illness insurance policies, and some insurers will cover over 100 conditions as standard.

Do I need critical illness cover?

Not everyone sees critical illness cover as essential to have, so consider if it’s worth it for your family and if you can afford to pay for it each month. It can be helpful to think about your regular expenses and how your family would cope financially if you were seriously unwell.

This can also help you to work out how much cover you might need, and an insurance adviser can offer extra advice about this if you aren’t sure. Typical household expenses that might need to be covered include things like:

Mortgage or rent payments.
Utility bills.
School fees.
Cost of childcare.
Credit payments (e.g. credit card bills).

Certain bills and expenses might even increase if you are seriously ill. For example, you may have to pay out for additional childcare if you need to attend hospital appointments.

Depending on your condition, your partner or other family members could need to stop working or reduce their working hours to help take care of you. This possibility should also be considered, as it may affect the overall income coming into your household.

Can I get life insurance and critical illness cover?

Most of the UK’s top life insurance companies offer critical illness insurance alongside their life insurance policies. You can get life insurance and critical illness cover from popular insurance companies like:

Can you get critical illness cover without life insurance?

Some insurance companies will sell critical illness insurance without needing to also buy life insurance. This can be useful if you already have life cover but want to buy critical illness cover as an extra level of protection for your family.

The latest data from the Association of British Insurers shows that around 75,700 people bought standalone critical illness insurance in 2023. This figure is almost 4 times higher than the number of policies sold in 2013, showing a massive increase in interest in just 10 years.

How much does critical illness cover cost?

The price of critical illness insurance can vary a lot, so it’s a good idea to shop around to find the best and cheapest quotes. There are a few key things that will affect the cost of your critical illness policy: