How much critical illness cover do I need?

FAQ Home \| General Questions \| Critical Illness Insurance \| Life Insurance \| Home and Contents Mortgage Payment Protection \| Mortgage Life Insurance \| Short Term Income Protection Insurance Mortgages \| Car Insurance \| loans \| Private Medical Insurance \| Travel Insurance Hot Topics What is Critical Illness cover? Critical illness cover is an insurance which pays you a tax-free sum of money if you are diagnosed as having a serious, Why do you need to consider a new Critical Illness policy if you already have one? Because older policies were often limited in the illnesses they covered; your own circumstances may have changed; you may now need to increase the sum insured. Why, when you only want Critical Illness cover, should you consider combining it with Life Insurance? Two good reasons: You are likely to save money! And if you died within the survival period (see below), the claim would still be paid under the terms of your Life Insurance. How much does the critical illness cover cost? The cost of a Critical Illness policy depends on the amount of cover you need, your personal details (especially your health and age) and the optional extras you select. What happens if your condition improves after making a claim on your Critical Illness policy? Once the insurance company has paid you the money is yours to spend how you like. The policy is terminated and your insurer has no interest on how you live your life or indeed whether your condition improves or is healed. The following might help you decide how much cover you need.
Repay loans How much would you need to repay your mortgage, overdraft, loans or any credit card balances? The freedom that comes from being debt free does wonders for recovery.	£
Costs related to recovery How much could you spend travelling to and from consultants and specialist hospitals? If you were in hospital for a lengthy time, how much would your family incur in travelling costs or possibly staying in a nearby hotel? After any operations you may even wish to join a fitness club or swimming club. Perhaps a holiday would speed your convalescence.	£
Medical expenses If you don’t have any medical or hospitalisation insurance to cover operations, would this need to be part of your cover? There could be the cost of Doctors and Consultants’ to take into account. Following their advice there may be extra costs for occupational therapy or physiotherapy. Some of these costs may be met by the NHS but you may not wish to be in a waiting list.	£
Your home Some illnesses may require your home to be modified. You may need to put in a ramp put where there are currently steps. If you need assistance in walking having an electric wheelchair or a mini-scooter could be a boon and enable you to be more independent. However, these gadgets cost money and whilst some can be obtained through the NHS they may not be available in the type or time you need them. Imagine you are in a wheelchair. Now think of your home. Are the cupboards at the right height? Are the doors wide enough? Is that shag pile carpet suitable for an indoor electric chair? Could you get up the stairs without assistance? Social Services expect a contribution towards the costs of adaptations and equipment based on a financial assessment but the whole process can take a long time.	£
Your business If you run your own business, would you need to hire extra staff to take over some of your tasks and lighten your workload and worry? Are there other business expenses that are ongoing whether or not you are bringing in any revenue, such as offices expenses, subscriptions and wages? Having a cushion of several months’ revenue can make the difference between coming back to a profitable business as a going concern and having to start again.And then you need to add a contingency sum	£