Additional support for hospitalisation and overseas treatment – 4 things you should read
Whilst any protection insurance policy is ultimately intended to pay the claimant an amount of money if they die, are diagnosed with a major illness or are incapable of working due to sickness, a lot of clients perhaps don’t realise that many products now also provide enhanced financial support for a range of other scenarios. Additional payments for accidents and hospitalisation is a feature that can now be found on a number of income protection and critical illness plans, including cover for children and will provide the client with access to valuable extra funds should something serious happen to them. Additionally, a small number of insurers will also make enhanced payments on children’s critical illness cover if the child requires overseas treatment, whilst Aviva’s Global Treatment will actually help organise and pay for overseas treatment for certain conditions, for both the adult and any children.
Given the extensive range of policy options and variables now available on the market, it can sometimes be easy to forget about these enhanced payments and the plethora of other features offered by insurers. At a time of tightening budgets, when many client’s may be questioning the value of protection insurance, it’s worth highlighting such features that provide extra financial support and could be invaluable should a claim arise.
Critical illness accident and hospitalisation enhanced payments
Being hospitalised or injured in a serious accident can cause immediate financial hardship, as the client may be forced out of work and has no source of income. Whilst critical illness policies are generally intended to provide cover on diagnosis of certain conditions, a number of insurers also provide extra enhanced payments if the client is hospitalised or injured in an accident. In this insight we examined which insurers provide such cover and how they compare.
Children’s critical illness hospitalisation benefit
A client’s child being diagnosed with a serious illness will obviously have a major emotional impact, but time taken out of work to care for the child or for hospital appointments can also have a financial impact. A small number of insurers therefore provide enhanced payments on their children’s critical illness cover, in the event that the child is hospitalised for a period of time. In this insight we looked at who offers what and how they compare.
Income protection hospitalisation benefit
Income protection policies will always have a defer period, requiring the client to be incapacitated and off work for a period of time before the benefit payments kick in. During that time the client will need to support themselves financially, either using their savings or sick pay from work. If the client is hospitalised though as a result of their illness or injury, a number of insurers will pay a daily benefit during the defer period, to provide more immediate financial support. In this insight we examined which insurers offer this benefit, how much they’ll pay and for how long.
Enhanced payments and cover for adult and child overseas treatment
Whilst we’re extremely fortunate to have access to healthcare in the UK through the NHS, there are times when better or more effective treatment may be available overseas. This won’t come cheaply though and in such circumstances clients will need to fund his entirely themselves. Fortunately some insurers provide enhanced payments on their children’s critical illness cover if the child requires treatment abroad, whilst Aviva’s unique Global Treatment goes a step further in helping organise and actually paying for the cost of that treatment. Read this insight to find out the full details.
