MetLife make positive changes to EverydayProtect
MetLife have launched a range of changes to their Everyday Protect policy with updated pricing, increased payouts and expanded occupation coverage. The revamped offering promises to deliver unprecedented value. In this article we explain what has changed and what this means for your clients.
The adjustments made by MetLife, are intended to ensure the long-term sustainability and competitiveness of MetLife’s EverydayProtect while providing improved coverage to policyholdersWhile the updates introduce greater benefits and an increase in what could be paid for the more claimed on aspects of the policy, reductions have been made to other parts of the plan to keep costs low. These include:
- the maximum payout for accidental death being halved from £40,000 to £20,000 per unit,
- payouts for accidental permanent injuries, such as loss of a finger or limb, now range from £2,500 to £25,000 instead of the previous £50,000.
The first improved benefit is Fracture Cover. Based on MetLife’s claims experience broken bones payments have accounted for 9,561 claims making up approximately 40% of the total claims paid. As such they have increased the payout for major bones (such as a spinal fracture) from £800 to £1,000 and for minor bone (such as broken ribs) it has risen from £200 to £250.
More than half of MetLife Claims were for their hospitalisation benefit. This pays £50 per 24 hour stay in hospital. To improve this cover the current 90 day exclusion has been removed and replaced with an overall £50,000 limit.
Importantly, all of the above changes will impact both new and existing clients which is positive as not all insurers include existing plans when improving cover.
The final significant change for new and existing clients is the extension of offering cover to bicycle and motorbike couriers This expansion of coverage signifies MetLife’s desire to provide cover for those who may struggle to get cover under traditional plans.
Such increases however, do not come without a cost. As such, the price per unit of cover for new business will see an 11% increase, rising from £9 to £10, with child cover doubling from £1 to £2 per unit, although active lifestyle cover remains stable at £1 per unit.
Overall, we see the changes as very positive for both new and existing clients. Yes, they have reduced cover for accidental death and accidental injuries, however the number claims received for this cover is pretty low. The increase in payments for fracture cover brings them closer to what a client might receive from other fracture cover plans without the vast list of exclusions due to sports or hobbies or pastimes.
The hospitalisation cover is actually the most generous in the market if you consider the total amount that could be paid, however someone would need to be pretty ill to spend that amount of time in hospital. For what is included in the EverydayProtect plan £10 per unit does not seem unreasonable and actually represents a fantastic add on (or alternative in some cases) to traditional protection plans.
Want to know more about Metlife and what they offer ? Visit their brand new showcase page here
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