COVID, Long Covid and Insurance

All clients with financial commitments and families will understand the implications not having insurance or being under-insured. It is now clear that some insurance companies are declining life, critical illness and income protection insurance to people suffering long-term consequences of Covid-19. We are already experiencing applications being deferred following a bout of Covid-19. 

 

Many people with mortgages and families are under-insured compared with their debts and needs of life. Whilst many will have adopted life insurance, we know that a large proportion of the population does not have adequate income protection or critical illness covers. 

 

Long Covid is expected to be with us for years, and insurers are worried about its impact on policyholders’ health and ability to work. They are already preparing for a tsunami of claims on existing critical illness and income protection policies. They’re also tightening eligibility criteria on new policies, with some insurers requiring applicants to disclose whether they’ve had coronavirus, even if they only experienced mild symptoms and have since recovered. Some applicants are reporting being turned down for insurance in some employment sectors such as the NHS. 

 

There will certainly be an impact on insurance premiums for new insurance due to an increase in the number of claims which will be made on existing policies. 

 

All insurers now ask if the applicant had the virus and some have confirmed that previous hospitalisation with the virus could impact coverage or premiums. 

 

Currently, an application for insurance whilst displaying Covid symptoms will be deferred for a qualifying period after recovery. 

 

The unknowns about the coronavirus and its long-term effects are disturbing insurers and this is having an impact on our clients. 

 

Whilst vaccination is helping the world to cope, the long term effects of COVID and Long Covid are not understood, and the need for financial protection has just gone up a notch. The point of this blog is to encourage every client (or anyone for that matter) without life cover, critical illness cover or income protection to contact us so that we can at least offer an appropriate solution. 

 

If you have the slightest concern that you and that you need to discuss your insurance with me, please call me as soon as you can and I will be more than happy talk with you.