There really isn’t a way to fully express the gratitude we all feel for doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals that are out there saving lives every day during this pandemic. While it seems like many insurers have been taking steps to make finding coverage more difficult, there are others who are staunchly supporting those workers on the front line.
This does not constitute advice and advice should be sought in all instances before acting on it.
Earlier this month insurers started making changes in response to the coronavirus outbreak. With more and more healthcare professionals looking to secure or upgrade life cover, critical illness or income protection, insurance providers started making changes that effectively made it impossible to do so.
We’ve recently covered the news that many insurance providers are modifying their application processes even further and scaling back product offerings.
In these cases, front line workers (particularly NHS and health workers) have disproportionately been affected and it’s becoming virtually impossible to get coverage.
We can now bring you some good news from some insurers on deferring applications due to COVID-19.
Previously, Aviva, Guardian, and Royal London included questions about contact with people with COVID-19. Recently, however, they’ve announced that if the contact was in the applicant’s working environment then that won’t be taken into account. But if the contact was made outside of their workplace, the application will still be deferred.
While it’s a step in the right direction by a small number of insurers, it’s not exactly clear who this new caveat applies to. While it might be obvious that NHS and health workers will benefit, there are many other jobs where people put their health at risk performing essential duties, so what other occupations can take advantage?
Here’s an overview of each insurer and the details of their new approach:
Aviva
- All new clients without medical disclosures or symptoms/confirmation of COVID-19 will be referred to underwriters
- Terms should not differ even if you’ve had contact in your working environment
- Prioritising applications from front line workers (these haven’t all been defined so work with your financial adviser to confirm with the provider that your application will be fast-tracked).
Guardian
The following occupations will be prioritised:
- Hospital workers
- Ambulance workers and paramedics
- People working at GP surgeries
- COVID-19 testing site workers
- People providing mental healthcare services
- Workers developing a COVID-19 vaccine or treatment
- Pharmacists
- Police
- Care workers
- Teachers (teaching face to face)
- Firefighters
Royal London
- Drill-down questions introduced to clarify individual circumstances for anyone who answers yes to being in contact with someone suffering from the coronavirus
We’re here to make choosing protection easier
It’s a confusing and difficult time and figuring out whether or not you’ll be able to secure or upgrade life cover, income protection, or critical illness cover right now isn’t so clear cut. But we’re here to help you so you can focus on what’s important — saving lives. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out today.
We can help you find the right insurance.
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