Quite rightly many people consider life assurance as the first priority to provide protection for their dependents. However, when you consider the statistic that "100,000 men under age 65 will die this year but around 5 times as many will suffer a critical illness, then there is an argument that critical illness insurance is as important if not more so"...*

Critical Illness Insurance provides a tax-free lump sum upon a diagnosis of any one of a set of defined major illnesses or disabilities. Its main function is to provide funds to ease the change of lifestyle, which often follows such a diagnosis. It can, for example, be used to repay a mortgage, adapt a home to cope with a disabled person or be used to employ help in the home or business.

A limitation of critical illness insurance is that it is not linked to your ability to work. There are many instances were you could be disabled from work for reasons which do not constitute a critical illness. Typical examples of a critical illness are: heart attack, stroke, and cancer although conditions covered can vary from insurer to insurer.

Other factors -

How much cover do I need? The answer depends on your individual circumstances. However, please try our basic calculator to give an indication of likely cover levels.

Combine Critical illness insurance and life cover together - The advantage of this is that the premiums are often cheaper than for two separate policies. By doing this, the policy will pay out on the first event only. For example, if you suffer a critical illness a claim may be payable. If you subsequently die then the policy will not pay out again.

Conditions covered by the policy. The specific conditions covered may vary from insurer to insurer. We can help you ensure that a critical illness policy is suitable to meet your needs.

Guaranteed v Reviewable Premiums - Reviewable premiums tend to be cheaper at the commencement of the cover but insurers have the right to alter the premiums in lines with their claims history. Over a policy with a lengthy term, guaranteed premiums may prove to be cheaper.

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*Source - National Statistics Online