Provides your loved ones with a cash pay out if you pass away during the policy term.
Life insurance with no medical questions that guarantees a cash pay out to your loved ones.
Helps to replace a percentage of your income if you’re unable to work due to illness or injury.
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By: Rosie Ritchie
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Life and critical illness cover is a type of policy that provides a lump sum pay out if you pass away or are diagnosed with a serious illness.
Critical illness cover and life insurance can be secured as separate policies, but it’s common for insurers to offer these together as a combined policy for a lower cost.
Compare FREE life and critical illness cover quotes online today through Reassured and secure our best deal.
Alternatively, depending on your personal circumstances, one of our experts will be in touch to discuss your options.
Life insurance and critical illness cover are two types of financial protection that can be combined in one policy.
The critical illness part of the policy will provide you with a lump sum pay out if you’re diagnosed with a specified critical illness, such as cancer, heart attack or stroke. This can help to replace your income and cover essential costs if you’re unable to work.
The life insurance part of the policy will provide your family with a lump sum pay out if you pass away. This is designed to help protect their financial future after you’re gone.
Here’s a quick summary of how life insurance with critical illness cover typically works as a combined policy:
You choose how much cover you need (sum assured) and how long you’d like to be covered for (the term) for both forms of cover.
If you pass away due to any reason or are diagnosed with a specified critical illness during the policy term, you (or your family) can make a claim.
You pay one monthly premium (from £10 a month) while cover is in place. The cost is determined by your chosen policy details and personal circumstances.
If a valid claim is made and the full sum assured is paid out, or the term comes to an end, your policy will expire.
When you take out life insurance with critical illness cover, you’ll be covered in the event you pass away or are diagnosed with a specified serious illness during a set period.
Most policies cover up to around 40 serious illnesses, which may include:
The exact definitions of the illnesses covered vary between different insurers and will be outlined in your policy documents.
Some policies also offer free critical illness cover for your children, or you may have the option to add children’s cover for an extra cost.
See our guide What illnesses are covered by critical illness cover? to find out more.
Not everyone needs life insurance or critical illness cover, or both forms of protection at the same time.
However, it could be worthwhile taking out life insurance and critical illness cover together if:
Even if you’ve not yet started a family or bought your first home, you may consider taking out life insurance with critical illness cover ahead of time to lock-in lower premiums.
Compare life and critical illness cover online quotes through Reassured to see if we can offer you the best price.
Unfortunately, anyone can develop a critical illness during their lifetime. Statistics in the UK show that:
You’re not legally required to have critical illness and life cover for mortgage protection, but it could be a good idea.
Having both forms of protection in place can help to ensure that your debt is repaid, and your home is protected if you became unwell or pass away.
If you’re a UK resident aged between 18 and 75, then you can apply for life insurance with critical illness cover through Reassured.
Life insurance as a standalone policy is available to those aged between 18 and 84.
The cost of life insurance and critical illness cover combined starts from just £10 a month through Reassured.
Monthly premiums are determined by your:
In the table below, we compare example life insurance with critical illness cover quotes from different insurers.
Quotes are based on non-smoker, in good health, taking out a level term policy over 20 years with a sum assured of £50,000:
Age |
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
20 | £8.05 | £8.93 | £9.16 |
25 | £11.07 | £11.57 | £11.35 |
30 | £14.71 | £16.93 | £14.66 |
35 | £20.60 | £20.11 | £19.46 |
40 | £28.48 | £27.09 | £27.87 |
45 | £40.04 | £41.68 | £39.52 |
50 | £61.21 | £61.32 | £57.63 |
Comparing life and critical illness cover quotes online through our award-winning broker service can help you to find the right policy at the right price.
Click through to our online form today for your FREE quotes.
There are two main types of life insurance with critical illness cover.
You can choose the option that’s most suitable for you:
With this type of cover, the pay out amount (sum assured) you choose will stay the same throughout the policy term.
This means it can be ideal for helping to cover debts or costs that won’t change over time, such as an interest-only mortgage or day to day living expenses.
With this type of cover, the pay out amount will reduce throughout the policy term. This is because it’s designed to help cover a repayment mortgage, which also reduces as you pay it off.
Your policy term and pay out amount can align with your outstanding mortgage or other debts you have.
If you’re part of a couple, you may consider joint life insurance with critical illness cover.
This provides protection for both partners should either of you pass away during the set term.
With a joint policy:
Contact the experts at Reassured if you need help choosing the right policy for you.
This depends on what you’d like your policy to cover and your budget.
Many critical illness policies offer the option to add children’s critical illness cover for an extra cost - or with some policies, children’s cover is included as standard.
This can provide you with an additional lump sum pay out if your child falls unwell with one of the illnesses listed in your policy, without affecting your own cover.
Children’s critical illness cover can also come with additional benefits, including free life cover or funeral cover. The exact features and benefits of each policy varies between different insurers.
See our best critical illness cover UK guide to discover the most comprehensive policies available on the market.
What’s the difference between life insurance and critical illness cover?
Life insurance offers a financial safety net for your family if you pass away. It pays out a lump sum upon your death.
Critical illness cover offers financial protection for you and your family if you become seriously ill. It pays out a tax-free lump sum if you make a valid claim for an illness that’s listed in your policy.
When does life and critical illness cover payout?
When your policy pays out will depend on whether you make a claim for a critical illness or if your family claim after your death.
If diagnosed with a critical illness, a survival period must pass before you can make a claim. This is usually 10 or 14 days after your diagnosis.
If you pass away, your family can make a claim immediately following your death. A pay out will be made once the insurer has been able to assess and accept the claim.
Can you get critical illness cover on its own?
Yes, it’s possible to obtain critical illness cover as a standalone policy with some insurers.
This can be more expensive than taking out life insurance and critical illness cover as one policy but can offer extra protection for you and your family.
Reassured are unable to offer critical illness cover without life insurance.
[1] https://www.macmillan.org.uk/healthcare-professionals/news-and-resources/blogs/cancer-care-decades-behind
[2] https://www.stroke.org.uk/stroke/statistics
[3] https://www.bhf.org.uk/what-we-do/news-from-the-bhf/contact-the-press-office/facts-and-figures
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