News & Views

Moneysworth’s Greatest Successes – how we found insurance for clients with complex medical histories

Moneysworth could help you to find protection insurance even if you’re deemed a higher risk, or have been refused elsewhere.

We have, on many occasions, been able to find insurance for people who reside abroad, or who have experienced health issues such as:

• Cancer
• Heart disease
• Mental health issues
• HIV
• Diabetes
• IBS
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• High or low BMI
• … and many more

Some of our greatest successes include:

1. 58-year-old man who had experienced a heart attack

• Experienced a heart attack five years prior to the application
• Had undergone surgery to open up his right coronary artery and to have stents fitted
• Continued to take regular medication for two years following the attack
• As part of the assessment process, the insurer obtained a letter from his cardiologist and also took into account the fact he had qualified as a personal fitness trainer since his attack
• We found an insurer who was prepared to offer him £190,000 of life cover over five years for £72 per month, which was just over double the insurer’s standard premium for a man of his age

2. 47-year-old man with Essential Thrombosytheria

• He was diagnosed with the condition following a routine blood test three years prior to the application
• He takes medication on an ongoing basis to control the condition
• He also had a heart attack back in 2005
• A stent was fitted in a procedure shortly after his heart attack
• Unfortunately, a number of providers indicated that they could not provide cover. We were able to find him a policy with a specialist insurer where he is covered for death from causes other than pre-existing health conditions. He has £100,000 of cover over five years for £22.43 per month

3. 52-year-old woman with a history of liver and breast cancer. 

• Was diagnosed with breast cancer nine years prior to the application to Moneysworth and underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy at this time
• Was still undergoing hormone therapy at the time of the application
• Surgery was also required to remove adenomas from her liver nine years previously
• Other medical issues included an underactive thyroid and autistic spectrum disorder
• One insurer was prepared to offer her £75,000 of life insurance with a premium that was 2.25 times higher than their standard rate, which made the final premium £55.51 per month

4. 56-year-old man with a history of skin and throat cancer

• Was diagnosed with throat cancer eight years earlier and underwent chemotherapy and radiotherapy
• Had a malignant melanoma removed two years prior to his Moneysworth application
• Regular check-ups would still be required for three years following the time of the application

• Two insurers initially indicated they could offer cover and he eventually took out a policy with one of these
•  Client was able to obtain a policy that had high premiums for the first four years, but which became more affordable after that. For £250,000 of cover over 25 years he needs to pay £751.30 for years 1 to 3; £425.05 for year 4; and £98.80 thereafter for the remainder of the policy. 
• His second offer was  £477.48 for the first four years, reducing to £216.76 for the remaining 21 years

5. 26-year-old woman with a history of depression and other complications

• First experienced depression around seven years earlier
• Had made attempts at self-harm as recently as three years prior to the application, via various overdoses
• Was under medical supervision for the condition until around 16 months prior to her application
• Still typically took anti-depressants during the winter months
• She eventually took out life cover for £25,000 over five years, at a cost of £13.67 per month
• Unfortunately, in this instance, it was not possible to find an insurer who would cover her for death related to her previous mental health issues, so the policy we recommended is one that pays out for death that is not related to a pre-existing medical condition
• This may, however, only need to be a temporary solution, as one insurer indicated they could re-consider were another application to be made in six months’ time

6. 33-year-old woman who had experienced both OCD and depression

• First diagnosed with depression at age 14
• Was free from depression at the time of the application, but was still taking medication for it at the time of the application
• Made a suicide attempt via an overdose four years prior to the application
• Was also diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Order in her 20s, and the condition still exists to some extent
• The policy she took out was for £100,000 of life cover over 30 years. The premium is fairly high for the first two years, at £51.12, but then reduces to £19.83 per month for the remaining 28 years 

7. 55-year-old man with a very high Body Mass Index

• 5′ 10″ and 23 stone, giving a BMI of 45.6
• Had previously been declined for life insurance on more than one occasion
• Also had type 2 diabetes
• Took medication for raised blood pressure
• After researching his situation, we told them that while most insurance companies would still say no, we believed we had found a company who might say yes. 
• The insurance company wrote to the client’s GP for a report and the client also attended a brief medical screening. 
• The insurance company was happy with the results and made a definite offer of cover, which the client was happy to accept, of £56,075 decreasing life cover over 20 years for £50 per month.

If you have been told by another broker that you cannot get life insurance because of a medical issue; or if you have approached insurers directly, without success, then contact Moneysworth today to see how we can help.

How might your insurance provider be able to help if you are struggling financially?

For too many of us right now, the cost of living crisis is part of our daily lives. Many of us are looking to make savings in any way we can.

You might be tempted to think about making savings by cancelling your direct debit to your life insurance company. You really need to think carefully, however, before taking this step.

Typically, your insurance policy will end once you have missed three consecutive premiums. This means that you will lose valuable insurance cover, and possibly deprive your loved ones of the peace of mind you were so keen to provide when you took out the policy.

You might be tempted to think that you will simply take out a new life insurance policy once the cost of living crisis eases and your personal financial situation improves. If you think this way, however, not only are you losing valuable cover in the meantime, but it might not be as easy as you think to obtain replacement insurance cover in the future. Being a few years older inevitably means higher premiums, and by the time you apply for the replacement policy, your health or personal situation may have deteriorated, meaning that the insurance companies will only offer you cover at a much higher premium, or may not wish to insure you at all.

If you have decided, however, that you really can’t afford your life insurance premium, before you cancel your direct debit, please speak to your insurer to see how they might be able to help. 

For example, your insurer might be prepared to offer:

• Payment deferrals – where you can miss several premiums, and then make up the missed amount later. They may allow you to do this via a payment plan instead of demanding all of the outstanding sum in one go
• A reduction in the sum assured, while keeping the policy in force
• A reduction in the term of the policy, and thus a reduction in your premium, while keeping the sum assured unchanged
• An option to top your cover back up at a later date with simplified underwriting, so you won’t need to answer all of the health questions that you did at application stage
• An option to top your cover back up at a later date with no underwriting
• A reduction of the scope of your cover, so the range of benefits available to you is reduced, but you can still maintain core elements of the policy