Total, Permanent Disability

mikeyboy

Hi,

Hope someone can help here..

Made an application to PruProtect recently for life and critical illness cover, have had a letter from them basically saying that they will only cover total permanent disability on a tasks basis (ie: walking X yards, bending, walking stairs etc.) I really want Own Occupation definition.

I have rund Pru and they say its due to my high business mileage (circa 35-40,000 per year, sales manager.)

I know I cannot ask for 'advice' as such from an IFA on here, but are there companies which will offer me the terms I want??

I want a company which offers a high level of cover, ie not jsut the average 28 conditions.

Any ideas/recommendations??

Thanks

cogito

TPD usually refers to accidents. Is that included as part of the critical illness cover?

mikeyboy

Hi,

Yes the TPD is part of the policy, depending on underwriting it will be offered as occupation specific, suited occupation or task based.

Wutang_2

Eclipsefifi wrote: »

You can depend the TPD because that is insurance policy.

Not sure I understand this!

dunstonh

I think eclipsefifi is a spam robot. Posting loads of rubbish to promote a link but the board automatically prevents posting of links on new sign ups until they get to a certain number of posts.

kevin_c_3

TPD is commonly listed on critical illness policies, however, more than 50% of claims are declined and as such it is unlikely to exist for more than a year or so, instead it is likely to be replaced by a number of specific new conditions (the industry is currently debating this)

while 50% are declined, just 3% of ALL claims made under CIC fall under TPD, and so it is a very low percentage - the point being that it is the rest of the cover that is more important

also, it you really want 'own occ' then perhaps it is an income protection (PHI) plan that you need rather than a critical illness plan

there are providers that would consider own occ given the mileage, however, the price is likely to be significantly higher

mikeyboy

Hi,

I have made lots of calls today and am really struggling to get 'Own Occupation TPD' as mentioned, it appears to be due to the high business mileage I am doing. I can get TPD cover based on work tasks, ie: cannot perform 2 of 6 work based tasks, it looks like I will have to settle for this.

I do already have PHI, so I guess if I should have any condition which stops me working I can rely on this. It would, however, have been good to have a lump sum.

I appreciate that the critical illness is there for any major, serious health conditions, so is still valuable even without the own occupation TPD.

Any more opinions on Providers would be appreciated... So far I have had quotes from Bright Grey, Scottish Provident, BUPA, Pru Protect and Aegon. The premiums vary dramatically, but what about the conditions,... i think I need to study medicine to understand the differences!!!

If anyoen has advice/recommendations/opinions on the best/worse companies please let me know!!
Many thanks

mikeyboy

Does anyone have any views/preferances on which of the following provides a good overall level of life and cic cover?

For £100,000 of cover, index linked over 30 years:

Skandia - £38.90 per month

Bright Grey - least expensive at £23.43 per month

Friends Provident - £36.00 per month

Aegon Scottish Equitable - £33.19 per month


Which would you go with and why?

littlemermaid_2

Hiya, I used to work for, erm, one of the companies you've previously mentioned so wouldn't like to comment on which is best!

However... most TPD claims got turned down because they didn't meet the definition, if you can't get own occupation then you do pretty much have to be totally disabled (as it suggests!) before you can claim.

As has been said though, most claims are for CIC... Most claims paid out where I worked were for cancer, heart attack and stroke. I would say, look at what is actually covered, it may say "cancer" is covered, but then there will be strict criteria as to what you can actually claim for, i.e. you can claim for cancer which is malignant and has spread, but a benign lump for example which was removed you couldn't. Or you might have what a doctor would call a heart attack, but under the CIC definition it wouldn't be claimable. So if you're doing it yourself, without an adviser, maybe look at the full list of what each policy covers (they should have these available with "layman's" definition as well as the medical one, I know my former employer did) and what the criteria are for at least the most common ones.

It would really depend on whether you want the cheapest cover, or if you want to be covered for as many things as you possibly can be, in which case you will probably have to do some reading!

pedro123456

Well said littlemermaid.

I would say, look at what is actually covered, it may say "cancer" is covered, but then there will be strict criteria as to what you can actually claim for, i.e. you can claim for cancer which is malignant and has spread, but a benign lump for example which was removed you couldn't. Or you might have what a doctor would call a heart attack, but under the CIC definition it wouldn't be claimable.

As with all CI definitions you have to meet the IC definition, not the medical definitions. These definitions are defined to reduce valid claims.

As for TPD my guess is that it is to say the very least subjective but none the less in favour of the IC.

I would imagine only the worse case scenarios are covered under TPD, and that there are many loopholes for the IC

OshayAway

The problem is that there is alot of misunderstanding about TPD. One of the pitfalls of taking out a critical illness plan without advice.

A few weeks ago there was a thread started by someone who was enquiring about whether to claim for ulcerative colitis. Incredibly, some on this forum encouraged them to put a claim in. Not a total and permanent disability that would prevent an individual from working ever again. Others try to claim for backache, another naive claim. It's cases like this that make up the 3% - 5% of all critical illness claims that are not paid due to not meeting the conditions.

Many own occupation TPD claims are paid out on 'mental disorders' i.e. head injury or severe breakdown that would prevent the individual from carrying out a mentally demanding / high pressure job. It's also the reason that school teachers are not entitled to own occ TPD due to the high likelyhood of stress / anxiety etc.

However, generally speaking, if your occupation involves manual work (or in this case high business millage) you will not be entitled to Own Occupation TPD as certain disabilites are more likely to prevent you from working than if you worked in an admin / office environment.