Please help: cover for mental illness

dilby00

Hi - hope this is the right category to be posting in.

My wife and I both work as self-employed designers (specifically, I work in my own limited company which she is a silent director in, and then she works as a sole trader for her own design work as we have separate clients).

I have my own death and illness cover, and as she has really only branched out on her own recently we haven't set anything up for her.

Unfortunately she has recently been suffering from anxiety and depression and is now finding it extremely difficult to work, even though she wants to. We have begun seeing doctors, and trying to work through it but for now it's almost impossible to rely on a steady income stream through her side of things.

I wanted to know if anyone knew if we could set some sort of insurance up for her or if it was too late? I'm assuming it'd be too late as it's likely to be seen as a pre-existing condition and I can file this one under 'should have would have could have' set it up before, but I wanted to know if anyone had any insights.

I never imagined having to claim on something like that, but it's simply a really difficult time and and pressure that could be taken off financially would really be a huge help.

Thanks everyone

Chris_Pollard

It isn't clear what type of insurance you are seeking Dilby. You mention you have Life/Critical Illness insurance, but you don't mention Income Protection - which given your self employed status is pretty important and would protect you if you were unable to work due to illness or disability. In terms of your wife, there are probably a couple of issues. Firstly her condition appears current, and until this has settled, or she has made a recovery, it is unlikely any insurer would offer terms. When they would, they would probably place an exclusion on any mental illness. However, the second issue is that if your wife has not worked for some time, then presumably she has had limited opportunity for earnings so it could be difficult insuring her for a reasonable amount. In terms of life assurance/critical illness, again, the insurer would need to understand the severity of the condition before considering terms.

This possibly does fall into the "if only" category, however, your income is probably more important now than ever, so I'd recommend that you seek out advice on putting in place "income protection" for yourself. Once bitten, twice shy and all that.

dilby00

Thanks Chris - Yes I meant income protection, apologies.

This issue has been going on for a month which doesn't seem long, but it's got gradually worse. There are a few things going in personally that are part of the cause, which gives me reason to believe it could be a longer term thing to work through, which is part of my concern.

She is still working, but nowhere near full time. She tries, but then gets worse, as if she needs for her brain to just relax at this moment in time, so every part of me just wants to be able to say you dont have to work!

Part of the fun of being self employed. My 'if only' category is certainly getting very full!

Weighty1

Unfortunately Dilby for long term income protection you've probably missed the boat. Mental health claims are normally one of the top causes of claims so insurers are always hesitant to not exclude anxiety/depression/stress, if it's been symptomatic within the last 3, but often 5-years. There are some short term IP policies (similar to the old PPI type cover) which would cover mental health problems but only once the plan has been in force for at least 12-months and even then, only if it is deemed as being severe by the GP.