Critical Illness Cover

Anyone over the age of 18 and a UK resident can apply for critical illness cover. Whether or not you will be accepted and under what terms will depend on your personal circumstances.

No. The proceeds from a critical illness payout will be paid free of tax. Critical illness payments are not viewed as income, so there is no tax due.

Yes. It is possible to buy standalone critical illness cover without buying life insurance. This might be suitable if you already have some level of life insurance through your employer. Most people buy combined life and critical illness cover as the premiums tend not to be significantly higher than standalone critical illness cover anyway.

Yes, you can buy joint critical illness cover. Often, this works out cheaper than buying two standalone policies. However, with joint critical illness cover, there may be one payout, depending on the insurer you choose.

If you’ve suffered with a serious illness in the past or have a pre-existing condition, you should still be able to get a critical illness policy. However, your premium is likely to be higher, and you won’t have cover for the pre-existing condition.

There are some providers who offer critical illness cover for children. The number of conditions covered, and the amount of cover varies between insurers.