Afternoon everyone… I was just wondering, and if you dont mind sharing…how many of you have claimed critical illness insurance and have any of you been turned down? How long did it take for your claim to go through? and most importantly of all how has it helped you?! :0) Emma x
I claimed two policies - both paid out. One took 16 days from phone call to money arriving, the other took three months! It’s helped loads as it repaid our mortgage and allowed us to buy a new (automatic) car. So we’re now an almost-four-figure-sum better off every month for the next 18 years (being a fairly “young” MSer, we still had a huge mortgage!). So on the back of that we’ll start saving hard so if and when we need to move to a bungalow or make adaptions to our home, we won’t have to take out a new mortgage. We’re also making sure we enjoy holidays etc. now, in case things get bad later. A mixture of sensible and extravagant to have a good life now and later! X
Hi Emma I was dx 12/2/13 and informed the insurance companies straight away. Aviva paid out very quickly (4 weeks)’ Scottish Provident a month later and L & G yesterday. What was there to turn down? I know insurance companies try to wriggle out of settling, but a confirmed dx of PPMS is a pretty open and shut case. Massive weight off my shoulders. I’m still working full time at the moment so am going to make the most of the monthly savings. Walt Disney world next year and I’m gonna treat myself to a little car. My days of cycling to work are over!!! My wife has been brilliant. I’ve told her to go out and abuse the Barclaycard!!! She deserves it. Great to be mortgage free at 42, but I’d give my eye teeth to still have a massive mortgage and my health. Have a good evening. Al
I should have added that, technically the policies might not have paid out if my neuro wasn’t clear on symptoms. Both my plans stated that I had to be diagnosed using currently accepted techniques (ie MRI and clinical history was fine, didn’t need a LP), AND I had to have had symptoms persisting for a continuous period of six months. Obviously the insurer accepted my neuro’s word on this, but that could be a sticking point. On the plus side, even if it was refused you can still put in a new claim once the criteria is met anyway, so chances are it will pay out eventually unless you’re REALLY lucky! I know I’d prefer to have no MS and a big mortgage still 
X
emma, was that 6 continuous months from dx? Thanks both…saw gp about mine today, he is writing report for me. fingers crossed because we have seen a house we want! I wasn’t even aware of the cover we had and that we could claim til i read it on here about a month after dx…so yet again this site has really helped!! thanks guys xx
No, mine was just six months of continuous symptoms. Official DX was mid April last year and the payout was in early May. I’d had symptoms investigated by various people from August 2011, so they took that into account even though it wasn’t thought to be MS back then! One insurer even backdated my claim to February as that was the date of my MRI scan, then paid me interest to cover those months - even though I hadn’t submitted a claim until April! (Not all insurers are bad!) X
wow…that is good…i am now worried that i may not get it as i was dx in feb with MRI but symptoms started in dec…14th to be exact!! not quite 6 months…oh well, we will see! thanks for your reply xx :0)
It really depends on the exact wording of your policy, but worst case you can always reapply when you get to the six months and they’ll just get an updated medical report. I think it’s almost inevitable that an MS claim will pay out at some point (unless it stays benign until after the policy ends!), it’s just about timing. Good luck x
Confirmed Diagnosis November 2011, got the paperwork through December 2011. Seen for DMD in Feb 2012. Put claim in then. Paid out at the end of March (in full) Not the full Mortgage but the poorly sold endowment so got more paid back than what the endowment would have run to!
I claimed on my critical illness cover with Scottish Widows shortly after being diagnosed. It was one of the conditions so I was covered right? Wrong! I had forgotten to tell them about getting injections for tendonitis in my shoulder several years ago. Honestly, it was so trivial that it was hardly worth mentioning.
Naturally they seized on this and as I hadn’t disclosed my full medical history this negated the terms of the contract. Good job Scottish Widows, your shareholders must be proud of you!
I got my premiums back but no pay out on the critical illness cover. My own fault I suppose.
JZ
Yes, I was with UNUM (arranged through work). They paid up quickly - within 1-2 months, I think. As far as I know, they never even contacted my neuro. They asked permission, but never did. I had reserved my right to see any reports on me before they were forwarded to the insurers, and I never did see one from the hospital, so I assume none was requested (it was all in the GP notes anyway).
The only quibble I had was they didn’t even send me a letter informing me they were going to settle, or when! The first I knew about it was the money appearing in my a/c. This might seem like a delightful surprise, but as I was away in Turkey at the time, and had no idea it was there, it could have been disastrous if I’d had my card pinched or “skimmed”. Someone could have cleaned out the lot, without me even realising the loss! So, not very safe to deposit a large sum of money in someone’s bank, without warning them you’re going to. If I’d known, I could have made arrangements to immediately transfer it somewhere safer - an account not accessible by my card. Anyway, luckily, I wasn’t mugged or anything, and it’s almost just as well I didn’t know how much was in the account, or I wouldn’t have been walking round Istanbul feeling safe!
The only other slight anomaly was because it had been arranged through work, I had to claim through work. This would have raised confidentiality issues, if I HAD hoped to keep quiet about my diagnosis, because there didn’t seem to be any way to lodge a claim, without going via HR. It also had the bizarre effect that I got a load of stupid bumf about “welcoming me back to work”, ignoring that I’d never actually been off. My boss “generously” wrote off the rest of the day on the morning I was actually diagnosed, and I used it to get drunk - but other than that, no. It seems the default assumption, if you have a successful critical illness claim, is you MUST have been off sick, so I got a whole load of irrelevant nonsense.
Tina
x
Hi, I claimed on my Critical illness cover about 8 months after diagnosis ( I didnt realise that I could untill a friend mentioned it to me), there was no problems took about 2 months to come through. Being only 32 it has made a massive difference, the usual we had a pretty big mortagage, now we dont!! Able to have better holidays and cars and just a better standard of living in general. Having to much month left at the end of the money is a thing of the past. We always say it is our silver lining, got to be something good to come out of the devastating dignosis of MS. Hope all goes well if you make a claim.
Hi, I claimed on my Critical illness cover about 8 months after diagnosis ( I didnt realise that I could untill a friend mentioned it to me), there was no problems took about 2 months to come through. Being only 32 it has made a massive difference, the usual we had a pretty big mortagage, now we dont!! Able to have better holidays and cars and just a better standard of living in general. Having to much month left at the end of the money is a thing of the past. We always say it is our silver lining, got to be something good to come out of the devastating dignosis of MS. Hope all goes well if you make a claim.
Thank you all for replies…i soooo hope my claim goes through…as said in another post here, there has to be some silver lining to this!! xx
I was diagnosed in April 2009 but had totally forgotten about the CI policy until a year later when I was clearing out some paperwork and came across it. I had taken it out to protect me against heart disease which runs in the family and so it had completely slipped my mind. I put the claim in thinking I had left it too late but they paid out within a couple of months - ‘they’ being Legal & General. I didn’t have a mortgage any more so I treated myself to a used automatic car as I was struggling with the manual, we took a well-deserved holiday and the rest is invested for whenever I need it. I can always access chunks of it when I need to.
Good luck, it doesn’t replace what MS takes away but I looked on it as a silver lining too …
Tracey x
Hello, l have been newly diagnosed on with Ms on 3rd March this year despite having symptoms on and off for six years. I completely forgot l have critical life cover with Canada Life until my Uncle mentioned it to me. Looking for people’s experience re companies paying out for this type of cover please. As l am not very well at the moment the forms looking completely overwhelming to me and l am frightened l am going to say the wrong thing. As a single Mom this money could really change my life and give me financial support when most needed. So any help or guidance you could give me to get a positive result would be greatly appreciated. Kindest Regards Keels x
Hi Keels, as long as you didn’t have a dx or a mention of MS when you took the cover out & it is stated on your policy(MS that is) you will be paid out. Phone them, they will put you onto the claims department, I had mine within 8 weeks, good luck! Tracey x
Hi Tracey, thank you so much for your help. No didn’t have diagnosis when took policy out x
Does anyone take Forever aloe Vera drinking gel please? I have been taking it for about two years. I have been recently diagnosed with Ms. My Ms Nurse said l shouldn’t be taking anything like turmeric or echinacea which boosts the immune system. I am therefore wondering if l am doing myself more harm than good by taking the drinking gel. Can’t seem to find an answer either way. Thank you x
Before actual diagnosis had you been to the doctor with various symptoms. This in itself shouldn’t be a problem, but if you hadn’t noted those on your Critical Illness application forms there may be difficulties.