Legal & General has broadened its critical illness (CI) cover definitions and increased the maximum age a child can be covered under its CI Extra plan.
The insurer said the changes to its CI product reflect changing lifestyles and family structures in the UK.
Changes to L&G’s CI Extra product include:
- Broadening cancer definitions to include some progressive cutaneous lymphoma and sarcomas, while now also including low-grade thyroid cancer
- The addition of cover for skin cancer of a specified severity to reflect earlier detection and treatment rates for the condition through medical advances
- Definitions for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis now covered under the broader definition of severe bowel disease, which also covers diverticulitis and intestinal ischaemia
- The inclusion of severe mental health illnesses
- The insertion of a pacemaker and infective endocarditis now included under additional payment terms.
In addition to the above, payments for additional cover conditions under CI Extra policies will increase from 50% or £30,000 to a maximum of 50% or £35,000 of the original sum assured.
Greater coverage for children
Under Children’s CI Extra, the maximum age a child can be covered to is also increasing from their 22nd to their 23rd birthday, with the policy remaining in place whether or not the child is in full time education.
L&G said this update reflects the fact that many young adults are completing their studies later or taking gap years, while others are choosing to live at home with their parents for longer.
Legal & General’s Bank of Family research, for instance, found that 31% of parents and grandparents had welcomed adult family members to live with them to make it easier to save for a deposit.
Meanwhile, both children’s CI and CI Extra now include coverage for children under the legal guardianship of a policyholder, expanding upon coverage for adopted and stepchildren. This change has been made to reflect changing family structures in the UK.
Additionally, payments for conditions covered under Children’s CI Extra and child’s terminal illness will increase from 50% or £35,000 to a maximum of 50% or £40,000 of the original sum assured.
Julie Godley, director of intermediary at Legal & General Retail (pictured) said: “We are happy to announce that our critical illness products now cover more areas and give our customers more options at a time when lifestyles in the UK are changing.
“Working with our intermediary partners and responding to the changing needs of our customers remains a key priority for us.
“Adding broader definitions for cancer, other serious illnesses and extending the number of customers covered by our children’s CI Extra policies, demonstrates our commitment to improving our protection cover and ensuring our products match the changing needs of our customers.
“We encourage all our intermediary partners to familiarise themselves with these details to help potential customers make the most informed decisions when taking out a policy.
“We’re also giving advisers the opportunity to hear directly from our experts about the changes in a series of webinars, which they can register for via our website.“
Very welcome changes
Providing his verdict on the changes, Alan Lakey, director of CIExpert, said L&G was in danger of falling behind its competitors in the quality stakes, however the changes introduced to the Extra plan had regained its position among the elite.
“Removing the exclusion for stage 1 thyroid cancer is a major move as is the addition of a new severe mental illness condition,“ he said.
“Severe bowel disease consolidates Crohn’s Disease and ulcerative colitis with other conditions such as pancreatitis and intestinal ischaemia. Adding less advanced cancer of the skin and increasing the additional payment maximum to £35,000 and children’s cover to £40,000 are all very welcome.
“The new conditions that have been added serve to plug gaps where competitors claimed an edge.“
He added that the changes “will assist L&G in regaining market share that has been lost over the past 13 months.”