There are no signs that the lost ground in critical illness claims over the pandemic is being made up, according to Craig Paterson, chief underwriter at Royal London.
Speaking to Health & Protection today, Paterson explained while CI claims have returned to pre-pandemic levels, there is no sign that the 20% reduction in claims over the pandemic has been made up.
“Those claims will happen but probably over a number of years rather than coming in a shorter period,” Paterson said.
“Sadly it is possible that delays in diagnosis will mean these conditions will end up being more severe than they would have been had they been diagnosed at the time.
“As customers were not attending for what would they considered non urgent appointments and check ups, there was a significant reduction in the number of diagnoses of cancer and heart disease and that is certainly something that continues to impact us as an industry.”