Royal London has announced a number of changes focusing on mental health within its pre and post-sale customer communications.
The changes are in line with the Association of British Insurers’ (ABI) Mental Health Standards and Access to Insurance Agreements and aim to make it easier for customers with mental health issues to apply for protection insurance, it said.
The insurer joins AIG Life in making changes to support mental health applicants today while Aviva introduced similar changes in September.
As well as adapting the language used on application forms, the mutual has made questions clearer and more empathetic and its underwriting process more transparent.
Questions relating to mental health are now in a clearly defined section, separate from those about the client’s physical health enabling applicants to navigate the application easier.
Language that could be perceived as negative has been replaced with softer terms, for example ‘decline’ or ‘refuse’ has been replaced with ‘unable to offer cover’ or ‘unable to accept’.
Meanwhile, a health and wellbeing directory has been developed to provide local help and support from charities and community groups for customers requiring additional help at the time they are considering an insurance purchase.
Jennifer Gilchrist, protection specialist at Royal London, said: “The pandemic has, in part, been responsible for an increased focus on mental health issues in the UK.
“As a responsible business it’s only right that we break down any barriers preventing anyone from accessing cover to protect themselves and their families.
“Adapting the language helps improve the overall customer experience when buying insurance and has been implemented on the back of feedback from customers and mental health charities provided to the ABI and used to design the ABI Mental Health Standards. It’s all part of our drive to make protection accessible for everyone.”