The Exeter has added a first job promise and redundancy premium holiday to its Income First product in a bid to provide greater support for members who find themselves in vulnerable circumstances.
The features offer support for customers who have recently started their first job and are unable to provide the required financial evidence to support their claim and for customers who have suffered involuntary redundancy or business failure.
First job promise
Elaborating on its first job promise, The Exeter explained that when an income protection claim is made, a member’s benefit is assessed against their previous 12 months of earnings.
But for those who have just started work following full-time education, this can be impossible to provide, exposing a gap in cover.
With its new ‘first job promise’, a member claims within their first year of employment and The Exeter will calculate their income based on an annual salary of the income they have so far earned prior to the claim.
The new feature aims to offer greater certainty for the member at the point of claim and is designed to make income protection a more appealing prospect to young adults who are entering employment after completing their full-time education.
Redundancy premium holiday
The ‘redundancy premium holiday’ offers support to members made redundant and facing financial difficulties.
The features sees The Exeter waive premiums for up to three months, ensuring they can keep cover in place as they look for a new job.
The feature is available to both employed and self-employed members. An employed person must be in permanent employment and be made involuntarily redundant at least six months after the policy begins to qualify.
If the member is self-employed, they will qualify for the feature if they suffer a form of business failure – such as bankruptcy, insolvency, or liquidation – at least six months after the policy starts.
The redundancy premium holiday is aimed at to giving members greater certainty during times of financial difficulty and the ability to retain full cover, benefits, and access to value-added services, such as HealthWise.
Providing greater certainty
Steve Bryan, director of distribution and marketing at The Exeter, said: “For those without access to employer sick pay benefits, or those just starting their careers, a reduction in income due to illness, injury or involuntary redundancy can have an immediate impact on their financial wellbeing and potentially lead to them being in a position of vulnerability.
“The enhancements introduced on our Income First product are designed to provide greater certainty to members who find themselves in these situations and highlight the importance of income protection in providing peace of mind to workers of all ages and occupations.
“The changes also support our alignment to the new Consumer Duty which requires firms to provide an appropriate standard of support to retail customers to meet their needs, including those with characteristics of vulnerability.”