Zurich paid £392m in individual protection claims in 2025 to more than 5,500 claimants, up 9% from the £360m paid in 2024.
In total, 97.4% of all individual protection claims were paid in 2025.
Life
Nearly all life insurance claims were paid (99.8%), amounting to £228.6m to nearly 3,400 beneficiaries of customers with life insurance, up from £220.2m in 2024.
Terminal illness payments also rose in value to £29.9m paid out for 203 claims in 2025, with 90.6% of all terminal claims paid. This compared to £23.5m across 199 claims in 2024.
Critical Illness
Nearly 94% of critical illness claims were paid last year representing 1,426 claims worth £125.4m – a 20% value increase compared to 2024, when 1,352 claims were paid out to the value of £109.7m.
The main reasons customers made a claim on their critical illness policy stayed the same; cancer (64%), cardiovascular (14%) and cerebrovascular (8%), which includes a stroke.
A total of £1.7m was paid out for 71 children’s cover claims, with 93.4% of all claims being accepted. Zurich overhauled its proposition in 2023 to offer more modular and flexible options. The main reasons for claims in 2025 were cancer (53%), benign tumours (16%) and cardiovascular illnesses (11%).
A further 453 people benefited from payments of more than £1.9m for claims for fracture cover – a policy add-on launched in 2018. The most common claim reasons were knee ligament tears (19%) and lower leg/ankle fractures (14%). This is an increase from 2024, when 404 claims were paid at a value of £1.7m
Income protection
Turning to income protection (IP), most (95.4%) IP claims were paid with £4.6m worth of benefits issued to those who are unable to work because of an illness or injury.
A total of 311 claims were paid for an array of reasons including mental illness (28%), neurological disorders and neurotrauma (18%) and musculoskeletal (16%).
This compared to £4.8m paid in 395 IP claims in 2024.
Zurich overhauled its IP offering during the year, introducing broader coverage and greater clarity for claiming customers as well as rehabilitation solutions to support recovery and return to work.
Mental health and cancer
Claire Curley, head of claims retail protection at Zurich UK, (pictured) said: “Our figures show the real value of protection at the moments people need it most. Behind every claim is a person or family facing one of life’s hardest situations, whether that’s bereavement, serious illness or being unable to work, with the vast majority of claims being paid.
“Our data shows that claims continue to be driven by mental illness and cancer – two areas which are long-term health priorities for the UK government. Individual protection remains a vital support for people and can make an enormous difference at what is often the most difficult moment in someone’s life.”
