Since 2009 British Friendly has, on average, paid over 96 per cent of more than 5,000 income protection claims.
The disclosure follows it becoming the first insurer to publish claims data for 2014, showing it paid 96.7 per cent of income protection claims last year, while less than four in every 100 claims were declined.
The most common reasons for claims were musculoskeletal conditions, which have consistently made up 15-20 per cent of claims per year, the firm said.
Mark Myers, British Friendly’s chief executive, restated his belief that all insurers should publish their statistics by the end of January.
“The information is available to all insurers almost immediately, so there is no reason why they shouldn’t all be published in the first 30 days of each year. It is imperative that as an industry we demonstrate an absolute commitment to delivering excellent outcomes for our customers.
“Seven Families is raising awareness of the vital role that income protection plays in protecting the things that matter. We need to reinforce these messages by showing that we will be there when it counts.”
Tom Conner, director at Drewberry Insurance, added that it is important as an adviser to know that an insurer that receives protection business will follow through on their promises.
“Long term paid claim statistics are a useful tool to demonstrate to clients that income protection policies consistently pay out and it also helps to demonstrate that insurers are not trying to decline every claim, which is how the public often perceives them.”
peter.walker@ft.com
