Protection provider VitalityLife paid out a record amount in claims during 2016, including 99 per cent of those for life cover (LC).
In total, the firm paid out more than £33m on 807 claims, including 93 per cent of serious illness (SI) claims and 94 per cent of income protection (IP) claims in 2016.
The most common reasons for claiming on IP in 2016 were mental illness at 26 per cent, musculoskeletal at 22 per cent and cancer at 10 per cent, while for serious illness claims the most common reason was cancer at 59 per cent, followed by other conditions such as heart attack and stroke.
The average age of claimants was 42 for SI, 45 for IP and 56 for life cover. The youngest was just 2 years old and received a payout for serious illness after suffering from leukaemia.
Deepak Jobanputra, deputy chief executive at VitalityLife, said: “Our aim is to give our members peace of mind about their financial future while helping them to lead healthier lives.
“These claims statistics demonstrate the real value protection products can provide and show that members and their families will be supported when they need it most.”
Kim Barrett, IFA at Hertfordshire-based Barretts Financial Solutions, said the statistics compared well with other providers but added that insurers should be paying out on all claims.
“If they are detecting a level of fraud or misinformation, they are quite within their rights not to pay out, but you would hope the quality of business they would attract would keep that to a minimum,” he added.
But Emma Thomson, head of customer care at LifeSearch, said: “These are very positive claims results from VitalityLife.
"Protection policies provide much needed financial support to clients and their families when tragedy strikes, and these latest figures once again dispel the myth that these plans don’t pay out, because nearly all always do.”
simon.allin@ft.com
