Scottish WidowsMay 31 2023

Scottish Widows pays out 98% of protection claims

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Scottish Widows pays out 98% of protection claims
Scottish Widows pays out more than 98 per cent in protection claims for fourth consecutive year (Bryn Colton/Bloomberg)

Scottish Widows paid out more than 98 per cent of protection claims in 2022, with £199mn paid in total.

Figures from the provider, based on the number of life and critical illness claims paid out between January and December 2022, revealed it was the fourth consecutive year in which the total number of claims had reached more than 98 per cent.

This was despite an 11 per cent rise in critical illness claims volume compared to the previous year.

It detailed that 99.4 per cent of life claims and 93.3 per cent of critical illness claims made in 2022 were paid out to 10,107 policy holders (8,555 for life claims and 1,552 for critical illness).

The average critical illness claim payout was £55,546 and the average life claim payout was £53,553 (an almost 3.5 per cent increase on the average life claim paid in 2021).

While the total amount paid out in critical illness claims increased by 15 per cent compared to 2021, the total amount paid out in life claims represented a 15 per cent decrease, falling from £132.9mn in 2021 to £122.8mn in 2022.

Scottish Widows head of protection underwriting and claims strategy, Scott Cadger, said: “We know that 2022 was a tough year for many people, with the current cost of living pressures, as well as our health service still struggling with pandemic related issues and often delayed diagnosis and treatments. 

“That’s why I am proud to see that year-on-year we continue to deliver our promise to protect and support our customers in their difficult moments.”

Claim causes

The most commonly cited reason for critical illness claims was cancer, accounting for 63 per cent of all cases, followed by heart attack (11 per cent), stroke (9.2 per cent), and multiple sclerosis (3 per cent).

The cause of critical illness claims were found to vary along gender lines as just over 50 per cent of men made claims for cancer compared to almost 75 per cent of women.

Another variance was in the second most common reason for making a critical illness claim as, for men, it was for heart attacks (20 per cent of men) while for women it was for strokes (almost 6.5 per cent of women).

A gender disparity was also found in life claims as more were found to have been made as a result of death by cancer for women compared to men (42 per cent compared and 28 per cent respectively).

A similar gender gap was also discovered in heart-related life claims as such cases accounted for 29 per cent of all claims made by men and 12.5 per cent of claims made by women.

tom.dunstan@ft.com