BUPA launches new suite of financial protection products

 

29 October 2001

 

Following extensive research with consumers and IFAs,health and care company BUPA has launched a new suite of financial protectionproducts.

 

From 12 November 2001, BUPA will offer a scheme marketedas BUPA Flexible Financial Protection which includes life cover; stand alonecritical illness; accelerated critical illness and lifestyle and incomeprotection. Customers will be able to include all or any of the different optionswithin their cover and will benefit further from access to information fromqualified nurses 24 hours a day, every day, through the BUPA HealthLine.

 

Geoff Brown, managing director of BUPA Health Assurancesaid: "In designing our new range of products, we have responded to ourcustomers and introduced a number of new and unusual benefits and services. Wenow offer individual life insurance cover, income protection which pays outbeyond retirement, critical illness with fracture cover and access to our 24-hournurse helpline. What's more, people who make claims under their criticalillness scheme will also have access to Best Doctors which is an independentservice that can locate and contact specialists qualified to treat thecondition for which the claim has been made.

 

"These new benefits and services are designed to meetcustomers' needs at a time when they are unwell and in need of protection fromthe financial consequences of ill health. We know from research that thetake-up of protection products remains low, so we feel that it is particularlyimportant for BUPA to be able to have products that look after people when theymost need it and for us to be in a position to offer appropriate solutions totheir health protection needs."

 

Life cover

 

Whilst BUPA has always offered life cover as part of itscritical illness scheme it is offering, for the first time, a 'stand alone'life cover policy for individual customers. The scheme includes a terminalillness benefit as a standard feature, and is available as renewable term,level term, decreasing term and family income benefit.

 

Life Cover pays either a one-off cash lump sum ondiagnosis of a terminal illness or death during the period of cover or annualinstalments until the end of the policy term under the Family Income Benefitoption. There is also an option where the benefits become payable followingtotal and permanent disability.

 

Replacement cover is available on joint life policieswhere the joint member applies for identical cover within three months of alife cover benefit payment.

 

The minimum subscription is 8 per month or 84.50 peryear. The minimum age on joining is 18.

Stand alone critical illness cover

 

This pays a one-off cash lump sum if the member covered isdiagnosed as having one of 35 specified critical illnesses or operations aftera 14 day survival period, which enables the member to adapt his/her lifestyleif necessary.

 

There is no minimum or maximum benefit limit. There arethree main cover options available: renewable term, level term and mortgageterm.

 

The scheme also includes optional features such asfracture cover, which pays an additional amount for certain major fracturesthat arise from an accidental bodily injury.

 

In addition, people who make claims under their criticalillness scheme will also have access to Best Doctors which is an independentservice that can locate and contact specialists qualified to treat thecondition for which the claim has been made.

 

Replacement cover is available on joint policies.

 

In addition, reinstatement cover is also available whichwill allow claimants to take out a new policy once a period of at least a yearhas elapsed since the claim was made.

 

Theminimum subscription is 8 per month or 84.50 per year. The minimum age forjoining is 18.

Accelerated critical illness cover

 

The critical illness cover plan has the option ofincluding built-in life cover as well as the other optional features. Thismeans that the scheme will pay out in the event of death during the insuranceterm or an eligible critical illness.

 

Replacement cover and reinstatement cover are alsoavailable with this benefit.

 

Lifestyle and income protection

 

The lifestyle and income protection plan provides anincome if someone is unable to work due to illness or accident. It is alsopossible to cover non-working members, such as home makers so that they receivean income in the event of being incapacitated due to illness or accident.

Lifestyle and income protection offers two options -retirement date cover and lifetime cover, ie cover past retirement.

The minimum age on joining is 18, maximum age is 56.

 

BUPA HealthLine

 

All new members taking out any of the BUPA FlexibleFinancial Protection plans will automatically have access to the BUPAHealthLine which is staffed by a team of qualified nurses 24 hours a day, everyday. Members can receive help and advice when they are well and support throughsickness.

Subscription waiver

 

A subscription waiver option is available on eachcomponent of the BUPA Flexible Financial Protection product and is designed topay the plan subscriptions if the member is unable to carry out work due to illhealth.

 

Geoff Brown said: "Our approach BUPA has been toensure that our products can match a person's specific circumstances and have theflexibility to adjust according to their changing situation, so that we arealways able to look after individuals at their time of need."

 

To find out more about BUPA Flexible Financial Protectioncall

0800 33 2200or visit www.bupa.co.uk/intercom.