Policyholders are claiming on their critical illness cover at a younger age, according to the latest...
Policyholders are claiming on their critical illness cover at a younger age, according to the latest claims figures from Scottish Provident.
The average age at claim has fallen to 42, down from 44 in June 2002. Although women live longer, they were also found to claim at a younger age than men - an average age of 41, compared to 43 for men.
Cancer remains the highest claims areas for men and women, standing at 42% and 73% respectively. Men remain more prone to heart attack, accounting for 22% of claims, compared to just 2% of women. Multiple sclerosis is the second biggest claims area for women, at 6%, followed by stroke at 3% and benign brain tumour at 2%. For men, the third biggest claims area is shared by stroke and heart surgery, both standing at 6%, followed by total permanent disability (TPD), which accounts for 3% of claims.
Child cover is now the sixth most common cause of claim, accounting for more claims than TPD.
Nick Kirwan, head of product development at Scottish Provident, said: 'The whole point of critical illness insurance is to ensure people know if the worst should happen they wouldn't have any financial worries. By showing them the number of claims which are paid, we can prove this is the case.'
