Vitality publishes 2020 protection claims statistics

Vitality publishes 2020 Protection claims statistics

• £91.6m was paid out in across Life, Serious Illness Cover and Income Protection Cover during 2020
• 99.6% of all Life claims, 91.3% of Serious Illness Cover claims, and 96.8% of all Income Protection claims 
• £1.9 million was paid in secondary Serious Illness Cover claims
• £4m was paid in Covid-19 related claims across Life and Serious Illness 

12 August 2021 – Vitality has published its claims statistics for 2020, which shows that it paid out £91.6m in claims in 2020, with a total of 1,632 claims paid across its Life and Terminal Illness, Serious Illness and Income Protection products. 

Vitality claims

Covid-19
A total of £4m was paid out across both Life and Serious Illness Cover for Covid-19 related claims. Claims related specifically to Covid-19 represented the fifth largest cause of Life Cover claims, with 9% of claims Covid-19 related. While the majority of Covid-19 claims were from Vitality’s eldest members, one in four affected were under 60.

In 2020, Vitality enabled members who were struggling financially to reduce their premiums and cover by either 25%, 50%, or 75% for a period of three months without having to cancel their policy. 

Serious Illness Cover
Vitality’s Serious Illness Cover has been developed to reflect the modern nature of illnesses where advances in treatment and screening have resulted in increased survival rates for severe illnesses. This has in turn has led to a higher number of recurrences of illnesses and secondary illnesses over the course of a lifetime. Severity-based payouts allow for earlier payouts and broader coverage, whilst the unique plan account structure ensures cover stays in place for longer and access to multiple claims over the life of the plan.

Vitality’s Serious Illness Cover includes cover for more conditions than any other insurer and is more likely to pay out overall.  Serious Illness Cover covers 38 conditions uniquely whilst Serious Illness Cover Plus covers a further 23 unique conditions at lower severities.

Over the course of 2020, one in 12 claims made were on conditions not covered anywhere else in the market. The most common unique conditions claimed for by members in 2020 was pulmonary embolism, followed by (moderately severe) inflammatory bowel disease and surgery for cardiac arrhythmia. 

Vitality’s Serious Illness Cover has also been designed to protect members if they go on to suffer from a recurrence or secondary condition. In 2020, one in 11 claims were made to policyholders who have claimed previously, with over £1.9m paid in secondary claims. Of those who were claiming for the second time or more, the average time between claims was just 18 months.

Top areas for Serious Illness Cover claims 
 
1.  Cancer 
2.  Stroke & Nervous System 
3.  Heart & Artery 
4. Respiratory
5. Gastrointestinal
 
Justin Skinner, Managing Director, VitalityLife, said: “Throughout the pandemic we have seen the value of comprehensive cover for members who have had to claim. The ability for people to claim multiple times on their Serious Illness Cover policy, has proved particularly valuable with one in 11 claims being made by people who had claimed previously. We feel that added peace of mind and being there for people throughout their lives is particularly important, especially since March last year as we all navigate new levels of uncertainty. 

“In addition to paying out on claims, we have looked to support our members with new ways to keep active and healthy at home during the pandemic and introduced an option to reduce premiums and cover for those struggling financially. We continue to look to ways that we can best support our members during this time.”

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