The Practical Protection Podcast

Hi everybody, I am back to chat about the times in a person’s life when things like life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection, really stand out. It might just be a natural next step in our lives in terms of independence and a growing family, or it might be that something unexpected has happened. It’s very tricky as an adviser as we know that our clients could really benefit from x, y, z, but they might not be open to discussing them. You might find that your client doesn’t want options for income protection, but you could still put in your recommendation that they need it and a basic cost for it. The key takeaways: Life milestones include buying a home, getting a new job, starting a family, losing a loved one, getting divorced and more As an adviser we might see a need for life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection, but we have to be mindful that people don’t ‘have’ to take these out Whether you integrate protection insurance into your own work, or signpost to another…

Hi everybody, I am back with a chat about GP reports and the way they are used to support protection insurance applications. Insurers do try their best to avoid GP reports wherever possible, they are costly, delay the start of policies and the ability to offer terms after the report are actually quite low. They also don’t want to put extra pressure on the NHS. This means that insurers only go for GP reports when they absolutely need to see clear records of something on a person’s medical history. If someone has their full medical records, or specific specialist letters, insurers will try to use these to underwrite an application and get the cover in place as soon as possible. The key takeaways: The pros and cons of paper vs electronic GP reports GP reports can have an errors in them and it’s essential that these are corrected not just for the insurance application, but for their own health data Splitting insurance over multiple policies instead of one, can mean that GP reports aren’t needed Next time I will…

Hi everybody, I hope that you’re all well and getting close to having completed most of your CPD for the year, but have no worries I will still be here to help you get that extra IDD CPD in. In the most recent episode of the podcast I am focusing on how sports and hobbies can affect applications for protection insurance. One of the most interesting things that I find about sports and hobbies, is that people that do then, don’t tend to think that they should be any concern to the insurer. They do them and do them very safely, but ultimately they are in an environment that is not as safe being at home curled up with a cuppa on the sofa. The key takeaways: Insurers often want to know about scuba diving, sailing, motorbike riding, private flying and more, even horse riding! Insurers like to ask a catch all question about any extreme sports not listed - how are you meant to know what these are? Sports can lead to the highest type of rating for life insurance and are some of the key reasons that income protection…

Hi everybody, I am back from the summer holidays and feeling quite sad to have finished my first ever cruise. I was a bit paranoid as I have always been quick to feel motion sickness, but I was pleasantly surprised that I was ok, albeit with some pretty strong anti-sickness medication! In this episode I am speaking with Andi, who was diagnosed with Parkinsons. She shares how the condition has altered her life and the impact that having income protection has had over the past couple of years. The key takeaways: Andi shares the different symptoms that she started to experience when she was diagnosed with Parkinsons, things that are not what many would typically expect of the condition and that some of her symptoms were masked by HRT and attributed to menopause Andi talks about how she has adapted her life over time, to be able to carry on cycling, supporting Parkinsons UK and volunteering, whilst managing how her symptoms and tiredness changes each day Andi discusses how having an income protection policy…

Hi, everybody, Alan is back with me and we are discussing arranging protection insurance for someone living with dementia. The very first thing that you need to do, in my opinion, is to consider the person as vulnerable, with partners and children being classed as potentially vulnerable. The next step is to check with your compliance and any other oversight, to determine what you are and are not allowed to advise on in this situation. Dementia will at some stage have a huge impact on a person and their loved ones and it’s important that you are keenly aware of the need to safeguard this person. Even if a lasting power of attorney is in place so that others can act on their behalf, you need to always go back to basics - what is the insurable need here? The key takeaways: 1 in 3 people will experience dementia There can potentially be underwritten life insurance options, but you are likely to see a term cap of 5 years Most life insurance options will either exclude pre-existing conditions for the length of the…

Hi, everybody, I changed my mind and I’ve not done a medical deep dive and instead focused upon who is the ultimate insurer. Sadly, there isn’t one. Our lives would be so much easier if there was… In this episode I have discussed the things that different insurers offer, that stand out to me. So this is my opinion, based upon my experience of when a client has explained their circumstances and I have gone ‘ooooh, Insurer X will be perfect’. I’m not going into underwriting or every single thing that makes an insurer unique, it’s just an overview of key parts of their products and services that make them a good choice for your client. The key takeaways: Key titbits of 19 insurers offering protection insurance in the UK There are a lot of insurers and most of them have developed at least one unique product, or service, to support a client niche Insights into different life insurance, critical illness and income protection products Alan will be back with me next time for a deep dive into a medical condition and…

Hi, everybody, instead of doing a health deep dive, Alan had the great idea of doing an episode on being imaginative with client recommendations. There are lots of ways to build protection recommendations, a lot of the time it’s straightforward, but sometimes getting creative is necessary. I would like to make sure I’m clear that being creative must still be compliance approved! In this episode I am giving you insights into the following areas and some examples of the insurances that are set up this way. The key takeaways: Decreasing term insurance vs family income benefit Ways to address delays with GPs and medicals Splitting critical illness across multiple providers Joint Life Second Death vs Single Life policies Life of another cover for non-UK residents Layering income protection policies Insurance solutions for gift planning Alan will be back with me next time for a deep dive into a medical condition and how it’s underwritten for protection insurance. We are always happy to take your suggestions on…

Hi, everybody, it’s the start of Season 12 and I’m focusing on underdisclosure in protection insurance. Also known as misrepresentation or non-disclosure, this is a situation that everyone wants to avoid. Underdisclosure might not change the terms of insurance, but, it can lead to prices or sum assureds changing, and in the worst case a policy being cancelled from inception. The key takeaways: Non-disclosure is seen as innocent, negligent or deliberate It can be tricky sometimes to remember everything in your medical history that the insurer wants to know, so accessing your medical records before applying for cover can be a big help Examples of insurance questions in protection insurance where we see underdisclosure Alan will be back with me next time for a deep dive into a medical condition and how it’s underwritten for protection insurance. We are always happy to take your suggestions on what to cover so please feel free to fire over any areas that you would like us to go into. Remember, if you are…

Hi, everybody, we are on the last episode of Season 11 and I’m focusing on overdisclosure. There is a lot of discussion in our industry about underdisclosure or non-disclosure, but not a lot of focus is put on the times when people tell insurers too much. It is essential that you answer insurance applications truthfully and to the best of your knowledge, but you don’t need to volunteer information that the insurer doesn’t ask for. It’s one of the reasons why people can be a bit nervous about iGPRs as it does give the insurer a lot more information than they are generally asking for. Insurers are meant to ignore information that is not relevant to the questions that they ask, but that isn’t always the case. The key takeaways: The Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) Act 2012 means that consumers need to be careful to not misrepresent themselves to insurers, but also explicitly states that consumers do not need to volunteer information to insurers that isn’t asked for Insurance for commercial…

Hi, everybody, we have Alan back for the first time in a while and he is chatting to us about fatty liver disease. The options for life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection can vary quite a bit, depending upon the cause of the fatty liver and the stage that it is at. The good news is that the liver has a brilliant capacity to heal itself, so there can often be options for insurance. Alcohol consumption will be a key factor in the options for your clients. Where the fatty liver disease is caused by alcohol consumption, it’s very likely that mainstream providers in the UK will not offer insurance if the person is still drinking. You can develop a fatty liver for different reasons and in these cases you don’t necessarily have to be teetotal, but underwriters will be cautious if alcohol is still had regularly or at a higher level. The key takeaways: It is estimated that at least 1 in 5 people have fatty liver disease and that 31 people pass each day in the UK, due to liver disease The…

Hi, everybody, it's been a while. I’ve been away from the podcast for a bit as my mum died in February. It has not been an easy time and I have tried to carry on as usual, as much as possible, but I think we can call agree that the podcast was an area that could take a pause. I’m starting to get back into the swing of things and it feels right that the first episode of the podcast is focused upon Lasting Powers of Attorney. I am not an expert in this area, but I am sharing what my personal experience was of having these in place for both of my parents, when tragedy struck. The key takeaways: A health LPA was invaluable when my mum was in critical condition, but there are limits to use for my dad who has Parkinsons and Dementia and is still deemed to have capacity A financial LPA was invaluable for both of my parents and has, in our situation, been easier to enforce than the health LPA Having the LPAs in place meant that I could quickly take over my parent’s affairs and whilst going through one of the most…

Hi, everyone! I have ended up out of sequence! Last time I said we would be back with an episode on fatty liver disease, but the FCA has published its Protection Market Interim Report, and I absolutely had to cover this. The good news is that the FCA thinks that the protection industry is working really well, it just needs a couple of tweaks. Overall, I am really happy with what the report says, but there are some areas I don’t agree with and you can hear my views in this episode. I am going through their review of insurance costs, claims, complaints, the role of commissions, restricted panels, loaded premiums and more. The key takeaways: Within pure protection products, income protection has the lowest value in terms of cost compared to claims success, but is still much higher than other insurances Loaded premiums, commission and restricted panels have been analysed and shown to not show significant detriment to consumers Closing the Protection Gap remains one of the key challenges for the protection…

Hi, everyone! As I am sure you can imagine I am always looking for ideas about what to cover in the podcast. We’ve done lots on health conditions, I’ve done deep dives into insurance products, commented on market developments, but I was absolutely shocked to realise I have not done a specific episode of vulnerable clients. Most of you probably recognise my name as a specialist protection insurance adviser and really specifically someone that helps people with higher health risks. I’ve often spoken about the needs of vulnerable clients and been involved in multiple industry events for this topic. I’ve even won an award or two. So it seems silly that I have not covered this before and I am going to make sure that I give you as many tips as I can during the episode. The key takeaways: Examples of common vulnerabilities Guidance on how to build a vulnerable client register Ways to support your clients and your employees/colleagues when discussing vulnerable situations Vulnerability is very subjective and it can…

Hi everyone, we are back and talking about the use of weight loss drugs and getting protection insurance. Millions of people in the UK are now taking drugs like mounjaro and ozempic, to help them reach a healthy weight. Health professionals and insurers have said for many years that having a higher BMI isn’t healthy and can lead to long-term health complications. Weight loss drugs are proving to be a highly effective way for people to lose weight, which is generally seen as a good thing. But, there are side effects to taking the drugs too and at the moment there is very little long-term data to know what this may mean for someone 5, 10, 15 or 20 years down the line. The key takeaways: The use of weight loss drugs is showing very positive results from short-term data There is not enough long-term data around the use of mounjaro, ozempic, or other weight loss drugs, for insurers to completely understand client risks Two case studies of arranging life insurance for people who are taking or have taken mounjaro…

Hi everyone, we are talking about neurofibromatosis, a rare condition that causes tumours to develop in the body. The tumours are not usually cancerous, but it is still a condition that can lead insurers to take an extra look at the insurance application. There are three types of neurofibromatosis and each of them are reviewed by the insurers on a case by case basis, as the symptoms and affect on a person’s life can vary so greatly. The key takeaways: Neurofibromatosis can cause difficulties for the skin, nerves, heart, bone development, balance, hearing and more. Neurofibromatosis can lead to other conditions such as epilepsy, scoliosis, deafness and vision loss. Two case studies of arranging life insurance for people living with neurofibromatosis. This is our final episode of 2025 and I hope that you all have a lovely festive period and come back in 2026 feeling super refreshed and ready to learn more about protection insurance. . Remember, if you are listening to this as part of your work, you can claim a…

Hi everyone, I have been taking at look at the recent paper from the FCA, that has been written to give an initial view of how the industry works, the players in it, potential consumers and outcomes from accessing insurance. Overall I think the paper was really well written and gave an accurate portrayal of the industry. It was clearly written and not too long, so I would recommend giving it a read if you can. I’m not a data lover, but, they did have some stats in the paper that really stood out and I think are brilliant examples of how intermediaries are in this space. The key takeaways: In 2023 individual protection insurance claims totalled £4.85 billion. 97% of income protection sales are advised, we’re doing an amazing job! Key focuses of the review are going to be ensuring effective competition, addressing the protection gap for vulnerable consumers, assessing influence of distribution channels on consumer outcomes, and reviewing commission and broking practices. Next time Alan is going to be back with…

Hi everyone, Alan is joining me again to give us all insights into arranging protection insurance for someone living with cystic fibrosis. Cystic fibrosis is a condition that can be difficult to insure for life insurance. Historically, the life expectancy of a person living with cystic fibrosis has been much lower than average, which means that insurers see it as quite a high risk for a claim. The good news is that modern medicine has now significantly improved the outlook and half of people living with CF are now likely to live to at least the age of 56. Unfortunately standard routes for personal critical illness cover and income protection are not currently available. The absolutely best way to be covered by these insurances is through group cover through an employer, but even then there can still be some technicalities that can cause an issue at point of claim. The key takeaways: Approximately 11,000 are affected by cystic fibrosis in the UK and 1 in 25 people carry the gene without knowing it The median…

Hi everyone, I am taking another focus on Trusts this week. This time I am looking specifically at critical illness cover, as there are some potential issues that could be faced for vulnerable clients, including people who are experiencing economic abuse. There is a huge drive in our industry to place policies into Trust. It’s the kind of thing where I might potentially do a compliance fail with my team if a policy hasn’t been put in Trust where there’s a really simple online system to do so. (I know, I’m a battle-axe!) But, they are really so important and there are not many occasions when a Trust isn’t relevant or easy to do. However, there’s an emerging problem with critical illness policies placed into Trust. The key takeaways: To make a claim on a critical illness policy, all trustees must sign the claim form A critical illness policy placed within a Trust could be a vehicle for an abusive Trustee to prevent a client from receiving vital financial support Insurers are aware of this issue, but there are…

Hi everyone, Alan is back with me and this time we are focusing on coeliac disease. A lot of people think of gluten when they hear coeliac disease and have a feeling that all it means is don’t eat bread, pasta, etc. But, it can be much more than that when it comes to underwriting. A lot of the time coeliac disease is not a concern to insurers looking at life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection. However there are quite a few things you should check with your client about the condition, before you assume that their insurance applications will be accepted at standard terms. The key takeaways: Approximately 1 in every 100 people are coeliac and it is estimated that around 500,000 people are undiagnosed in the UK Whilst it is not common, coeliac disease can increase the risk of other medical conditions such as bowel cancer Three case studies of arranging protection insurance for people living with coeliac disease Next time I am going to be focusing upon critical illness cover being written…

Hi everyone, we are back after the lovely summer of 2025. One thing I love about the insurance world is how you can never know everything, there is always so much more to understand and consider. I have a few episodes coming up that have been in the background of my mind for a while. I like to make sure that I have seen things from all angles before I bring it to you. For the first episode of Season 11 I am taking you some things to consider for joint life second death versus single life cover. You might be thinking, hang on what is Kathryn on about, those types of policies are for different things. It is a unique set of circumstances that I am talking through, but still very important to know. When I was recording this I realised that what I’m covering is really quite technical and I jump about a bit, between different areas. I’m sorry! There was no way to easily avoid it. The key takeaways: Joint life second death policies with a notional decline, cost the same as a single life policy Pros and cons of a…

Hi everyone, we are closing off season 10 with a very personal episode, with Phil Jeynes joining me to talk about his experience of being diagnosed with bowel cancer. Last time Kate Baldry gave us brilliant insights into bowel cancer data and how out of all the claims she had looked at, no-one had anything in their own health or family medical history, that placed them at a higher risk of developing bowel cancer. Or no specific definite patterns that are currently being seen. Phil shares with us that this was his experience too. Prior to his diagnosis Phil had none of the traditional things in his life that would make him stand out as someone that might develop bowel cancer. It was a huge shock to him and his family, and Phil talks about what it felt like to go receive his diagnosis, treatment and how he is now. The key takeaways: Even if you don’t fit the usual checklist of someone that is at risk of bowel cancer, if you experience any symptoms it’s always best to see your doctor, just in case It can take a…

Hi everyone, I have Kate Baldry joining me today to share her insights into early onset colo-rectal cancer, a diagnosis that is happening more and more. As a Research and Development Underwriter at Hannover Re, Kate has incredible access and insight to claims and health data. Kate has been spending time analysing the increasing rate of bowel cancer diagnoses and any trends that could be causing this. It was particularly interesting for me as Kate shares that some of the patterns that they have seen are due to people being tall, healthy BMI and having their gallbladder removed - I hit all three of these! The main takeaway that I have from our chat is that whilst these factors might contribute to bowel cancer diagnosis, at the moment it is still very much an unknown. There are a lot of theories but no definitive reason as to why bowel cancer diagnoses are increasing. The key takeaways: Early onset bowel cancer is when there is a diagnosis before the age of 50 Deep dives into claims have shown that many…

Hi everyone, Lisa Balboa is back and she is sharing her insights into how AI is helping insurance across the world. I am quite a reluctant AI enthusiast as I’m always nervous it means less people involved in decisions, but Lisa brilliantly explains how AI is working alongside people to improve access to insurance and better claims experiences. With insights from Australia, China, South Africa and America, Lisa shares different approaches to insurance outside of the UK market. The key takeaways: AI can be used to proactively look through medical records of declined applications, to see if the ‘computer says no’ has been too harsh AI can be develop and grow over time, so that it can make more automated decisions, freeing up underwriters to focus on the more complex cases AI can play a fundamental role in preventative healthcare by spotting early changes in health Next time I will be joined by Kate Baldry, Research and development underwriter at Hannover Re, talking about her insights into colo-rectal cancer.…

Hi everyone, I have five case studies for you this time. I’m going through life insurance options for gift planning and IHT planning. Arranging life insurance to protect against these taxes is often quite straightforward, but there are a number of technicalities that can mean that the ‘normal’ approach to life insurance doesn’t give your client the best outcome. Things like your client’s residency, their health and other factors, can play a big part on how your approach choosing the right insurer and life insurance product for them. The key takeaways: Three case studies of arranging life insurance in different ways for gift protection Two case studies of arrange life insurance for IHT protection Insights into how reviewable and guaranteed premiums can each work positively for your clients, depending upon their circumstances Next time I will be joined once again by Lisa Balboa, Head of Life & Health Digital Business Accelerator at Hannover Re, to talk about the latest insights into AI and insurance. Remember,…

Hi everyone, we have Alan Knowles back with us and we are taking a look at how living with chronic fatigue syndrome can influence your options for life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection. Chronic fatigue syndrome or ME (myalgic encephalomyelitis) is a long term condition that can cause significant tiredness, pain, brain fog, sensitivity to light and many other things. Approximately 1.3m people are living with the condition in the UK and it can alter your options for insurance, especially critical illness cover and income protection. The key takeaways: Most critical illness policies will exclude any claims for Total Permanent Disability It is likely that most options for personal income protection will not be available, but there are alternatives Two case studies of arranging life insurance for people who are living with chronic fatigue syndrome Next time it will just be me doing the podcast and I will be focusing upon protection and IHT case studies. Remember, if you are listening to…

Hi everyone, we have Alan Knowles back with us and we are taking a look at how lifestyles can affect options and pricing of life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection. Being a smoker usually doubles your premiums for protection insurance, as the stats show that you are far more likely to make a claim on the insurances. Not only this, but being a smoker can lead to your applications being declined depending upon your medical history. Alcohol can also have quite an influence on options for insurance. If you’d had a few intense drinking sessions in your late teens early twenties and your GP said to calm it down, that might not be too much of a concern to some insurer. But, there’s often a question about ever being told to reduce your alcohol consumption, that can lead to quite a different insurance journey if the answer is yes. The key takeaways: Some insurers class you as a non-smoker after 5 years or no nicotine consumption, for others it’s up to 5 years The weekly limits for alcohol…

Hi everyone, I have Lee Doran from William Russell with me. As the International Underwriting Manager Lee has an incredible knowledge of how protection insurance works across the UK and the rest of the world. With 20 years experience as an underwriter, he has seen and heard pretty much everything. In this episode we talk about Ukraine, Russia, the US and how getting insurance isn’t the easiest thing to do. Lee takes us through how international insurance can make things far simpler for clients who move countries, if they need to make a claim. We also take you through some key points about admitted, non-admitted, group and individual protection. The key takeaways: International protection insurance options change quickly depending upon the health, social, political, financial and environmental situations of a country. There are some countries where you will simply not be able to arrange protection insurance for if you plan to travel or live there. There can be super specialist options, but it is pretty much…

Hi everyone, we have Jo Miller back with us to talk about all things Income Protection. The last time Jo joined us was in 2023 to talk about the brilliant Income Protection Taskforce and there have been a lot of changes since then. With a new Board and lots of changes in the IP world, Jo is bringing us some great insights from the IPTF profile of an IP customer report. We are going through what’s working well in the IP world and what we would like to see change if we had a magic wand. I know that my magic wand wish will not be popular with many people! The key takeaways: Men are still far more likely to take out income protection than women The IPTF are wanting to promote the way that ASU products can work, where income protection is not possible A case study of arranging income protection for a Barrister, where you must be on top of how the deferred period is going to work with their ongoing income stream Next time Lee Doran from William Russell is joining me to discuss international protection insurance.…

Hi everyone, we are back with an insurance underwriting consideration that I cannot believe we haven’t covered before: high BMI! We’ve talked about BMI in the past, but not done a specific episode, which is so bizarre as it’s something that I think every adviser has come across at some point. High BMI affects life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection applications in different ways. Depending upon the BMI there can be ratings to the premium, the need for medicals, application declines and specialist insurers, popping up at different times. BMI tables are very outdated, however they are one of the simplest ways for insurers to get an overall sense of a person’s health quickly, which can speed up insurance applications. The key takeaways: A high BMI is linked to the development of diabetes, heart attack, cancer, stroke and many long term income protection claims BMI assessments can work brilliant if you’re a white european male born in the early 1800s (aka they are very outdated and don’t…

Hi everyone, we are having a theme of income protection related podcast episodes this season. I’m loving it! I personally feel that income protection is probably the most essential protection insurance product for working people. Income protection is available with many insurers and there are lots of quirks and different options. One of which is simplified income protection. This product type is available with British Friendly and Shepherd’s Friendly, and it has the potential to open up income protection to people who can’t get income protection through fully medically underwritten routes. The key takeaways: When you arrange simplified income protection you are accessing insurers that don’t use occupation classes to price their policies, this can make a massive difference to the price You can arrange simplified income protection if you can get past the Killer Health Questions Two case studies of simplified income protection being arranged I will be back next time with Alan Knowles and we will be discussing…

Hi everyone, we have our latest episode with our new regular contributor Alan Knowles giving you his insights from underwriting and advising. We are seeing more and more enquiries from social media influencers wanting to protect their income. It is really interesting with social media influencers as they are tending to reach out for support with their insurances, from the mindset that they need income protection. For a lot of people income protection is often thought of after life insurance and critical illness cover, so it’s great to see this difference starting to emerge. The key takeaways: Not all insurers are able to insurer social medical influencers from income protection, for the precise reason that they are a social media influencers Some insurers can consider applications from social media influences for income protection, but the occupation that they are doing might lead to a rating or decline of cover i.e. fashion model, stuntman etc A case study of income protection and a case study of accident…

Hi everyone, we have Sue Kissane (Underwriting Manager) and Caroline Hume (Key Account Manager) from Cirencester Friendly are joining me to discuss income protection and type 1 diabetes. We are talking about underwriting and claims, so that you can get a good idea how type 1 diabetes can be considered by insurers. There are approximately 350k people diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in the UK. It is a condition that results in the body not producing any insulin, leading to a build up of sugar in the blood, that can cause long-term complications in the eyes, heart, kidneys, liver and limbs. The key takeaways: You are more likely to get income protection if you are type 1 diabetic, than you are to get critical illness cover Not all insurers are able to consider type 1 diabetics for income protection cover A case study of arranging income protection for someone living with type 1 diabetes I will be back next time with Alan Knowles and we will be talking about arranging income protection for social media…

Hi everyone, we are back with Season 10 and a new regular guest, the one and only Alan Knowles. Many of you will know Alan from different industry initiatives and he is joining us to give insights into underwriting for your clients. We are kicking things off with a look at inflammatory bowel disease, specifically Crohns and Ulcerative Colitis, which are believed to affect well over 1m in the UK. Depending upon your clients specific circumstances you can see a range of outcomes including standard terms, premium loadings, exclusions, postpones and declines. The key takeaways: The time since the most recent flare up of Crohns or Ulcerative Colitis symptoms is key to the options you will see for insurance Immunosuppressants can work wonders for managing Crohns and Ulcerative Colitis, but it can make it harder to get protection insurance in place Two case studies of arranging life insurance for people living with inflammatory bowel disease I will be back next time with Cirencester Friendly to discuss income…

Hi everyone, I am back with the final episode of season 9 and we have some changes coming up with the podcast. We are saying a very big thank you and farewell to Matt Rann who has brought our underwriting insights for the last 6 seasons. Don’t worry, we will still be continuing with underwriting insights to help you better understand your client’s circumstances and the protection insurance options that they might have. The last episode of season 9 is all about group critical illness cover. We have recently covered group life insurance and group income protection, and whilst they are all quite similar, group critical illness cover has a couple of big differences. The key takeaways: Group critical illness cover is paid for by a company but the premiums are treated as a benefit-in-kind for the people covered People who cannot personally get critical illness cover can be covered by group critical illness cover, but there will be exclusions for pre-existing conditions A case study of group critical illness cover…

Hi everyone, we have Matt Rann back with us and we are talking about hepatitis and protection insurance. Hepatitis affects the liver and this can lead to some difficulty in arranging protection insurance, especially critical illness cover and income protection. The key takeaways: There are a lot of types of hepatitis: A, B, C, D, E, alcoholic and autoimmune Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver and affects hundreds of thousands of people in the UK each year Two case studies of arranging protection insurance for people that have experienced hepatitis I will be back next time with a short episode going through key parts of group critical illness cover and the do’s and don’ts of advising on this type of cover. Remember, if you are listening to this as part of your work, you can claim a CPD certificate on our website, thanks to our sponsors Octo Members.

Hi everyone, I am back with an episode on group income protection to talk through this brilliant product and how it can help companies and employees alike. Group income protection can cover income, national insurance contributions, pensions and provide access to medical professionals really early on if you are ill. In fact there are times where these service work so well that people completely recover and are back to work before the deferred period is over. The key takeaways: How free cover level limits work for group income protection The definition of a group income protection claim can potentially change over time A case study of group income protection for a firm with 15 employees I will be back next time with Matt Rann and we will be talking about hepatits and protection insurance. Remember, if you are listening to this as part of your work, you can claim a CPD certificate on our website, thanks to our sponsors Octo Members. If you want to know more about how to arrange protection insurance, take a look…

Hi everyone, we have Matt Rann back with us and we are talking about fibromyalgia and how this is considered in protection insurance. We are going through how fibromyalgia affects the body and mind of a person, there are a lot of symptoms and everyone is affected by the condition in a different way. The key takeaways: Approximately 1 in 20 people are affected by fibromyalgia Key details about fibromyalgia that you need to know to complete your presales research Two case studies of arranging protection insurance for people living with fibromyalgia I will be back next time with a short episode going through key parts of group income protection and the do’s and don’ts of advising on this type of cover. Remember, if you are listening to this as part of your work, you can claim a CPD certificate on our website, thanks to our sponsors Octo Members. If you want to know more about how to arrange protection insurance, take a look at my 13 hour CPD Protection Insurance in Practice course here and 1 hour CPD Protection…

Hi everyone, I am back with an episode on group life insurance to talk through the key things to know when you are advising on this product. Group life insurance is very technical and it’s not possible to cover everything in this episode, but you will get a better understanding of what to watch out for as an adviser. The key takeaways: You can insure everyone or specific groups with group life insurance, you do not need to insure all employees but you must be mindful of anti-selection The differences of registered and excepted group life insurance A case study of group life insurance for a firm with 79 employees I will be back next time with Matt Rann and we will be talking about fibromyalgia and protection insurance. Remember, if you are listening to this as part of your work, you can claim a CPD certificate on our website, thanks to our sponsors Octo Members. If you want to know more about how to arrange protection insurance, take a look at my 13 hour CPD Protection Insurance in Practice course here and 1…

Hi everyone, we have Matt Rann back with us and we are talking about thyroid disorders and protection insurance. I had postpartum thyroiditis after having my third child, which was not a fun thing to experience, and I can say quite confidently that you can feel pretty shocking if your thyroid is misbehaving. The key takeaways: 1 in 20 people have a thyroid condition and we’re talking through the more common ones Key details about thyroid conditions that you need to know to complete your presales research Two case studies of arranging protection insurance for people living with thyroid conditions I will be back next time with a short episode going through key parts of group life insurance and the do’s and don’ts of advising on this type of cover. Remember, if you are listening to this as part of your work, you can claim a CPD certificate on our website, thanks to our sponsors Octo Members. If you want to know more about how to arrange protection insurance, take a look at my 13 hour CPD Protection Insurance in…

Hi everyone, I’m back with a short episode on how you can use life insurance to protect against the tax made on gifts. A lot of people think of gift planning as something that millionaires do and whilst that can be the case, many people are making gifts all the time without realising it. Giving a financial gift is a lovely thing to do, but without the right protection in place the person who receives the gift could face a rather unexpected surprise of a tax charge. The tax on gifts is for 7 years from the date of the gift if the person making the gift dies during this time, and there are some quick and effective ways of setting up life insurance to help with any tax that might be due. The key takeaways: The potential tax on a gift is 40% of the full gift amount and this tapers over the next 7 years Your choice of Trust will be a key part in protecting the gift beneficiary A case study of building a gift planning solution with 5 separate term policies I will be back after the summer with Matt Rann who will be…

Hi everyone, I have Cillian Tierney with me on the podcast to talk about the way that insurers in the EU are responding to the Right to be Forgotten. This legislation require insurers to give consumers the right to not disclose that they have had cancer when they apply for some protection insurances. The rules are different across countries and some might choose to say that you don’t need to tell the insurer that you’ve had cancer after 2 years, 5 years or more. It might be applied to all protection products or just certain ones. Cillian is the Global Head of Medical Underwriting Propositions and Products at PartnerRe and is sharing his knowledge of how RTBF has developed in the Irish insurance market. This is potentially quite an emotional topic and we are clear from the start that we are talking about this situation from a technical basis, that might not be easy for some people to hear. The key takeaways: The Right to be Forgotten is not currently legislated in the UK. How insurers determine the ways to…

Hi everyone, I am back with a short episode focused upon how you can protect against IHT with life insurance. Huge disclaimer from the start I am not a full financial adviser and there are lots of ways to do estate planning, I am just giving insight into how life insurance can work. The key takeaways: With a joint life second death policy one of your clients might be declinable, BUT, they can still be covered by the insurance. Two case studies to show the price difference for joint life second death whole of life, depending upon age. Cautionary tale about HMRC and terminal illness benefits. Remember, if you are listening to this as part of your work, you can claim a CPD certificate on our website, thanks to our sponsors Octo Members. If you want to know more about how to arrange protection insurance, take a look at my 13 hour CPD Protection Insurance in Practice course here and 1 hour CPD Protection Competency Exam here.

Hi everyone, I am talking about a very emotive topic today after being approached on social media as to how insurers view assisted dying. With recent debates on passing assisted dying laws in the Scottish and Isle of Man governments, it is something that is likely to be discussed by UK insurers at some stage. I have been very clear not to provide an opinion about whether assisted dying should and shouldn’t be allowed, instead focusing on the facts of how the majority of life insurance policies in the UK would behave if a claim was made following someone choosing to die due to their health. At the end of the episode I include some details of support services that you can reach out to, if you have found the discussion difficult to listen to. The key takeaways: The majority of insurers in the UK offer life insurance with an initial 12 month suicide exclusion In Canada where assisted dying is possible, the insurers do not consider death through these means to be suicide In countries where assisted dying is…

Hi everyone, I am back with another look at an insurance product that can be incredibly useful, especially for small business owners. Protecting your income is one of the key things that any of us can do, to try and give ourselves financial security for the future. As with any protection insurance it’s something that we hope to never have to claim on, but we will forever be grateful for if we have taken it out. In this episode I am explaining some of the main ways that executive income protection is different to personal income protection, how to explain the benefits of the policy if you get some client objections and a case study to show the potential pricing of the cover. The key takeaways: Executive income protection is available with an employer and employee relationship Company Directors taking dividends need to be clearly advised on how the claims process works if they continue to take dividends after becoming too ill to work A case study of executive income protection Next time I am going to be…

Hi everyone, I have Matt back with me and we are focusing upon protection insurance options for people living with atrial fibrillation. It can be quite interesting when speaking with clients who have this condition as the medical world and the insurance world can view atrial fibrillation quite differently. The key takeaways: You are 5x more likely to have a stroke if you have atrial fibrillation The types of information you need to know to get a clear underwriting indication for life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection. Two case studies of arranging life insurance and income protection for people living with atrial fibrillation Next time I will be back and focusing upon executive income protection. It will be a quick-ish overview of this insurance product and the do’s and dont’s when advising on this type of business insurance policy. Remember, if you are listening to this as part of your work, you can claim a CPD certificate on our website, thanks to our sponsors Octo Members. If you…

Hi everyone, I am back with another focus on a business protection product, rather than the usual underwriting deep dive. This time I am going through the key points of relevant life insurance. In the podcast I discuss how relevant life insurance is an employer and employee relationship. It’s a thank you for your service to the company. I forgot to mention that one of the key ways to check if someone is eligible for this is if they are on the payroll (taking PAYE). Relevant life insurance is probably the simplest business insurance product that we can arrange for our clients. The key takeaways: If you are planning to do relevant life insurance to specifically cover a mortgage, chat with your compliance people first. Make sure you are clear with your clients about the periodic charges that come with relevant life trusts. A quick summary of relevant life insurance versus group life insurance. Next time we will have Matt Rann back and we will be focusing on another underwriting risk and discussing the options…

Hi everyone, I have Matt back with me for the first time of Season 9 and we are focusing on hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. HCM is a heart condition that affects approximately 1 in 500 people in the UK and it can potentially be a higher risk for a life insurance claim. We talk about the different types of cardiomyopathy, how they affect the body and the usual causes of cardiomyopathy. Matt takes us through the two types of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and how they can affect the outcomes for protection insurance applications. The key takeaways: There is a genetic link to HCM and it can come up in family medical history questions The thickness of the heart wall and the part of the heart wall that is affected are essential for your research A case study of a person living with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy that needed life insurance Next time I will be back and focusing upon relevant life insurance. It will be a quick-ish overview of this insurance product and the do’s and dont’s when advising on this type of…

Hi everyone, I am back with Season 9 of the Practical Protection Podcast and we are taking a look at keyperson cover. Hopefully one of the simpler business protection policies that we can arrange, but I have certainly had some interesting conversations with people that don’t understand what this kind of insurance does. I remember quite a specific debate with a tax adviser who was saying their client needed keyperson cover because they wanted the tax advantages of the premiums, but what they needed the insurance to do was shareholder protection. I stood my ground! The key takeaways: Keyperson cover can be life insurance, critical illness or income protection. It is designed to protect the Company, not the individual or their loved ones. An explanation of the Anderson principles. Next time we will have Matt Rann back with us talking about hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and the options you might see for life insurance, critical illness and income protection options. Remember, if you are listening to this as part…

Hi everyone, I have Matt back with me and this time we are focusing on Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). This is an autoimmune condition that increases the chance of someone developing blood clots. More women than men are diagnosed with APS and at the moment there is no specific reason why APS develops. It is thought that a mix of environmental factors can lead to APS developing, but there are still people that are diagnosed with APS where no known cause is found. When applying for protection insurance most insurers will want to know if a person has been diagnosed with APS. It is very likely that the insurer will want to see a report from the applicants GP, to confirm details about their health. If they have letters from their consultant that detail their diagnosis and any recent check ups, you never know the insurer might be able to underwrite using that rather than waiting for a GP report. It’s always worth asking! The key takeaways: APS increases the risk of a person developing deep vein thrombosis and…

Hi everyone, I am doing another product feature today with a look into shareholder protection. I can’t remove all the jargon but I’m going to do my best to make it as simple as possible! In this episode I am giving an overview of cross-option and company buy-back shareholder protection options. There are other ways of doing shareholder protection arrangements, but these tend to be the main ones so I’m focusing here. I’m giving you a quick run through key elements of shareholder protection for you to make note of, to give you a bit of a checklist of insurance do’s and dont’s. The key takeaways: Don’t forget premium equalisation! Company buy back is great but make sure client’s know about the Gazette. You can do company buy back shareholder agreement for a person with less than 3 years as a shareholder, but watch out for potential tax. Next time Matt Rann will be back with me and we will be talking about antiphospholipid syndrome and what this means for your life insurance, critical illness and income…