Adult payments within the Critical Illness Extra plan move up from the current lower of £25,000 or 25% of the sum insured to the lower of £30,000 or 25% of the sum insured.
Legal & General has updated its critical illness offering by increasing the payment level for adult additional payment conditions and for children’s critical illness extra cover.
Adult payments within the Critical Illness Extra have changed from the current lower of £25,000 or 25% of the sum insured to the lower of £30,000 or 25%.
Children’s Critical Illness Extra has been boosted by the addition of Craniosynostosis increasing the number of child-specific conditions to 13. These pay the lower of £30,000 or 50% of the parents insured sum although any claim for low grade prostate cancer or carcinoma in situ of the breast remain at £25,000 or 50% of the parents cover.
The child benefit under both the standard plan and the ‘extra’ option is fixed at the outset and therefore, unlike the parent’s own cover, it will never reduce. This feature is unique to Legal & General.
Craig Brown, director of intermediary, Legal & General, said:“We’ve listened carefully to feedback from advisers to make these latest changes to our CIC offering.
"These updates will ultimately help us to better serve our intermediary partners, providing them and their clients with more choice of cover, whilst not compromising on our price or quality.
"We’ve updated our critical illness products this year with the launch of the optional Children’s Critical Illness Extra and Critical Illness Extra to add further choice to the CIC range, and will continue to do so moving forward.”
Alan Lakey, director of CI Expert, said Legal & General’s move confirms that the insurer wants to be a major player at the quality end of the critical illness market.
He added: “This year has proved seismic for critical illness plan upgrades. Whilst all plan improvements are welcome it places a burden on advisers to keep up to date with the various changes. It is particularly difficult when insurers offer a dual approach where the optional upgrade includes a different set of conditions and/or varying payment levels.
“Nonetheless it is encouraging to see Legal & General, for so long a sleeping giant, continuing to challenge the other quality-based plans.
“The increase up to £30,000 for the additional payment conditions and to the child extra cover is a valuable move as is the confirmation that the initial child cover sum insured is non-reducing.
“These are constructive enhancements which will benefit both policyholders and advisers.”
