L&G urges client diligence in critical illness proposals

by Gill Montia

Story link: L&G urges client diligence in critical illness proposals

Legal & General (L&G) has warned that millions of people are not receiving the maximum benefit from their critical illness insurance because they are not disclosing key information.

The insurance company claims that many people are still not disclosing all the relevant data when filling out a proposal, despite clear and unequivocal warnings about the dangers of omitting relevant information.

Regardless of whether the omission is intended or the result of an error, some policy holders are running the risk of having their claims rejected.

L&G paid over £92 million in critical illness claims in 2006, representing 83.3% of the claims submitted. Of the 16.7% of claims rejected, 12.2% were for non-disclosure.

According to an L&G spokesperson, the insurance industry would welcome approaches from policyholders wishing to check that they have disclosed all vital information.

The industry does already pay a percentage of claims where there is non-disclosure that has had no effect on the application terms.