Moneysworth wins Best Small Protection Advice Firm 2023!
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We’re excited to welcome Gary Harrison in the newly-created position of National Sales and Development Manager at Moneysworth. Gary is responsible for developing business from introducers, particularly broker firms within the key sectors of protection, mortgages and wealth & pensions.
Gary has worked in the protection industry since 1989, initially as an adviser for a number of insurers such as Dunbar and GA Life, and also as a business consultant for PruProtect. Ten years ago, he was taken on by SimplyBiz as a business development manager, working with providers and advisers to develop their protection propositions.
In that role, he frequently worked closely with Moneysworth and was impressed by our passion for protection, commitment to providing value to clients and our high standards of service – all of which are important values he shares. When the opportunity came to join Moneysworth, Gary didn’t hesitate:
“It was a no-brainer, as we’re of the same opinion that firms need greater support and solutions to fulfil their clients’ protection needs in an increasingly complex protection market.”
Tim Boddy, director at Moneysworth, says:
“With the FCA’s imminent roll-out of Consumer Duty regulations, we couldn’t think of a more perfect time or fit than Gary joining our team. With his background and enthusiasm for protection, he has the ideal qualities and experience to further develop and promote the introducer service offered by Moneysworth to all advisers.”
Our specialist broker service already partners with many advisers across the UK who don’t have enough time to arrange protection themselves or to handle more complicated cases. Gary’s experience and insight in this area will ensure that we can help many more advisers at this time of exciting changes in the protection sector.
Our process focuses on researching each client’s circumstances with insurers across the whole market. We’re able to demonstrate that our clients have been able to obtain the cover they need – and at a competitive price.
We believe this is the level of dedication required under the FCA’s forthcoming Consumer Duty regulations.
Having suffered a heart attack six years previously, this male client was able to provide Moneysworth with medical letters from his hospital specialist. This was very useful for us when undertaking our initial research with insurance companies.
A number of the insurers were willing to consider an application. The most expensive estimate of premium was £154pm with the three most favourable estimates ranging from £45pm to £67pm. Applications were made to these three companies and, after looking at the medical evidence and applications, all three companies made a formal offer of terms.
Two offers were similar at around £66pm. The best offer was £43.62pm which, over the full term of the policy, would save the client £2,643 compared to the second best offer. With this policy, the premiums and the life cover are guaranteed to remain the same throughout the policy term. Even if the client was diagnosed with a new health condition in the future, it would not affect his cover or the premium.
Naturally, the client was pleased to accept the lowest premium offered and now has peace of mind knowing that, if the worst were to happen, his wife would remain secure in their home and not have a mortgage to worry about.
After the policy started, we received the following review (via Feefo) of the service provided by Moneysworth:
Absolutely brilliant service from start to finish would highly recommend Moneysworth. The staff are very reliable and so good at what they do. Thank you!
Purple Tuesday is about creating awareness of the needs of disabled customers, their place in society and their value to the economy. It’s about making the customer experience accessible to everyone.
We’re here to help anybody who is looking for Life Insurance, especially those who have pre-existing health conditions.
Even during the ongoing pandemic, when Life Insurance has been harder to obtain for people with particular health conditions, Moneysworth has continued to find solutions for many clients.
Last year, we undertook a significant overhaul of our website to make it more accessible for people with visual, motor or cognitive impairments. We asked Purple to audit our website; our designer then implemented dozens of technical changes and design adjustments, based on Purple’s recommendations.
This year, we’ve made further accessibility improvements to our Quote Request form interface to help ensure it’s easier to read and understand on different devices.
Whenever we make any changes to our web pages and forms, we always ensure the design and underlying programming code accommodate the requirements of people using assistive technology to access online services.
We’ve also added a ‘No Phone Calls’ option for clients who don’t feel comfortable discussing their mental health condition over the phone. This option was developed in conjunction with a major UK insurer, who ensures that any Moneysworth client who chooses this option can complete their cover application purely online with email communication only.
Our team will continue to ensure we consider accessibility for all as our business and website grows and evolves.
Mental Health & Money Advice is the first UK-wide online advice service specifically designed to combine support for both mental health and financial problems. The organisation’s website provides guidance for people living with mental health conditions who are struggling with their finances, as well as anyone whose money problems are affecting their mental health.
The service and its website have been set up by the Mental Health UK, a UK-wide charity which represents four member charities: Rethink Mental Illness in England, Hafal in Wales, Support in Mind in Scotland and MindWise in Northern Ireland.
Fundraising for the website’s development has been provided by the charity’s partner, Lloyd’s Banking Group.
Moneysworth is one of four specialist Life Insurance brokers selected by Mental Health UK to be listed on the website’s Insurance and Mental Health guidance page: Specialist insurance providers for people with pre-existing mental health conditions.
A further four million are at risk of developing mental health difficulties due to financial problems. *
These statistics underline the need for the insurance industry and other financial services to operate in ways which consider the needs of customers with mental health conditions.
As mentioned in our previous article, we know from conversations with clients how it can be uncomfortable and upsetting for people to talk about their mental health. So it’s encouraging for us to see that, across the insurance industry, organisations and providers are making important changes to improve access to insurance for people who struggle to find cover.
The Mental Health & Money Advice service is endorsed by the ABI (Association of British Insurers) in conjunction with its Mental Health & Insurance Standards guidance for members.
The ABI and its members have been engaging with mental health charities in order to better understand the needs of people with a history of mental ill health. This has resulted in a comprehensive system of standards which aim to improve:
The ABI standards complement those set out in the Signposting Agreement for Insurers and Brokers.
The signposting agreement helps to improve access to insurance in situations where an insurer is unable to offer cover to a client, or if the client cannot afford the cover that is offered.
Signposting ensures consumers are offered guidance to find specialist assistance from an adviser or organisation who can help them continue their search for cover.
This is a voluntary agreement, which Moneysworth helped to develop as a member of the Access to Insurance Working Group, in conjunction with BIBA (British Insurance Brokers’ Association), the DWP, other brokers and industry organisations.
Since Moneysworth started in 2003, our award-winning team has helped many people with mental health conditions to find suitable Life Insurance.
Andrew Wilkinson and Tim Boddy, Moneysworth’s founding partners, have personal experience of some of the key issues involved. It’s one of the reasons that we’re so dedicated to helping each and every client find the most suitable result.
* Source: statistics from Mental Health & Money Advice
For people looking at arranging cover now, and for those who have existing cover, a key concern is will the insurer pay out if a claim is made relating to Coronavirus?
The UK protection insurance industry (Life Insurance, Critical Illness and Income Protection) has a very positive record on life insurance claims. According to the Association of British Insurers (ABI), in 2019, 98% of all protection insurance claims were paid out.
We will have to wait until 2021 to get the overall UK insurance payout statistics for this year, but the insurer LV= has recently announced that they have so far paid out around £2.5 million in claims relating to Covid-19.
The key point to remember is that for Life Insurance, Critical Illness and Income Protection policies, Coronavirus has not changed the way in which claims are assessed.
Short answer: Most likely, yes.
People who develop very serious Coronavirus symptoms will likely have to go into intensive care and be put onto ventilators. Some will recover but, sadly, some will die. For Life Cover policyholders who die as a result of the Coronavirus, a life insurance claim should not be affected, meaning that their loved ones will receive a payout from the insurer.
Short answer: Probably, but it would need to be after the end of the deferment period – and, due to the nationwide lockdown rules, deferment periods are now generally longer for new policyholders.
Income Protection is designed to pay the policyholder part of their income if they’re unable to work due to illness or accident. If someone is not able to work due to ‘shielding’ or ‘self-isolation’ then that would not be covered by Income Protection insurance.
For people with existing Income Protection policies which have been taken out prior to the Covid-19 outbreak, the terms and conditions remain unchanged. Insurers will pay Coronavirus-related claims on existing policies once the policyholder has reached the end of the deferred period if they still unable to return to work due to their illness.
For new Income Protection applications, some insurers have increased the minimum period before a claim can be made after the policy starts (this is known as a deferred period). The aim of this increase is to ensure that any period of self-isolation would have come to an end before a claim can be made. If the policyholder is ill with Coronavirus at the end of a deferred period and beyond, they would be eligible to submit a claim.
Short answer: In most cases no, but in a few cases possibly yes.
Most critical illness claims are unaffected by the current crisis because most policies pay out on the diagnosis of one of the qualifying named critical illnesses on the policy. The majority of existing policies will have been taken out before the virus was known about, and new policies do not include cover for Coronavirus.
The most likely situation where a Critical Illness claim relating to Coronavirus may be paid would be if the policyholder needed to be put onto a ventilator. Insurance companies’ policies differ in the terms about the amount of time and degree of loss of respiratory function to be eligible to make a claim.
Short answer: Generally, not at the moment.
So far, we’ve not seen a general increase in the cost of standard premiums, but this might change in the future if insurers feel it’s necessary to do so.
However, if you already have a policy in place, your monthly premiums are likely to be fixed or guaranteed (unless you have reviewable premiums, low start options or index linked cover).
Now might be a good time to explore your Life Insurance options to protect your family and home in the event of death and/or critical illness and to insure your income.
Due to the risks of Coronavirus, many insurers have made changes to their underwriting rules. These changes mean that some people may experience a greater degree of difficulty in finding cover at an acceptable price.
For example, some insurers have reduced the maximum BMI (Body Mass Index) they are prepared to accept. Also, some insurers are rejecting a higher number of cover applications involving heart conditions than they were previously.
This is because Moneysworth’s core business has always been to help people with health conditions to obtain Life Insurance, Critical Illness Cover and Income Protection Insurance.
In April alone, the Moneysworth team has been able to arrange cover for many clients who have a wide range of existing health conditions, such as:
This list shows that, despite the recent underwriting changes made by insurers, it’s still possible for people with health conditions to find the cover they need.
To maximise the chances of finding cover at an acceptable price, it’s best to use a specialist broker, such as Moneysworth, which has proven expertise in finding insurance for people with existing health conditions.
