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Trauma Insurance
A lot of people are covered for death, with Life Insurance, but what happens if you have a serious illness or injury, like a Heart Attack, Stroke, Cancer, Serious Burns, or a long term debilitating illness, and don't die? Your life insurance policy will not pay you anything. That is why many people have Trauma Insurance.
What does it do?
Trauma Insurance provides, in most cases, an Emergency Fund should someone suffer one of the listed serious conditions or illnesses. The fund is generally paid as a one off lump sum. It is important to note that the Insurance Companies provide their own definitions of the trauma events covered, and it is not up to the policy holder to decide when they think they have suffered a trauma event. A Trauma policy provides funds to maintain life, at least for a while during recovery.
Why have it?
A sudden serious illness or injury can mean an extended period of time off work for possibly months or longer. It may also mean time off work for a Partner, with a double loss of income. Even with an Income Protection policy, there can be 2-3 months or longer before payments commence. A Trauma policy can provide almost instant funds to get people through the initial stages of being off work, or help pay for home help or alterations to a home. It provides great peace of mind.
Options
- Have trauma cover as part of your Life Insurance (accelerated).
- Have trauma cover as Stand Alone - not part of life insurance.
- Buy-Back, means you can buy back your trauma cover after a claim without having to provide more medical information.
- Inflation Adjust your cover over time without more information.
- Moderate Cover or Comprehensive Cover (more conditions).
- Cover for Children under an Adult trauma policy
- Special Events Increases (Marriage, Baby, Job, Mortgage.......)
Premiums
Trauma insurance premiums are based on: Age, Male/Female, Health history, Smoker/Non-smoker, and Pastimes. Most people take out trauma cover as an early payment of part of their life insurance, this is called "accelerated", although stand-alone trauma cover is available with an increased premium. Most people with trauma cover have stepped premiums which increase with age, but there is the option to have Level Premium Trauma to Age 65, 70 or 80, with premiums starting higher but remaining constant for the term chosen.