Stop fighting for critical illness pay-outs

2009-12-14T09:59:56Z

When Macmillan Cancer Voice Inga McVicar was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, she expected her critical illness insurance policy to pay her bills until she could resume her self-employed career as a marketing consultant. But her insurance company refused and it took Inga thirteen months of argument before the Financial Ombudsman told her insurance company to pay up.

Macmillan hopes that people will no longer need to fight their insurance companies. Today, the Law Commission will reveal its proposals to update the law that covers consumer insurance – a law which dates back to 1906! Under the new proposals, consumers will need to answer their insurer’s questions honestly and reasonably. But they won’t be expected to volunteer information that they aren’t asked in a clear manner. And insurance companies will no longer be allowed to refuse to pay up when their customer has innocently failed to disclose information.

Along with other charities such as Which? and the MS society, Macmillan will be asking the Government to pass the proposed new law through Parliament.

I’ll keep you informed of our progress, but it would certainly help to know of more people like Inga who have experienced problems when claiming on their insurance policies. Has this ever happened to you?