Why choose Zurich for critical illness cover?

Critical illness cover gives your customer a financial cushion to help them absorb the impact of a serious illness. It pays out if they’re diagnosed with one of the conditions covered by their policy and does so as soon as possible after their diagnosis. They can choose to take out a policy that pays out in a lump sum, or they can select family income cover that pays out a monthly amount over the remaining policy term.

The money can be used however they want, to pay off a mortgage, support their family or to simply ease any extra worries at a tough time and focus on getting better.

We offer three different levels of critical illness cover - Critical Illness, Critical Illness Enhanced and Critical Illness Enhanced Plus - so you can craft different solutions to meet the needs of each customer. Each option is available with or without life cover.

Your customers can also choose to add one of two levels of children’s cover, as well as additional tailored protection if they’re planning to add to their family in the future. Visit our children’s cover page for further information on the options available.

Critical illness - key product features

We offer three different levels of critical illness cover so you can craft different solutions to meet the needs of each customer.

Critical Illness

Critical Illness Enhanced

Critical Illness Enhanced Plus

Critical Illness

For customers that want our standard comprehensive critical illness cover.

Eligibility

Minimum age at entry – age 18 attained
Maximum age at entry – age 69 attained
Maximum age at end of term – age 74 attained
Minimum term – 5 years
Maximum term – 40 years
Minimum premium - £5 a month or £50 a year
Life assured must be registered with a UK doctor for at least 6 months prior to application
Life assured and policyholder must be a UK resident

Included as standard

39 full payment conditions
2 additional payment conditions
7 advanced payments
Free critical illness cover during underwriting for up to £500,000 (eligibility criteria applies)
Free critical illness cover between exchange of contracts and mortgage completion for up to £350,000 (eligibility criteria applies)
Terminal illness
Separation benefit
Milestone benefit

Additional benefits

(added at extra cost)

Critical Illness Enhanced
Critical Illness Enhanced Plus
Children's Cover
Children's Enhanced Cover
Pregnancy and Early Childhood Cover
Multi-Fracture Cover
Zurich Accelerate
Total Permanent Disability
Waiver of Premium
Renewal Option

Critical Illness Enhanced

For customers that want our broadest range of critical illness cover.

Eligibility

Minimum age at entry – age 18 attained
Maximum age at entry – age 69 attained
Maximum age at end of term – age 74 attained
Minimum term – 5 years
Maximum term – 40 years
Minimum premium - £5 a month or £50 a year
Life assured must be registered with a UK doctor for at least 6 months prior to application
Life assured and policyholder must be a UK resident

Included as standard

52 full payment conditions
33 additional payment conditions
10 advanced payments
Free critical illness cover during underwriting for up to £500,000 (eligibility criteria applies)
Free critical illness cover between exchange of contracts and mortgage completion for up to £350,000 (eligibility criteria applies)
Terminal illness
Separation benefit
Milestone benefit

Additional benefits

(added at extra cost)

Critical Illness Enhanced Plus
Children's Cover
Children's Enhanced Cover
Pregnancy and Early Childhood Cover
Multi-Fracture Cover
Zurich Accelerate
Total Permanent Disability
Waiver of Premium
Renewal Option

Critical Illness Enhanced Plus

For customers that want the same breadth of condition coverage as Critical Illness Enhanced but with higher pay out levels for all additional payment conditions and certain life changing critical illnesses.

Eligibility

Minimum age at entry – age 18 attained
Maximum age at entry – age 69 attained
Maximum age at end of term – age 74 attained
Minimum term – 5 years
Maximum term – 40 years
Minimum premium - £5 a month or £50 a year
Life assured must be registered with a UK doctor for at least 6 months prior to application
Life assured and policyholder must be a UK resident

Included as standard

52 full payment conditions
33 additional payment conditions
10 advanced payments
16 benefit uplift payments
Free critical illness cover during underwriting for up to £500,000 (eligibility criteria applies)
Free critical illness cover between exchange of contracts and mortgage completion for up to £350,000 (eligibility criteria applies)
Terminal illness
Separation benefit
Milestone benefit

Additional benefits

(added at extra cost)

Children's Cover
Children's Enhanced Cover
Pregnancy and Early Childhood Cover
Multi-Fracture Cover
Zurich Accelerate
Total Permanent Disability
Waiver of Premium
Renewal Option

Trusts

For the Personal Protection product, our Discretionary Trust and Discretionary Survivorship Trust can be fully completed online on our Life Protection Platform, without the need for signatures. If you have all the relevant information from your customer to hand, you can complete the application in one go.

Any external trusts must also be processed through our paper trust process.

Critical illness - detailed product features

These benefits are included with critical illness cover.

Critical Illness

A total of 39 full payment conditions and 2 additional payment conditions paying the lower of £25,000 or 25% of the current sum assured
7 advanced payment conditions that pay out on being placed on an NHS waiting list

Free cover during underwriting

For up to £500,000 (eligibility criteria applies).

Terminal illness

A claim for terminal illness will be paid where there is a definite diagnosis that the illness either has no known cure or has progressed to the point where it cannot be cured, and the illness is expected to lead to death within 12 months.

Separation benefit

If your customers have a joint life policy and separate, they may be able to take out individual policies without giving more health or personal details.

Milestone benefit

Enables your customer to increase their sum assured when significant events occur without the employee having to answer any health questions.

Additional benefits that can be added to the policy at an extra cost.

Critical Illness Enhanced

A total of 52 full payment conditions and 33 additional payment conditions paying the lower of £25,000 or 25% of the current sum assured
10 advanced payment conditions that pay out on being placed on an NHS waiting list

Critical Illness Enhanced Plus

A total of 52 full payment conditions and 33 additional payment conditions paying the lower of £50,000 or 50% of the current sum assured
10 Advanced payment conditions that pay out on being placed on an NHS waiting list
16 Benefit uplift conditions that pay up to £200,000 on diagnosis under age 55, on top of your sum assured

Children’s cover options

Add either Children’s Cover or Children’s Enhanced Cover to your customer’s policy as well as Pregnancy and Early Childhood Cover if they’re planning to add to their family in the future.

Find out more on the children’s cover page

Total Permanent Disability

We'll pay your customer their cover amount if they can't do their current job ever again, or cannot perform 3 of 6 listed work tasks, before their 71st birthday, because of illness or injury.

Waiver of Premium

We'll pay the premiums on the policy if your customer is too ill or injured to work for more than 6 months and they can't perform their current job.

Multi-Fracture Cover

Up to £6,000 If your customer breaks a bone, dislocates a joint, ruptures their Achilles tendon or tears a cruciate ligament in their knee.

Find out more on the multi-fracture cover page

Renewal Option

Extends the policy with the same terms when cover ends without answering any underwriting questions. Not available with family income cover or decreasing cover.

Zurich Accelerate

A range of services offering fast access and support for your customer and their family for investigations, diagnosis and international treatment for cancer, cardiovascular and neurological conditions.

Find out more on the Zurich Accelerate page

Milestone benefit

We know a lot can happen between the day your customer takes out their policy and the day they need to make a claim. When these significant events occur, your customer can use the milestone benefit feature of their policy to increase their sum assured. They won't have to answer any health questions, but their premiums will change.

Mortgage

Take out a mortgage or increase the mortgage they already have

Marriage

Get married or enter a civil partnership

Separation

Divorce, separate or dissolve a civil partnership

Becoming a parent

Starting a family

Rent increase

Have an increase in their rental payments

Payrise

Get a pay rise of 10% or more

The maximum increase your customer can make using their milestone benefit is the lower of their original sum assured or £200,000. If they’ve selected family income cover, the most they can increase their sum assured by with this benefit is the lower of their original sum assured or £200,000 divided by the number of remaining months left on the term of their policy.

This benefit must be used within 90 days of the significant life event and can only be used if your customer is 54 years old or younger.

Video resources

Introducing critical illness

A customer facing video introducing the basics, the need for critical illness and things they need to think about when meeting with an adviser. (Running time 2 minutes.)

A tale of two stories – are you as protected as you can be?

A customer facing video showing the difference that critical illness could have if they were to face a serious diagnosis and what could happen if they chose not to buy it. (Running time 1 mins 30 secs.)

Useful tools and calculators

Zurich Life Protection Platform

Pre-App tool

Get accurate indicative underwriting decisions before applying.

Pre-App tool

Risk Reality calculator

Our Risk Reality calculator is a valuable tool to help your customers understand the risks associated with being unable to work due to illness or injury, suffering a serious illness or death.

Risk Reality calculator