31/03/2026

10 mins

Critical Illness Cover provides a tax-free lump sum payment if you’re diagnosed with a serious medical condition specifically listed in the terms and conditions of the policy. The most common claims are for:

Cancers
Heart Attacks
Strokes

The payout can be used however you choose and can prove invaluable in what is likely to be a time of need after the diagnosis of a serious medical condition.

Some people use payouts to support themselves and their families with everyday living costs. Other common things people use the payout for include:

Clearing a mortgage
Paying for medical treatment
Paying for home modifications or other equipment associated with your medical condition
Funding a dream holiday, or other items on a bucket list.

Why Critical Illness Insurance?

How would you cope if you were struck with a serious illness such as cancer, a heart attack or a stroke? Would your finances hold up under this strain? It is important to think about the peace of mind that can be gained from knowing you have suitable financial protection in place.

Do You Really Need Critical Illness Cover?

When considering whether Critical Illness is worth it you need to take into account your personal circumstances and any support you may be entitled to. You may have alternate means of support available to you if you cannot work due to a serious illness, such as state benefits or company sick pay, that you could fall back on.

Government Support

Think about the government help that may be available to you if you suddenly found yourself out of work, such as Employment Support Allowance which starts at £92.05 per week for the over-25s. Would this cover your weekly outgoings?

Savings

It’s important to put your savings into perspective in terms of how long they could last. Not many people have several years of income stashed away to use if they couldn’t work long-term. Unless you have a particularly sizeable nest egg, Critical illness Insurance could still provide the financial lifeline to keep you a float during such difficult times.

Company Sick Pay

Your employer might offer sick pay for a length of time, but most of us aren’t lucky enough to get the kind of long-term sick pay that would see you through a serious illness where you’re off work for months or even years.

Group Critical Illness

You may be lucky enough that your employer provides benefits such as Group Critical Illness Cover. A group scheme would typically cover 2-4 times your basic salary however the number of illnesses covered tends to be more limited than with a personal policy.

Also remember that if you leave or lose your job, these benefits will be lost. At this point, arranging private cover will likely to be more expensive than when you were younger. Also, if you’ve suffered a serious medical condition it may not be possible to get cover at all.

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Is Critical Illness Insurance Expensive?

The four major factors affecting how much Critical Illness Insurance costs are:

Sum assured
How much the policy will pay out in the event of you being diagnosed with a critical illness. The larger the sum assured, the more the policy will cost.
Length of the policy
The longer you choose to cover yourself for and the higher your age at the end of the policy, the more a policy will end up costing.
Type of premiums
Whether your premiums are guaranteed (fixed at the outset) or reviewable (cheaper at the start but increasing over the life of the policy) will impact the cost of premiums
Type of cover
With Critical Illness Cover, you can have level cover, which remains fixed throughout the length of the policy, or decreasing cover, which falls across the policy term, typically in line with a repayment mortgage. Level cover is more expensive as the liability to the insurer stays fixed over time.

The level of cover you require tends to have the biggest weight in terms of the cost of cover. If you’re looking to cover your income in addition to an outstanding mortgage then you may want to consider Income Protection which can be a more cost effective alternative.

Consider Income Protection

Income Protection is designed to replace a proportion of your earnings if you can’t work due to any illness or injury.

Income Protection can be seen as more comprehensive than Critical Illness Insurance because it’s designed to pay out for anything that medically prevents you from working, rather than only paying out based on a critical illness defined by the policy.

Premiums for Income Protection can be a lot more palatable than for Critical Illness Insurance as you are insuring yourself for a smaller monthly benefit rather than a single large payout.

Read our Critical Illness vs Income Protection guide for more on the differences between these two types of protection.

Additional Cover With Critical Illness Insurance

When comparing policies and deciding if Critical Illness Cover is worth it, one factor you may wish to look at is the extra benefits that come with some policies.

While this shouldn’t override considerations such as how robust the policy is in terms of the definitions of illnesses or whether premiums are affordable, it may help tip the balance between providers.

In some cases, these additional benefits are great extras that really add value:

Global medical treatment
Funding for you to go abroad to treat your condition if there’s a foreign specialist who can be of more use than UK doctors
A second medical opinion
Access to some of the leading doctors in their field for a second medical opinion if you’re diagnosed with a critical illness
Critical illness cover for children
Usually representing a payout of the lower of 25% of the sum assured or £25,000 if your child is diagnosed with one of the illnesses specified by the policy
Medical helpline
This can provide you with access to medical professionals for help and advice if you fall ill
Bereavement counselling
Often included with joint Life and Critical Illness Insurance policies, this provides bereavement counselling for your family if you were to die during the policy’s term.

Need Critical Illness Cover Advice?

There is a lot to consider when it comes to setting up the correct financial protection and it can all get a little bit overwhelming. To talk through your options, fee-free, call 02084327333 or email help@drewberry.co.uk.

Why Speak to Us?

When it comes to protecting yourself and your finances, you deserve first-class service. Here’s why you should talk to us:

There’s no fee for our service
We’re an award-winning independent insurance broker, working with the leading UK insurers
You’ll speak to a dedicated specialist from start to finish
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