Claiming on insurance to cover elderly care costs
Don’t rush into any new financial arrangements to pay for your care costs before checking to see if you can claim on an existing insurance policy. Many of us have taken out some kind of health insurance in the past, which might turn out to be a big help now
Check for insurance policies
Does your parent hold any of the following?
- Life insurance with critical illness cover or a standalone critical illness policy
- A long-term-care-insurance policy – although these are no longer available, they were very popular at one time
- An over-50s plan
- Terminal illness cover – this might have been included when you took out your mortgage
- Income protection cover
- Cover taken out on your behalf by a current employer or someone you’ve worked for in the past
- Cover that someone else in your family has taken out on your behalf
- A joint policy taken out with your spouse or partner that will cover you if you’re ill
If so, this is how to claim
Find as much of the original paperwork relating to the insurance policy as you can
If the policy was bought through a broker, contact them first. They might be able to support you or manage the claim on your behalf
Find out more about the claims process and what to do if your claim is rejected by following the links below
What to do if your insurance claim is rejected
What happens of your parent is not covered?
If you don’t have any insurance policies that cover you, and you need to pay for some or all of your own care costs, there are other options for you to consider
Self-funding your long-term care – your options
This article is provided by the Money Advice Service.
