Proof it works
Aviva
Aviva are one of the UK’s leading insurers – so it’s perhaps no surprise that they are leading the way when it comes to paying claims.
In 2021, Aviva settled 98% of all claims received, paying a total of 53,713 claims across individual Critical Illness cover, life insurance and income protection.
The insurer paid the equivalent of £3 million every day in 2021, paying a total of over £1 billion to customers for the second consecutive year.
The insurer also paid 4,367 Critical Illness claims, totalling £310 million. With an average payout of £70,917, a third of all claimants were aged in their 40s, with 42.9% aged between 50 and 59.
Legal & General
In 2021, Legal & General paid out over £797 million in protection claims and supported 16,890 customers.
This included 1,579 Covid related claims. The insurer paid more than £73 million of valid life insurance claims where Covid-19 was an attributing factor.
In 2021, Legal & General paid 417 new and continuing income protection claims, totalling more than £3 million.
Policyholders received, on average, more than £1,000 a month in support. The average policy was in place for just two years before a claim.
LV
Popular insurer LV= paid 96% of all claims in 2021. Individual protection claims hit a record £119 million with the provider supporting more than 9,000 claimants.
LV= paid £13.6 million in income protection claims to nearly 1,000 individuals and families.
Musculoskeletal issues, fractures, and cancer represented nearly 6 in 10 of all income protection claims.
Zurich
Unlike the other providers, Zurich have only published their claims figures for the first six months of 2021.
During that period, the insurer paid more than £222 million in life, Critical Illness and income protection claims to customers and their families.
AIG
AIG are another provider who have not published detailed figures for 2021.
In 2020, the insurer paid a total of £115.3 million to 3,188 families, individuals, and businesses.
Scottish Widows
In 2021, Scottish Widows paid 98% of all claims, supporting 10,426 families with payouts totalling £207.9 million. The insurers paid £821,772 every working day.
Scottish Widows paid a staggering 99% of all life insurance claims in 2021, totalling £132.9 million.
They paid a total of 9,035 claims, and almost a third of life insurance claims were for cancer.
Royal London
Royal London begin their claims report by saying “through pandemics and daily life, we’re committed to paying claims and you can rely on us to be here when it really matters.”
In line with other insurers, Royal London paid more than 9 in 10 Critical Illness claims. In 2021 they paid 91.7% of claims paid totalling £136 million.
The average payout was £70,228 and the average age of claimant was 51.
89% of claims in 2021 were for just five definitions – cancer, heart attack, stroke, multiple sclerosis, and benign brain tumour.
In addition, the insurer supported 102 families during a difficult time, paying £2.3 million in children’s Critical Illness claims with an average payout of £22,731.