Critical Illness Insurance Cover varies greatly from provider to provider. The Association of British Insurers
(ABI) lists the common illnesses that should be covered under a best practice Critical Illness Insurance Cover policy. Those basic conditions are:-
Alzeimers Disease before age 65 |
Aorta Graft Surgery |
| Benign Brain Tumour | Blindness |
| Cancer | Coma |
| Coronary Artery By-pass Surgery | Deafness |
| Heart-Attack | Heart Valve Replacement or Repair |
| Loss of Speech | Loss of Limbs |
| Major Organ Transplant | Motor Neurone Disease |
| Multiple Sclerosis | Paralysis |
| Parkinsons Disease | Stroke |
| Third Degree Burns | Kidney Failure |
| HIV infection for emergency and healthcare services from blood transfusion and physical assault | |
In addition to the standard ABI list of Critical Illnesses, providers also offer additional illness definitions including:-
| Aplastic Anaemia | Dementia |
| Bacterial Meningitis | Cardiomyopathy |
| Childrens Benefit | Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease |
| Liver Failure | Progressive Supra-Nuclear Palsy |
| Total and Permanent Disability | Insulin Dependent Diabetes |
| Open Heart Surgery | Respiratory Failure |
| Systemic lupus erythematosus | Traumatic head injury - resulting in permanent symptoms |
The total and permanent disability definition is an interesting one as this can be in relation to your occupation.
In other words, if you have suffered an accident or illness that renders you unable to carry out your occupation, then
the Critical Illness Insurance policy will pay out. This Critical Illness definition can catch a vast number of illnesses that are NOT specified as
Critical Illnesses under a normal policy. You could receive your benefit as you are unable to carry out the tasks of your occupation
but still work in a different occupation, albeit in a reduced capacity.