5* Serious Illness Cover

We cover all heart attacks, all strokes and more cancers than any other insurer¹

What is Serious Illness Cover?

Serious Illness Cover ensures you and your loved ones are protected if you fall ill, paying out a lump sum which can be used to cover expenses and monthly outgoings while you take the time you need to recover.

Our Comprehensive Serious Illness plan covers 182 conditions which is more than any critical illness cover on the market¹.

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Do I need Serious Illness Cover?

Critical illness can strike at any time. One in two people in the UK will develop some form of cancer during their lifetime², every seven minutes someone will have a heart attack and every 12 minutes someone will have a stroke³.

Critical illness can severely impact the way you live your life, especially when you have to consider supporting your family while you are recovering. A life insurance plan can help give you peace of mind that you and your loved ones will be protected.

How are we different?

Our comprehensive Serious Illness Cover offers you far more cover than a typical critical illness cover.

✓ We cover 182 conditions on our Comprehensive Serious Illness Cover and 153 on Primary Serious Illness Cover. That's more conditions than any other provider¹

✓ We cover all heart attacks, all strokes and more cancers than any other insurer¹

✓ 7% of Serious Illness Cover claims paid in 2018 were for conditions unique to Vitality

✓ We pay out based on how severe your condition is

✓ We cover the earlier stages of certain conditions

✓ You can claim more than once if you have cover left

Why choose us?

Benefit from award-winning Serious Illness Cover which rewards you for being healthy

A brand you can trust

Over £20 million paid in Serious Illness Cover claims in 2018⁴
Discounts and rewards

Over £81 million given in Vitality benefits and rewards in 2018⁵
Free, no-obligation advice

Our advisers are highly trained and offer free, expert advice
Improve your health

Lower incidence of Life Cover claims in actively engaged members⁶

Later Life Options

Unlike any other provider, our Serious Illness Cover offers two levels of cover for later life with Dementia and FrailCare Cover and Dementia and FrailCare Cover Plus. Designed to help support you in later life against the potential financial impact of dementia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson’s, stroke and frailty.

Cover under Later Life Options begin when your Serious Illness Cover term ends and is available with Vitality Optimiser or Wellness Optimiser.

Maximum amount available at the start of your Serious Illness Cover plan is £100,000 for Dementia and FrailCare Cover and £200,000 for Dementia and FrailCare Cover Plus. Subject to a minimum Serious Illness Cover term of 10 years and a maximum age of 60 at entry. This is not a long term care product.
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Serious Illness Cover Booster

Our Serious Illness Cover Booster offers you additional peace of mind that you would receive payments of up to 200% for long-term debilitating illnesses as well as payments from 100% for all the key conditions.

You’ll also receive cover for early stages and less severe illnesses as we recognise that these can still have a deep impact on your life.

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Am I covered for heart attacks or stroke?

We define medical conditions in the same way as the medical profession. So, if your consultant or doctor diagnoses that you’ve had a heart attack or stroke, we pay out. The amount we pay depends on the severity of your condition, which means we can cover all types of heart attack and strokes.

Am I more likely to get a payout with Serious Illness Cover than Critical Illness Cover?

Our Serious Illness Cover however covers all the conditions covered in the market (Independently verified by Defaqto, November 2019) meaning the likelihood you would receive a payout would be greater.

Can I add children to my Serious Illness Cover?

Yes, you can choose a cover amount of between £20,000 and £100,000 for your children. If your child is diagnosed with one of the illnesses we cover, we give you a cash lump sum. Your cover will automatically include a children's Hospital benefit that pays £100 a day if your child is hospitalised.

How do severity-based payments work?

We pay out on the severity of your illness or disability meaning that you could receive a payout at an earlier stage or your illness, even if it’s not life threatening. There are seven levels of severity to determine how much money gets paid out when you need to make a claim.

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Important information

¹Defaqto verified Competitor Comparisons, Nov 2019
²Cancer Research UK, 2019
³Heart UK, 2019
⁴The percentage of claims accepted for Serious Illness Cover in 2018 was 91.2% and the total amount paid was £20,393,940
⁵With VitalityLife's Optimisers which are available at an additional monthly cost of £1.75 for Select or £4.50 for Full. Source: Vitality internal data, May 2019.
⁶According to Vitality internal data (2018), over the past five years members who engaged in the Vitality Healthy Living Programme had a significantly lower incidence of Life Cover claims across all age groups when compared to those who did not engage.