LIFE INSURANCE AND THE CORONAVIRUS

LIFE INSURANCE WILL COVER COVID-19

If you die due to Covid-19, or of a complication associated with it, your life cover should pay out as normal.

YOU FACE A WAIT FOR NEW LIFE INSURANCE IF YOU HAVE OR HAD VIRUS

You will have to wait to be quoted for life insurance if you recently contracted Covid-19 and are buying life cover for the first time.

The length of the wait will depend on the insurer and type of insurance.

“If you have fully recovered from Covid-19 and you are back working, we can quote for life insurance a month after you have fully recovered and are back in work or capable of working,” said Martin Duffy, Irish Life’s head of underwriting.

When applying for a new life insurance policy today, you will be asked questions around Covid-19 and your answers — which should be honest — will dictate whether or not you will be able to get cover right away.

“Some of the questions your life insurer could ask include whether or not you have had Covid-19, if you’ve been in contact with someone who was suspected or confirmed to have Covid19 and so on,” said Colm Treacy, head of life insurance with lifebroker.ie.

The questions asked will vary, depending on the insurer. “The questions could include if you have travelled to a country that is at highrisk of Covid-19, if you are currently in self-isolation or if you are waiting on test results for Covid-19,” said Rachel McGovern, director of financial services with Brokers Ireland.

These questions could prove to be a hitch if you are buying a home and need mortgage protection insurance (which repays your loan should you die before repaying it — and which most lenders will insist on you taking out before giving you a mortgage).

“A provider of mortgage protection insurance is likely to postpone offering you cover if you have Covid-19 until some time after you’ve fully recovered,” said Treacy.

INCOME PROTECTION WON’T COVER LAYOFFS

Income protection insurance pays a percentage of your income if you cannot work — but only if an illness or injury prevents you from doing so.

This insurance won’t cover you if you’re out of work because you’ve been temporarily or permanently laid off. Even if the insurance covers you, you must be out of work for a certain amount of time, known as the deferred period, before income protection payments kicks in.

SERIOUS ILLNESS DOESN’T COVER COVID-19

Serious illness insurance pays out a tax-free lump sum if you are diagnosed with a specific illness or disability that your policy covers.

“Covid-19 will not be one of those specified illnesses,” said McGovern. “However, if you develop an illness

[as a result of Covid-19 or complications from it], you may be able to make a claim under your serious illness policy if the illness developed is covered.”

Serious illness plans typically cover cancer, heart attack or stroke. “Some of our [serious illness] plans also cover respiratory failure or organ failure,” said Duffy.