Why should I get financial advice on my insurance?

The better question is: why shouldn’t you get advice on your insurance?

Think of it as a warrant of fitness on your insurance situation. An adviser can point out any shortcomings or areas of exposed risk in your current plan.

How much does it cost to get financial advice?

Advisers vary in their prices depending on the type of advice and the product that they advise on. Most insurance advisers don’t charge fees for their advice. You can be assured that all financial advisers that we partner with charge no fees for their advice.

What is underwriting?

Underwriting is a process that an insurer goes through to assess the risk that you pose to them for a claim, everyone has a different result. They will generally ask a series of medical questions to establish your risk and you will fall into one of two categories: standard terms or special terms.

Standard terms - The price and exclusions are unchanged from the quote and policy wording.

Special terms - The insurer puts a loading (increased price) or an exclusion on the policy to balance out the risk of insuring you.

A big part of a financial adviser’s role here is to ensure that you get the best terms possible. They will help you to fully explain any pre-existing conditions to the underwriter to make sure that you get a fair assessment.

So how does the financial adviser get paid?

Most financial advisers get paid by the provider of the products that they advise on. Mortgage advisers are paid by lenders and insurance advisers are paid by insurers etc. The rates vary but they must always disclose this information to you when you work with them.

I already have a loading or exclusion on my policy, should I just be grateful that I have insurance?

No, you should never settle for terms that you are not happy with. There is no harm in applying to an insurer to see if you can improve your terms and either get a better price or remove an exclusion. As your health improves or underwriting practices change, you may find that you can get much better terms when you review. Financial advice goes a long way to improving your situation here.