What is Critical Illness?
Critical Illnesses are those defined as life-threatening or catastrophic and are often referred to as “dread diseases”. Conditions falling under this categorization include heart attack, cancer, stroke, coma, multiple sclerosis, bypass surgery etc.
Why buy Critical Illness Cover?
There are many reasons why a Critical Illness Cover is recommended with the main ones being:
- To secure your financial future and peace of mind for you and your family.
- To reduce the financial burden of high treatment or care costs.
- To ensure that you & your family can meet any current or future commitments such as education or wedding costs.
What’s the difference between Critical Illness and Health Insurance?
A Health insurance plan is designed to cover your medical expenses such as prescribed medication, necessary treatment, referred specialist consultation and hospitalizations costs. Cover works on either a reimbursement (you pay and reclaim costs later) or direct billing basis (the hospital bills your insurer direct leaving you to pay any relevant excess only). Critical Illness policies are benefit plans designed to pay out a lump sum on diagnosis of any of the illnesses specified, which can be spent as you wish (towards certain expenses, income replacement, etc).
Will I need to have a medical or tests as part of the application process?
You won’t be required to undergo any medical tests or physical examination but will be required to provide full and detailed information relating to items such as your age, height, weight, lifestyle, occupation and medical history (yours and your immediate family).
Is Critical Illness insurance in Dubai expensive?
Like most personal insurances, especially those relating to matters of life and health, we can’t generalise on premium costs since these depend on personal circumstances (such as age and physical condition, sum insured/level of benefit required, etc.). However, as a rule, cover is generally cheaper the younger the applicant so if you are interested in the cover, it makes sense to take out the policy when you are younger and in good health.
How much cover will I need?
The level of benefit you choose is very much a matter of personal choice. For example, single applicants or those with minimal financial commitments, may elect to take out a policy with significantly less sum insured or benefit levels to their married counterparts, or those with children. You should therefore consider your own personal circumstances carefully and take into account both current expenditure and future plans.
