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LIVING
For those who need a specialist policy, it's worth
checking out All Clear Insure My Diabetes, who have
partnered with Diabetes UK.
www.diabetes.org.uk/travel-insurance
Staysure also offers tailored insurance for people with
diabetes.
www.staysure.co.uk
InsuranceWith travel insurance includes cover for
devices and insulin for people with diabetes.
www.insurancewith.com
The British Insurance Brokers' Association lists brokers
who specialise in travel and other insurance for people
with medical conditions.
www.biba.org.uk
Ensure you take out insurance at the same time
as booking your holiday, so that you're covered for
cancellation from the outset.
Diabetes tech
When the NHS supplies you with a pump, you're generally
told it's your responsibility to insure it. It is, but that
only applies to loss, damage or theft. If the device
malfunctions, the manufacturer will replace it.
You may be able to get cover for your insulin pump or
other diabetes tech through your home insurance, usually
covered as specified personal belongings away from
home. The manufacturer will tell you how much to insure
it for - probably around £4,000.
However, you may find specialist diabetes tech
insurance offers advantages your home contents cover
doesn't. Insurance4InsulinPumps prides itself on its fast
claim and device replacement turnaround time, and no
excess. Handsets, loan pumps and CGMs are included too,
as is international cover. The man who created this policy
did it because he has a daughter with Type 1 diabetes
that has an insulin pump that needed insuring. www.
insurance4insulinpumps.co.uk
CoverMe4 also offers kit cover.
myinsulinpump.coverme4.co.uk
Bear in mind that if you use your phone as a reader,
you might want to insure that too on your home contents
or a standalone policy.
Life insurance
Life cover is a tricky area at the best of times. There
are different kinds. Level term insurance pays out a
sum if you die within the term of the policy, decreasing
term insurance is aimed at covering your mortgage and
the amount it would pay reduces as your home loan
decreases. A family income policy will pay a set amount
per month or year to help support your dependants if
you die during the policy term. These are all cheaper than
whole of life insurance which runs until you die rather
than for a fixed period.
However, for anyone with diabetes, "cheap" is the
wrong word. You may need to go to a specialist broker,
who will probably ask for a medical report from your GP.
Whether you get cover can depend on how well managed
your diabetes is and any complications or other health
issues. Premiums can be hideously pricey.
Diabetes UK has partnered with The Insurance
Surgery which specialises in pre-existing medical
conditions.
www.the-insurance-surgery.co.uk
Before shelling out your hard-earned money, it's worth
considering if life insurance is necessary in your particular
case. Anthony Forchione, senior insurance analyst at
MoneySavingExpert.com, said: "Though not everyone
needs life insurance, it is a valuable form of cover if you
have dependants and your income is important to them
if you were to die. This could be used to pay towards any
outstanding mortgage, other debts, funeral costs or even
money towards further education for your children."
If you get generous death-in-service cover with your
job, you might not need to buy life insurance or you might
simply need a separate top-up policy.
The Money Saving Expert consumer website offers
useful information on life insurance.
www.moneysavingexpert.com
Hard to get insurance
Some insurance can be almost impossible to find if you
have diabetes. This includes private medical insurance
and critical illness insurance, which pays out if you can't
work because of a serious illness. Both usually exclude
diabetes and its complications. It may be possible to get
income protection insurance if you want to know you will
have some money coming in if you can't work through
sickness. This usually pays a proportion of your salary for
a period of time, but can be expensive. Only consider it if
you actually work.
Further information:
www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/life-withdiabetes/insurance
EDITOR'S COMMENT: Also see our home contents article
from February 2024.