There are various critical illnesses that affect people in the UK. Insurance companies used to cover seven major critical illness conditions but gradually, some of them have started to cover around 30. Even if medical technology has progressed considerably, critical illness cases continue to remain an everyday fact. Cancer can be considered as the critical illness responsible for around three quarters of the claims in the UK. Let’s see at some statistics.

According to BUPA Individual Protection, around 4 out of 10 men had suffered from a critical illness like cancer while 7 out of 10 women endured the same thing. As a matter of fact, women claimed more as compared to men. The overall analysis of figures related to critical illness claims had also been registered. After cancer, heart attack accounted for about 13 percent of claims followed by stroke and heart valve replacement which were both responsible for around 7 percent of critical illness claims. Then we see brain tumour and total and permanent disability which brought around 5 percent of critical illness claims in the UK.

Moreover, the average payout per claim may have been around GBP 79,000. Also, the highest amount of lump sum awarded by BUPA Individual Protection till date had been around GBP 750,000. Here are some recent critical illness payouts. A sum of GBP 250,000 may have been awarded to a man aged 43 years old who was disabled after a motorcycle accident. Furthermore, a 34 year old woman may have obtained around GBP 120,000 after being diagnosed with a critical illness such as cervical cancer. Additionally, a 46 year old man may have received GBP 500,000 for being a victim of a critical illness as Parkinson’s disease. Finally, a 40 year old woman may have been granted approximately GBP 33,000 for breast cancer.

As per Critical Illness Insurance, News update: November 2006, detailed claim figures could be classified as follows: Cancer topped the list of critical illness claims. 48 percent of men claimed for cancer followed by 18 percent for heart attack, 6 percent for stroke, 4 percent for total permanent disability, 4 percent for benign brain tumour, 4 percent for heart valve replacement, 3 percent for a critical illness like multiple sclerosis and finally 3 percent for bypass surgery.

As for women cancer claims nearly doubled that of men. The critical illness claim figures for women could be demonstrated as follows: 65 percent of women claimed for cancer followed by 4 percent for heart attack, 8 percent for stroke, 7 percent for total permanent disability, 5 percent for benign brain tumour, 1 percent for heart valve replacement, 2 percent for a critical illness such as multiple sclerosis and finally 1 percent for bypass surgery.

If the above data is compared, we would be able to notice that in general, women may account for most critical illness claims. The high rate of cancer among women may be most likely due to breast cancer. On the other hand, the most dominant form of critical illness among men may be the heart attack. Having a critical illness cover might ease you out of possible financial problems you may encounter if you are unfortunate enough to be diagnosed with a critical illness in the future.

For more information about life insurance and critical illness insurance please visit www.unbeatablelifeandcriticalinsurance.co.uk.