Leading diabetes charity Diabetes UK recently published the latest statistics for the UK:

• 1 in 15 people living in the UK has diabetes
• More than 100,000 people were diagnosed with diabetes in 2019 in the UK (projected to increase to 5.3 million by 2025)*
• 9 million people are living with diabetes (plus almost 1 million with undiagnosed diabetes – making the total over 4.8 million people)*
• Risks of Heart Attack or Heart Disease is much more likely in someone with Type 2 diabetes (almost 2 to 2.5 higher risk)*
• 6 in 10 people with Type 2 diabetes has no symptoms
• People with Type 2 diabetes are approximately 50% more likely to die early*

*The latest figures are provided by Diabetes UK, Diabetes Prevalence 2019 report.

Obtaining life insurance can be formidable for someone with a diagnosis of Type 1 Diabetes. That said, it is possible to find cover and some people even manage to get life cover without a premium loading.

For many people with Type 1 Diabetes, it is possible to obtain a Diabetes life insurance at varying rates. The cost of your policy will depend upon your individual circumstances and a Provider’s skill to underwrite you.

As more people are diagnosed, the knock-on effect is that rates offered by Providers are becoming much more competitive and the choices available for Type 1 Diabetes life insurance are gradually increasing.

Whilst obtaining Type 1 Diabetes critical illness or income protection cover is often far more challenging, this is quickly beginning to improve. Many Insurers are now offering this Type of cover for Type 2 Diabetes and options available to Type 1 Diabetes are continuing to develop. Previously, obtaining income protection cover or a critical illness policy as a person with Type 1 Diabetes has been extremely problematic, or near impossible, but as attitudes evolve so does your eligibility for cover.

Which Types of Diabetes can obtain Life Insurance cover?

It is, and always has been, possible to get life insurance for both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. The main difference between getting life insurance for people with Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes is people with Type 1 diabetes will usually need some additional medical underwriting. However, we are seeing more and more applications for Type 2 diabetes accepted straightaway with no further underwriting requirements which is a smaller percentage for those people with Type 1 diabetes.

Life insurance prices have come down significantly for both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes over the last 20 years thanks to improved treatments, better data, more information and understanding about the conditions as well as higher survival rates which means that people are living longer.

All of these factors have had a positive impact on the cost of cover for people with diabetes and we expect this trend to continue for many years to come.

Who are the best Life Insurance Companies to speak to about Diabetes cover?

There are several major life insurance Providers in the UK currently, including Aegon, AIG, Aviva, LV, Legal & General, Royal London and Zurich. As independent financial advisers, Markland Hill Wealth works with all of the UK major insurance companies UK as well as some specialist Insurers who provide more unique or bespoke solutions for people with more severe symptoms of diabetes and other conditions.

From experience we know the best Providers for each person based on their individual medical history, age and health and but this can vary considerably. It’s very hard to say which Insurers are best for each condition due to the fact that people’s circumstances differ so widely and no application is generally the same. Also, underwriting can change rapidly and drastically meaning that there can be a major shift in the Providers we approach at any time.

We will spend time getting to know more about you and your medical history then we simply offer our expertise to help get you the best cover to protect your loved ones. The main reason why you would use an independent financial adviser is to benefit from their expert knowledge and to save time and money to ensure you get the cover you need at the right price.

Can people with Diabetes get Critical Illness Cover?

Recently we’ve found that many more people with diabetes are able to get critical illness cover again thanks to changes in the underwriting rules. Currently critical illness cover is only available for Type 2 diabetes from the mainstream or more popular high street insurance Providers. It is possible to get more specialist critical illness style products for people with Type 1 diabetes although you should be aware that these will come with slightly different terms to standard cover.

Make sure your protection is a good fit.

Mike Johnson of Markland Hill Wealth urged anyone who is diabetic and looking for protection cover to contact them. “At Markland Hill Wealth we work very closely with some of the UK’s biggest and best insurance companies to make sure that people with diabetes get the lowest rates available and the best cover. There are a range of products that offer people with diabetes tailored cover with premiums that can be reduced to reward good control of the condition. Many Providers have increased their HbA1c tolerance meaning we can offer cover to more people with diabetes than ever before”.

Both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes life insurance rates have reduced dramatically over the past 20 years. These policies can provide excellent financial protection for those with pre-existing conditions such as Type 1 Diabetes.

If your application for Type 1 Diabetes life insurance, critical illness cover, or income protection has been declined previously, we urge you to consider contacting us to revisit this with you as we have access to not only the UK’s top Insurers but top specialist Providers too.  

For an initial free consultation contact the team through www.marklandhill.com with the subject ‘Diabetes Cover’ and we will get in touch with you in the near future to search the whole market to find cover that matches your needs and your budget.