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January 2022 MetLife: Other

MetLife has enhanced its EverydayProtect plan, offering flexible protection tailored to suit customers’ changing lifestyles and is particularly suited to self-employed, families and individuals with active lifestyles.

EverdayProtect is designed to complement more traditional protection and covers broken bones, hospital stays and unexpected accidents. Cover is affordable and customers can also add additional extras such as Child Cover (which covers children up to age 18 or to 23 if in education, an unpaid traineeship/apprenticeship or with dependency on the policyholder due to mental and/or physical disability) from just £1 a month.

MetLife says one of the key enhancements is enabling people to get protection for longer. That’s important, it says, because life expectancy has increased, people’s lifestyles have changed, and we are now living and working longer. Understanding this shift in working patterns, MetLife has increased the entry age up to a customer’s 65th birthday and the policy can continue until their 75th birthday.

For the self-employed (who can find themselves excluded from other protection policies) EverydayProtect doesn’t require any proof of income, and claims payments are made quickly. There are no health questions asked.

Cost continues to be a significant barrier for people to seek advice or help with their finances and MetLife says its research shows that more than a fifth (23%) of people cite cost as the biggest barrier to seeking advice, even at key life moments such as buying a home or starting a family. Consequently, premiums start at just £9 a month, which buys one unit of cover.

Cover provided for each unit of cover (each costs £9 a month) is:

Broken bone cover - £800 for major breaks (e.g. arm or leg) and £200 for minor breaks.

£50 per 24 hour period for hospitalisation (after the plan has been held for 12 months).
Accidental permanent injury. The lump sum benefit depends on the type of injury and pays on a sliding scaled from £2,500 up to £50K, with the benefit halved after the customer’s 70th birthday.
£50K on total permanent disability.
£40K on accidental death.
£2K on non-accidental death after five years. A lower benefit is paid on death in earlier years and the benefit is halved after age 70.

Optional Child Cover pays similar but generally lower benefits.

Optional Active Lifestyle Cover pays £500 or £1,000 on a range of injuries, such as dislocations and ligament and tendon tears and ruptures.

Optional Specialist Healthcare Cover pays a cash lump sum of £10K for some conditions (e.g. HIV and bacterial meningitis) and £2.5K for others (e.g. TB and hepatitis B). All three optional covers cost an additional £1 a month each.

Customers also receive free and unlimited access to a Wellbeing Support Centre, provided by Health Assured, a leading wellbeing assistance provider in the UK. Through the Health Assured online portal, digital app and dedicated telephone help line, customers have independent and confidential

access to qualified counsellors and legal advisers, 24/7, covering a range of issues, such as: general

wellbeing; family issues; bereavement and probate; childcare and eldercare; emotional support; managing debt, and tax issues.

Comment: The main selling point of this enhanced plan from MetLife will be its coverage – providing a range of largely accident-related benefits. It’s simple too – you buy units of cover, with a single price per unit – to which you can add various additional covers, at just £1 each per unit. Underwriting couldn’t be simpler either.

However, nice as these benefits are to have, this plan is really best as a supplement to other, more comprehensive, cover rather than being a replacement.

Looked at that way, the plan could appeal=- especially to those who, for whatever reason, may not be able to have other cover.

Plus points: A range of largely accident based benefits; Some full life cover; Optional benefits; Low cost; Simple to buy and to understand; Minimal underwriting; Wellbeing Support Centre.

Not so plus points: Mainly accident based benefits, when many people need illness based benefits; Limited cover; Some waiting periods; Cover bought in units, so intermediate cover levels not available; Cover now £9 per unit, compared to £7 when we reviewed the plan back in 2016.

Website: http://www.metlife.uk.com.

Rating (max 10): Overall: 7.5. Silver

Tags: Other; MetLife

I Mark: No