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HIV AND LIFEINSURANCEabi.org.uk@BritishInsurers
ContentsHIV And Life Insurance Consumer Guide3Life Insurance4HIV and Life Insurance5HIV testing when applying for Life Insurance8Insurance Companies and Brokers10With thanks to the following organisations for their helpful contributionsin the drafting of this guide, all of whom can be contacted for furtherinformation about living with HIV: HIV Scotland www.hivscotland.com NAM Aidsmap www.aidsmap.com National Aids Trust www.nat.org.uk Terrence Higgins Trust www.tht.org.uk Unusual Risks Mortgage & Insurance Services www.unusualrisks.co.uk2abi.org.uk
HIV AND LIFE INSURANCECONSUMER GUIDEThis guide was created by insurers and HIVcommunity contributors after research showedthat many individuals immediately cancelledtheir Life Insurance policies when they werediagnosed with HIV. After diagnosis, somepeople believe their life insurance has becomeinvalid, and many individuals living with HIVdo not believe they can be covered by a LifeInsurance policy.@BritishInsurersHowever, this is not the case.This guide is here to help people who haverecently been diagnosed with HIV to let themknow that their cover will almost certainlystill be valid, and to so that people living withHIV know that they can in fact apply for LifeInsurance and be covered. This guide letspeople know that HIV is treated by insurers likeany other medical condition.3
Life InsuranceLife Insurance will provide a cash lump sum in theevent of your death, payable to your family or thoseyou have nominated.If you have loved ones, such as children, a partner, orother relatives, who depend on your income to coverdebts, bills, or living expenses, then it may be worthconsidering taking out Life Insurance cover. By payinga monthly premium or a lump sum to your insurer fora Life Insurance policy, you can safeguard your lovedones from financial hardship if you die.Life Insurance cover is particularly important if you are: just married or have entered a civil partnership a young couple just starting out parents raising a young family a mature family starting to think about the future a retiree who may survive their partner and needfinancial supportSome events when you may want to think about takingout Life Insurance cover include: buying a house starting a new job applying for a mortgage or loan the birth of a child4abi.org.uk
HIV and LifeInsurance@BritishInsurers5
I have Life Insurance andhave just beendiagnosed with HIVWILL MY LIFE INSURANCEPOLICY COVER HIV?The vast majority of Life Insurance contractsin the UK do not have exclusions for anymedical conditions, including HIV, which arediagnosed after your Life Insurance cover hasstarted. This means if you take out a policybut then find out you are HIV positive you willcontinue to be covered. As with all insuranceproducts, you should check the terms andconditions of your cover.Always check your Life Insurance coverbefore you cancel it, since as with other preexisting medical conditions, the price for anew policy could be higher once you havebeen diagnosed with HIV, because the risk tothe insurer increases.If you are considering cancelling your LifeInsurance, read the terms of your policy andspeak to your insurer or a financial adviser,to ensure that you understand your optionsabout whether to cancel or to keep your LifeInsurance cover.6DO I NEED TO TELL MYINSURER THAT I AM NOWHIV POSITIVE?No, you do not. Your insurer does not needto know about any medical conditionsyou are diagnosed with, including HIV,after purchasing your policy. Once the LifeInsurance cover is in place it stays until eitheryou choose to cancel it or when it pays outunder the terms of the contract. A diagnosisof HIV or any other condition does not changethe monthly premium you pay or the amountof money paid out on claim.It is worth noting that if you do not continueto make the agreed payments in the agreedtimescale then your Life Insurance cover willend and you would need to reapply to becovered again.abi.org.uk
I am HIV positive andwould like to buy LifeInsuranceCAN I STILL GET LIFEINSURANCE?If you have been diagnosed with HIV orare diagnosed in the future you can still becovered by Life Insurance.Life Insurance has been available to peopleliving with HIV since 2009. As with manypre-existing medical conditions, you may notbe eligible for some products and may haveto pay higher premiums as you are a risk forthe insurer. However, there are a number ofproducts offered by insurers that cover preexisting medical conditions and, like otherinsurance products, the policy and pricediffers between insurers.WHAT WILL INSURERS ASKME WHEN I APPLY FOR LIFEINSURANCE?An insurer’s job is to assess risk and to offercustomers the right level of cover at the rightprice. They therefore want to be able to predicthow likely you are to make a claim. Theyusually do this by asking you some questionswhen you take out a policy. They will then useyour answers, as well as their experience ofprevious claims and statistics, to work outhow likely you are to claim and the potentialamount of the claim. Insurers work this out bycomparing the data you provide them with tosimilar data sources in the UK.@BritishInsurersAs part of this, insurers will usually ask youquestions about your medical history andmay ask whether you have tested positive forHIV. This is because insurers want to knowif you have responded well to HIV treatmentor have medical complications because ofHIV, in order to calculate whether they canoffer you Life Insurance cover and, if so, whatyour monthly premium would be. Insurerswill only ask relevant questions that theyneed to know to assess risk and, as with allmedical conditions, they will only take intoaccount relevant information when decidingwhether to cover you and at what price.Insurers consider each case individuallyand accurately and will not ask speculativequestions based on assumptions.Insurers do not want irrelevant information,such as your sexual orientation, and will notuse it even if you happen to disclose it.However if you know you are HIV positive anddo not disclose this on an application form, thisis likely to mean your policy will be invalid andyour insurer is then highly unlikely to pay outif you die, which could leave your nominateddependants without the financial cover youhave been paying for. Therefore, it is importantto make every effort to answer all the questionson your application as carefully and accuratelyas possible, to the best of your knowledge.7
HIV testing whenapplying for LifeInsurance8abi.org.uk
DO I NEED TO TAKE AN HIVTEST WHEN APPLYING FORLIFE INSURANCE?When applying for Life Insurance, you maysometimes be asked to take a range ofhealth screening tests which assess youfor various medical conditions includingHIV, especially if you are applying for aninsurance policy that pays out a particularlylarge amount of money. An insurer mayalso ask you to take an HIV test if you havetravelled to certain countries or have ahistory of sexually transmitted infections.The criteria leading to a request for an HIVtest will vary between different insurers.These health tests are always paid for byinsurers and are usually carried out by adoctor’s surgery or private clinic, dependingon the insurer’s company policy.If you tell an insurer that you are already HIVpositive on an application, then you will notneed to take an HIV test.If you have taken an HIV test beforeapplying for Life Insurance and testednegative, then you do not need to disclosethis on your application.WHO WILL SEE MY HIVTEST RESULTS?The results of an HIV test are only sharedwith a medical professional after you havegiven explicit consent. For instance, you maynominate a doctor to receive positive testresults from the HIV test. All insurers complywith the Data Protection Act 1998 and willtreat any medical information as sensitivedata, in a completely confidential manner.WHAT IF MY RESULTS AREPOSITIVE FOR HIV?Should the result of an HIV test be positive,the insurer will notify your nominatedmedical professional such as your doctor orclinic. The nominated medical professionalwill then inform you about your test resultsand also provide guidance on how to seekcounselling and medical care.WHAT HAPPENS TO MYAPPLICATION IF I TESTPOSITIVE?Insurers would normally wait 6-12 monthsafter the test to see how HIV affects yourhealth and how you respond to treatmentbefore they can assess what level of coverthey may be able to offer you. If they canoffer you cover then you can expect theinsurance premiums offered to you to behigher than an average Life Insurancepolicy, because you have a pre-existingmedical condition.WHAT IF MY RESULTS ARENEGATIVE FOR HIV?Although insurers are not required to tellyou of a negative HIV test result, they willsend a copy of the test to your nominateddoctor at your request.@BritishInsurers9
Insurance Companiesand BrokersWHICH INSURERS OFFERCOVERAGE FOR PEOPLE WITHHIV?There are many insurers who offer LifeInsurance cover for individuals living with HIV.If you have been diagnosed with HIV and youwould like buy a Life Insurance policy, you cancontact insurers directly or use an adviser tofind the product that best suits your needs.MY EMPLOYER HAS ACOMPANY LIFE INSURANCEPOLICY WHICH PROVIDESME WITH COVER. IS THATAFFECTED BY MY DIAGNOSIS?If you work for a company that provides GroupLife Insurance you will still be covered and thereis no need to tell your employer.It is always a good idea to check what insurancecover your employer may provide.DO I NEED TO GET FINANCIALADVICE?The way in which the insurance industryresponds to the needs of HIV positive people isalways evolving, so it would be advisable to seekspecialist Independent Financial Advice beforetaking out Life Insurance cover. Many of thecommunity contributors which are listed at theend of this guide will be able to offer guidance asto the best place to find advice and information.COMPLAINTSIf you are unhappy with the way you havebeen treated by an insurer when taking out aninsurance policy or when making a claim, youcan make a complaint directly to the insurer.All insurers have a complaints procedure andwill be able to provide you with assistance.10If you are still not comfortable with theinsurer’s response, you can take yourcomplaint to the Financial OmbudsmanService (FOS), an independent body whichaims to settle complaints between consumersand businesses providing financial services.More details on the FOS can be found atwww.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.abi.org.uk
June 2016For more informationAssociation of British InsurersOne America Square17 CrosswallLondon EC3N 2LB020 7600 333312abi.org.uk@BritishInsurersabi.org.uk
HIV And Life Insurance Consumer Guide 3 Life Insurance 4 HIV and Life Insurance 5 HIV testing when applying for Life Insurance 8 Insurance Companies and Brokers 10 With thanks to the following organisations for their helpful contributions in the drafting of this guide, all of whom can be contacted for further
