Please click on each of the questions below to reveal the answer underneath.
-
How do I know which MPPI product to choose for my customer?
If your customer has had their mortgage agreement in place for 30 days or less they are classed as a 'new borrower'. In order to enter into a new mortgage agreement they will have to be taking out a new mortgage on a new home or a re-mortgage. As a 'new borrower' your customer would be entitled to take out our MortgageProtector product, underwritten by Aviva Insurance Ltd.
A customer is classed as an 'existing borrower' if they have had their current mortgage agreement for more than 30 days, this includes if they stay on their current deal when it expires on a Standard Variable Rate mortgage (SVR). As an 'existing borrower' your customer would be entitled to take out our MortgageProtector Solo product, underwritten by Pinnacle Insurance plc.
-
Can my customer cover an additional amount on top of their mortgage?
Yes! We have a couple of different options for your customer:
- On our MortgageProtector product for new borrowers, they can cover their additional insurance premiums such as their life cover and buildings and contents, plus take 33% Additional Cover of their monthly benefit as long as the total benefit does not exceed £3,000 or 75% of their gross monthly income.
- On our MortgageProtector Solo product for existing borrowers, they can choose to take up to 33% Additional Cover of their mortgage payment as long as the total benefit does not exceed £2,000 or 65% of their gross monthly income.
Please note: If your customer's mortgage repayments reduce or increase (and/or their related premiums on MortgageProtector), then any additional amount of cover will reduce or increase proportionately.
-
How long must my customer wait before they can claim?
Both our MPPI products offer your customers a great deal of flexibility. Customers can choose from three deferral options of a 30 day, 60 day or 180 day excess period. Alternatively, they can choose for benefit payments to be backdated to the first day they were unable to work (this is called 'back to day one' cover). Back to day one cover is only available with a 30 day or 60 day qualification period.
Please note: This is the number of consecutive days your customers are unable to work before being entitled to make a claim and is also known as a 'qualification' or a 'deferral' period.
-
Does it affect my customer's policy if they get sick pay?
Sick pay does not affect the policy. The policy will pay out alongside their sick pay or they can choose different qualification periods for Accident and Sickness and for Unemployment and can base these on the benefits they receive through their employment (e.g. sick pay).
-
What additional benefits are on offer to my customer?
- Free Legal Expenses cover for employment and bodily injury disputes.
- 24 hour Health & Medical, Counselling and Legal Advice help lines.
- Free Back to Work Assistance for unemployment cover including help with CV writing and interview techniques.
-
Can my customer delay monthly costs at the start of the policy?
With MortgageProtector (our product for customers whose mortgage agreement has been in place for 30 days or less) your customer can choose to delay their initial payment by three or six months at the policy start date.
-
Can you offer my customer Unemployment cover?
We offer Unemployment cover as part of our full Accident, Sickness and Unemployment cover. This offers customers the most comprehensive cover. Please note, if your customer is entitled to sick pay they can select a qualification period which begins after their employer stops paying sick pay. Selecting a long qualification period would reduce the cost of the MPPI premium.
-
How long will you pay out on a claim for?
With MortgageProtector, your customer can choose between 12 & 24 months benefit period for both Accident, Sickness & Unemployment cover, or Accident & Sickness only cover.
With MortgageProtector Solo, your customer can choose between 12 & 24 months benefit period for Accident & Sickness only cover OR 12 months benefit period for full Accident, Sickness and Unemployment cover.
-
Can you cover my customer who is self employed?
Yes we offer full Accident, Sickness and Unemployment cover, or Accident & Sickness only cover for customers who are self employed.
They must cease trading and register as unemployed before they are able to claim for Unemployment.
Please note: With MortgageProtector Solo your customer must be self employed for 24 consecutive months to be eligible for cover.
-
Can you cover contract workers?
Yes. We offer full Accident, Sickness & Unemployment cover and Accident & Sickness only cover for those customers who are contract workers.
With MortgageProtector: If your customer has chosen unemployment cover and they work on a fixed term contract and have worked for the same employer for at least 12 months, they will be entitled to claim for unemployment, for non-renewal of a fixed term contract. If they have not worked continuously for the same employer for at least 12 months they are not insured for the non-renewal of a fixed term contract but are entitled to claim for unemployment and receive benefit payments up to the date that their fixed term contract was originally intended to terminate under the policy.
With MortgageProtector Solo: If your customer works on a fixed term contract and their contract is not renewed they will be entitled to claim for unemployment cover if they meet one of the following criteria:
- they have been on a contract with the same employer for at least 12 months and had the contract renewed at least once;
- they have worked continuously under contract with the same employer for at least 24 months;
- they were originally employed on a permanent basis but were transferred to a fixed-term contract by the same employer without a break in employment; or
- they are employed under a contract which is not regularly renewable but individually negotiated, and they have been with the same employer for at least 6 months and had their contract renewed at least twice, and their contract is terminated before it was due to expire. If this is the case, we will restrict payments to the period up to the original contract expiry date. Accident and Sickness is only covered up to the end of their current contract.
-
My customer has an offset mortgage; how do I ensure I'm covering the correct amount?
With MortgageProtector: If a customer arranges an offset mortgage then they will have an amount confirmed each month that they will need to pay in order to repay the mortgage in the required timescale. This is the figure they should take for cover under their MPPI policy. For further information, please refer to the policy Terms & Conditions.
With MortgageProtector Solo: If a customer arranges an offset mortgage then they will have an amount confirmed each month that they will need to pay in order to repay the mortgage in the required timescale. If the customer then chooses to pay over and above that amount, we can insure this figure on the policy, provided that the customer has evidence that this is the regular monthly payment they have been making to their lender consistently and they have not over-insured themselves.
-
Do you cover customers with chronic conditions?
As long as the condition does not fall within the definition of the policy's pre-existing condition exclusion. A pre-existing condition is any condition, injury, illness, disease, sickness or related condition and/or associated symptoms, whether diagnosed or not, which a customer knew about, or should reasonably have known about when they take out a policy. Customers must be 12 months symptom free of a pre-existing condition before being eligible to claim. They also need to have not consulted a doctor about the condition, or received treatment for it in the last 12 months prior to making a claim for the same condition.
-
Do you cover customers with stress and back related claims?
We exclude back conditions, mental or nervous disorders such as stress and related conditions, unless their condition is diagnosed by a specialist and needs a continued course of treatment.
-
If my customers mortgage payments increase or decrease do they need to let you know?
This is an extremely important point and yes they do need to let us know, so we can ensure they are not over or under insuring themselves. We also need to ensure that they are paying the correct premium to cover their mortgage and any related costs (if selected). There is however 90 days exclusion period on the uplift if the client increases cover. This 90 days is waived if the increase is due to an interest rate increase and the client advises us of this change within 30 days of notification from the lender.
Our MortgageProtector Terms & Conditions explain that the monthly benefit insured is the total amount of cover the policyholder has selected under the policy to protect their monthly mortgage repayments, plus any mortgage-related insurance premiums and any additional cover, if selected. Therefore the monthly benefit entitlement at point of claim, including additional cover, will reduce if a customer's mortgage payment has reduced, or reduces during their claim.
We would strongly encourage you to ensure your customers understand this and recommend you refer your customers to the policy Terms & Conditions for information on this point.
-
If both of my customers are named on the mortgage agreement, can they both get cover for their mortgage repayments? What would happen if they both needed to claim at the same time?
If your customers are joint mortgage holders and would like joint cover and one of them earns more, they can choose to split the cover, for example 70/30. In this instance, in the event of a claim by the higher earner, they would receive 70% of the insured benefit. If they both needed to claim and both claims were accepted, we would pay out on both claims.
-
My customer does not have a mortgage, they rent. Can they have a policy?
We do not currently cover rent as our product only covers mortgage payments for the main residence. The only aspect of 'rent' we will cover is that on our MortgageProtector product (for new borrowers) where we can cover the rental part of a shared ownership scheme under the associated premiums section as long as the mortgage repayments are also covered and the total benefit does not exceed £3,000 or 75% of their gross monthly income.
-
Who is the payment made to when the claim has been accepted?
The benefit is paid direct to your customer for them to pay their lender directly, plus to pay any additional insurance (if Additional Cover was selected).
-
Can my customer take a policy if they have an income protection policy in place?
If your customer has an income protection in place this will not affect the benefit that Paymentshield will pay out if their claim is accepted. However this may not be the case with their income protection policy so they should always confirm this with their underwriter/provider. Your customer should also ensure that having an income protection or an MPPI policy in place meets their own needs.