As a young achiever, in your early twenties to thirties, establishing your career and planning your potential wealth are priority areas for you. But what happens if you lose your job and are no longer able to afford the finer things in life?
Liberty’s 2015 Claim statistics show that young achievers claimed mainly for income protection benefits, with retrenchments being the main cause of claim. Retrenchment claims accounted for 15.9%, cancer 12.3% and motor vehicle accidents (the main cause of claim for young men) 11.9% of total claims for the segment.
“Our Claim statistics suggests that more young achievers are in danger of retrenchment, and that income protection cover is necessary to protect the assets you have worked so hard to obtain.
Furthermore, should something happen to deter your career path without cover, this could significantly impact the hard work you have put into climbing the corporate ladder or building that business,” says Nicholas van der Nest, Director of Risk Product Innovation at Liberty.
Liberty’s claims statistics have showcased what their customers have claimed for by segment groups. “Although the top five claims causes are responsible for 64,9% of all claims paid, the more interesting findings are in respect of what our segments have claimed for.”
“The vast majority of payments, R2.48 billion or 57% of the total claims paid were for death claims.
At least R678 million was paid in respect of critical illness, which provides payment to help customers make the lifestyle adjustments required following diagnosis with a critical illness. A total of R407 million was paid for income protection, including both lump sum and monthly income claims,” adds van der Nest.
Cancer was the main cause of claims for all other segments at 22.5% (young parents), 26.9% (established providers) and 25.6% (for empty nesters) of claims respectively. Female breast cancer and male prostate cancer drove these results to a differing extent for each of the segments.
“The primary insight for young achievers is the importance of income protection and smart insurance decisions. This is to ensure that they are protected should their income be negatively affected,” adds van der Nest.
Says van der Nest: “we have made a commitment to our policyholders to pay 100% of all valid claims. We believe that by making our Claim statistics public, we are showcasing our commitment to live up to that promise.
Source: http://www.liberty.co.za/