MortgageCare - Countrywide Insurance Services

Countrywide Insurance Services
MortgageCare
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www.countrywideinsurance.co.uk
Information booklet
MortgageCare
Buying a home is probably the largest financial commitment
you are likely to make.
Are you worried about what would happen if you were unable to
work and couldn’t meet your monthly mortgage payment?
Are you worried that you might become unemployed or that an
unexpected accident or illness could hit you? You also know in such
times your expenses tend to increase and make things more difficult.
MortgageCare could help take away those worries by providing
monthly covers that help protect you against the financial risks of
accident, sickness and unemployment.
Please ensure that you read the policy summary and note the significant or unusual exclusions
or limitations on page 6.
This Payment Protection Insurance is optional. There are other providers of Payment Protection
Insurance and other products designed to protect you against loss of income. For impartial
information about insurance, please visit the website at www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk.
Contents
Options 3
Policy summary 4
Other helpful information 9
2
MortgageCare
Accident and
sickness cover
Unemployment
only cover
Accident, sickness and
unemployment cover
This cover can help you to continue
This cover can help you to continue
This cover helps provide peace of
to meet your mortgage repayments
to meet your mortgage repayments
mind by combining the benefits of
for a period of up to 12 months
for a period of up to 12 months per
accident and sickness cover with
per claim in the event of you being
claim in the unfortunate event of you
unemployment only cover.
unable to work because of
becoming involuntarily unemployed.
accident or sickness.
3
Information booklet
Policy summary
This policy summary does not contain full details and conditions
of your insurance – these are located in sections 2 - 11 of your
policy booklet.
to offer renewal, then at least 60 days before the end of your
period of insurance, you will receive details of your cover for the
next 12 months, together with a new schedule of insurance.
Where a heading is underlined in this policy summary, full
details can be found in your policy booklet under the same
heading.
If we do offer renewal, please note that your new policy may
contain different cover, benefits, exclusions and/or other terms
to those of this policy, and we may charge a different premium.
Any new terms will be detailed clearly to you in good time
before renewal, so that you can decide whether to accept the
new policy or not.
It is essential that you refer to the exclusions relating to
medical conditions and voluntary unemployment which
appear in the Significant or Unusual Exclusions or Limitations
section of this policy summary.
Remember to review the policy document from time to time
to ensure it still meets your needs.
This policy is underwritten by AXA Insurance UK plc, which is
authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
Type of Insurance
This insurance provides financial benefit to assist you in meeting
your mortgage repayments and other monthly outgoings, up to
the limit of your cover, in the event of unemployment (resulting
from involuntary redundancy if you are employed or business
failure if you are self-employed) or accident or sickness for
a period of up to 12 months per claim – your schedule of
insurance will show which option or combination of options you
have selected.
Duration of Cover
This policy is for a period of one year. It will automatically expire
at the end of your annual period of insurance.
If, at the end of your annual period of insurance, we decide not
to offer renewal, we will write to you advising you of this at least
60 days before your period of insurance ends.
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If, at the end of your annual period of insurance, we decide
Extent of cover
Please note that the maximum benefit you are able to claim
under this insurance policy is an amount equal to 12 monthly
benefits as shown in your schedule of insurance.
You are eligible for this insurance provided that, at the
inception date and at each subsequent start date as defined in
Section 2 – Meaning of words of your policy wording, you:
•
are aged 18 or over and under 65; and
•
have applied for a mortgage or already have a mortgage
to protect; and
•
are permanently resident in the United Kingdom, the
Channel Islands or the Isle of Man; and
•
are working in paid employment or self-employment in the
United Kingdom, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man and
have been continuously employed for at least the previous
six months (if you are on holiday, are on statutory maternity
leave from your employment, or making an unemployment claim you will still meet this condition).
We will consider you to be self-employed if you are actively
working for profit in a business or profession, alone or
in association with others and paying Class 2 National
Insurance Contributions and being assessable to Income
MortgageCare
Tax under Schedule D Case I or II; or a non-salaried partner
in a partnership or a director of (or someone who has a
shareholding in) a private limited company with an issued and
fully paid share capital of less than £1,000.
We will consider you to be employed if you are in paid work;
working for a minimum of 16 hours per week and paying class
1 National Insurance contributions:
i) on a permanent contract of employment; or
ii) on a fixed-term contract; or
iii) as a director (not covered by the definition of a self-employed
person) who is salaried and employed on a permanent basis
and has no control over his/her own contract of employment; or
iv) as a partner who is salaried and employed on a permanent
basis and under a contract of service and has no control over
his/her contract of employment; or
v) as a trainee with a permanent contract of employment.
Features and Benefits
Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance could assist you
in meeting your mortgage payments and other monthly
commitments, up to the limit of your cover, for up to 12 months
if you become unable to work as a result of disability caused by
an accident or sickness or unemployment.
Section 4 – Accident & Sickness Cover
– What is Covered
If during the period of insurance you become unable to
work due to an accidental injury or sickness that lasts for
longer than the deferred period, and this is certified by a
doctor, then we will pay 1/30th of the monthly benefit for
each further day that the disability continues, commencing
from the day after the deferred period has ended. Benefit
will be paid monthly in arrears throughout the continuance
of the disability until you return to work or an amount equal
to 12 monthly benefit payments for any one claim has been
paid, whichever occurs sooner.
Where we have paid less than an amount equal to 12
monthly benefit payments for a claim for any one disability;
•
you must have returned to work for at least one month
before you can claim again for a different unrelated
disability; or
•
and there is a recurrence of the same disability within three
months of your return to work, your claim will be treated as
a continuation of the original claim. The deferred period will
not be re-imposed and in total we will pay an amount equal
to 12 monthly benefit payments.
This process will be applied whether or not these periods of
disability occur in the same period of insurance.
Following a claim under this or a previous Countrywide
MortgageCare policy for which you have been paid an
amount equal to 12 monthly benefit payments, you must
have returned to work for at least;
•
six months before you will be entitled to claim again
for the same disability; or
•
one month before you can claim again for a different
unrelated disability; or
•
one month before you are able to claim under a different
section of this policy.
Please refer to the definitions of ‘period of insurance’ and
‘deferred period’ under Section 2 – Meaning of words of
the policy document.
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Information booklet
Policy summary continued
Section 5 – Unemployment Cover
– What is Covered
If during the period of insurance you become unemployed
(resulting from involuntary redundancy if you are employed
or business failure if you are self-employed) and your
unemployment continues for longer than the deferred
period then we will pay 1/30th of the monthly benefit
for each further day that your unemployment continues,
commencing from the day after the deferred period has
ended. Benefit will be paid monthly in arrears throughout
the continuance of unemployment until you return to work
or an amount equal to 12 monthly benefit payments for any
one claim has been paid, whichever occurs sooner.
If there are less than three consecutive months of employment
or self-employment between two periods of unemployment, we
will treat these two periods as one claim. We will not pay any
benefit for the time you were in employment or self-employment
between the two periods of unemployment. The deferred period
will not be re-imposed and in total, we will pay a maximum
amount equal to 12 monthly benefit payments. This process
will be applied whether or not these periods of unemployment
occur in the same period of insurance.
Following a claim under this or a previous Countrywide
MortgageCare Policy for which you have been paid an
amount equal to 12 monthly benefit payments, you must
have returned to work for at least;
•
six months before you are able to claim again for
unemployment; or
•
one month before you are able to claim under a different
section of this policy.
Please refer to the definitions of ‘period of insurance’ and
‘deferred period’ under Section 2 – Meaning of words of
the policy document.
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Significant or Unusual Exclusions or Limitations
There are some situations where you will not be able to
claim. The most significant exclusions of this policy are set
out here but you can find full details of these exclusions in
your policy booklet. There may be other exclusions that are
not listed here that are significant to you, so you need to
check the policy booklet for full details.
The maximum amount we will pay is the sum insured shown
on your schedule of insurance, although cover is subject to
an overall maximum monthly payment of £2,000 or 60%
of your gross monthly salary, whichever is the lower. If the
policy is in joint names, each person will be covered for the
benefit amount shown against their name on the schedule of
insurance. For further information please refer to your schedule
of insurance and the definition of ‘monthly benefit’ under
Section 2 – Meaning of words of the policy document.
Section 4 – Accident & Sickness Cover
– What is Not Covered
We will not pay benefit for disability arising directly or indirectly from:
•
any medical condition, injury, illness, disease, sickness
or related condition and/ or associated symptoms, whether
diagnosed or not which you;
a. knew about or should reasonably have known about at
the inception date; or
b. have seen or arrange to see a doctor about during the 12 months before the inception date of this policy;
and which persists or returns during the first 12 months of cover; or
•
any chronic condition that you knew about or should
have reasonably known about at the inception date, whether
requiring medical attention at that time or not. A chronic
MortgageCare
were at risk of being made unemployed at the inception date; or
•
if as a self-employed person you cannot produce
satisfactory evidence that you have ceased to trade; or
b. is constant and controlled rather than cured; or
•
caused by your resignation, voluntary unemployment or
voluntary redundancy; or
c. has symptoms that recur and have required consultation,
treatment, advice or care in the past; or
•
which is a normal incident or seasonal occurrence in your
line of work; or
d. requires long-term monitoring, treatment, consultation,
check ups, examinations or tests; or
•
any mental or nervous disorder including anxiety, stress or
depression unless investigated and diagnosed by a
consultant specialising in the relevant field; or
•
commencing at the expiry of a fixed-term contract. This
exclusion will not apply if you have been employed on a
fixed-term contract with the same employer:
– for at least 12 months that has been renewed at
least once; or
•
any back complaint or associated condition unless investigated and diagnosed by a consultant specialising in the relevant field; or
– for a continuous period of at least 24 months; or
– to which you were transferred from a permanent contract
of employment with no break between contracts; or
•
any disability lasting for less than the deferred period - please refer to Section 6 – General Exclusions.
•
for which payment in lieu has been received; or
•
where you are not registered as unemployed and actively
seeking re-employment; or
•
lasting for less than the deferred period - please refer to condition is defined as any condition, injury, illness, disease,
sickness or related condition that has at least one of the
following characteristics;
a. continues indefinitely; or
Please refer to the definitions of ‘pre-existing condition’, ‘chronic
condition’, ‘inception date’ and ‘deferred period’ under Section
2 – Meaning of words of the policy document.
Section 5 Unemployment Cover
– What is Not Covered
We will not pay monthly benefit for any period of unemployment:
•
if your unemployment occurs, is notified to you, or the
risk of unemployment is notified to you within 30 days of the
inception date; or
•
which you knew of, had received notification that you are to
be made unemployed or had received notification that you
Section 6 – General Exclusions
Please refer to the definitions of ‘ceased to trade’, ‘inception
date’ and ‘deferred period’ under Section 2 – Meaning of
words of the policy document.
Cancellation Period
You are free to cancel this policy at any time. To do so please
contact Countrywide Insurance Services at Countrywide House,
88-103 Caldecotte Lake Drive, Caldecotte, Milton Keynes,
Buckinghamshire, MK7 8JT on 01908 961399*.
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Information booklet
Policy summary continued
Please see Section 11 – General Conditions of the policy
document for full details of how to cancel.
Full information about the compensation scheme
arrangements are available from the FSCS (www.fscs.org.uk).
Claim Notification
*Calls may be monitored or recorded.
Call charges will apply and will vary.
To register a claim contact 0870 850 4846*.
Customer Care
Countrywide Insurance Services and AXA Insurance care
about the service provided to you. We make every effort to
maintain the highest possible standards.
If your complaint relates to this policy or the sale of this
policy you need to contact Countrywide Insurance Services,
Countrywide House at 88-103 Caldecotte Lake Drive,
Caldecotte, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK7 8JT on
01908 961399*.
If your complaint relates to a claim on this policy you need
to contact AXA Insurance, Creditor Claims, 1st Floor, Civic
Drive, Ipswich, IP1 2AN. Telephone 0870 850 4846*.
If you have received a final response and you are still
dissatisfied you may refer your case to the Financial
Ombudsman Service.
Full details of our customer care procedures and contact
details can be found in Section 12 – Customer Care of the
policy document.
Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS)
AXA Insurance UK plc is covered by the Financial Services
Compensation Scheme (FSCS). You may be entitled to
compensation from the scheme in the unlikely event
we cannot meet our obligations to you. This depends
on the type of insurance, size of the business and the
circumstances of the claim.
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MortgageCare
Joint Mortgage
Insurance Provided By AXA Insurance
For a joint mortgage where both customers are eligible for cover
the borrowers can select the apportionment of the benefit (i.e.
90/10, 70/30), subject to this amount not exceeding 60% of their
gross monthly salary.
AXA Insurance is a trading name of
AXA Insurance UK plc
What does it cost?
Not as much as you might think. The cost is linked to your monthly
mortgage payment. Additionally, you have the option to protect
an amount equivalent of up to a further 100% of your monthly
mortgage repayments. This is to cover associated costs such
as household insurance premiums and other related expenses
(subject to an overall maximum monthly payment of £2,000 or
60% of your gross monthly salary, whichever is the lower).
You should be aware that if you make a claim under this policy and
also apply for any means-tested state benefits, the government
agency dealing with your claim may treat some or all of the monthly
benefit you receive from us as income when calculating your
benefit entitlement.
Registered in England No. 78950
Registered Office: 5 Old Broad Street, London EC2N 1AD
A member of the AXA Group of companies
The Policy document
A full copy of the policy document and complaints
procedure is available on request.
Cancellation Fee
Please note that Countrywide Insurance Services reserve
the right to charge a cancellation fee of £25.00 if the Policy
is cancelled within the first 12 months.
Telephone calls
Your telephone calls may be monitored or recorded.
A quotation is available from Countrywide Insurance Services.
Premiums are payable monthly by Direct Debit without charge.
Premium amounts quoted include 6% Insurance Premium Tax.
• Accident & Sickness Only: £4.29 per month per £100 of benefit
• Unemployment Only: £4.54 per month per £100 of benefit
• Accident Sickness & Unemployment: £6.56 per month per £100 of benefit
What happens if you have a claim?
When you have taken the cover you will be given a policy
document which will tell you how to claim.
This leaflet is a summary
It does not describe all of the benefits available,
nor does it show all of the limits and exclusions.
What happens if I move?
One of the benefits of this policy is that it is portable and
therefore, should you redeem your current mortgage, you will
be able to transfer the benefits to cover your new mortgage
regardless of the lender. Please contact Countrywide Insurance
Services advising us of your new details on 01604 746300.
Law
You and we can choose the law which applies to this policy.
We propose that English law applies. Unless we and you agree
otherwise English law will apply to this policy.
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Information booklet
Notes
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Proud to be associated with
M0012 12/11