British Friendly paid 90% of new income protection claims in 2022, totalling over £5m in payouts to its members through income protection and discretionary BF Care claims.
Over the past 17 years, the insurer has paid 94% of all claims.
The top reasons for claims in 2022 were musculoskeletal issues, accounting for 46.77%, followed by Covid-19 at 14.19%, mental illness at 6.97%, surgery not covered in other categories at 6.38%, and chest, lung, nose, and throat ailments at 5.79%.
Excluding the Simplified moratorium product, British Friendly’s overall claims rate stands at 92%.
The primary reasons for declined claims included misrepresentation (34.81%), Simplified product pre-existing conditions under the moratorium period (26.67%), and definition of incapacity not met (21.48%).
Maxine Jannetta, head of claims at British Friendly, said: “Being a mutual insurer, our members are at the heart of our proposition and paying valid claims quickly, alongside supporting members to rehabilitate and recover, is our primary focus.
“We have a full package of support through BF Care and Mutual Benefits that supports the core policy and ensures that members have what we believe is a highly valuable and comprehensive Income protection cover.”
Adviser Karla Edwards at The Protection Parent added: “It’s great to see British Friendly paying such a high number of claims to its members throughout 2022 and that they are focused on supporting their members’ recovery through their partnership with Innovate and other healthcare services such as Clinic in a Pocket.”
