Fidelity Life makes Covid-19 changes

Partners Life revealed the decision earlier in the month, saying that it did not want a rush of sales out of consumer fear about the Covid-19 outbreak.

Both insurers said those who already had it in place would be unaffected.

As of Wednesday, any customers applying for new cover with Fidelity Life will have to fill out an extra questionnaire about their contact with self-isolating or infected people, and their recent and planned travel.

“We’re all about protecting your way of life. It’s really important we strive to ensure Covid-19 doesn’t impact on our customers’ cover and that advisers still find it easy to do business with us,” said chief executive Nadine Tereora.

Existing customers would be able to make a claim for Covid-19 that met their policy’s terms and conditions.

Those who are already on an income protection claim will not be expected to visit their GP for formal medical certification for the next three months.

Tereora said advisers were being encouraged to use technology to minimise face-to-face contact.

“Social distancing is one of the things we’re observing to help keep our customers, advisers and staff safe. So we’re using tools like Microsoft Teams to connect with advisers for regular meetings and training sessions. We’re also encouraging advisers to use these tools to engage with customers because staying in contact in these uncertain times is more important than ever.”

The company has also reviewed its business continuity plans.

“Work’s ongoing to ensure our people are safe and there’s as little service disruption to our customers and advisers as possible – even if that means we’re unable to work from our offices as usual.

“It’s all about being prepared and resilient even as things are changing by the hour. While there’s lots of unknowns ahead, our customers, staff and adviser partners can take comfort from the fact Fidelity Life’s well capitalised, we’ve just launched an amazing new brand and we’ve got sound plans in place to help us deal with these uncertain times,” Tereora said.