Making a claim for ill health

What to do if you need to make a health claim

If you need to contact us to make a claim, our specialist team are on hand to provide support and deal with your claim as smoothly as possible. You’ll find information here about what you need to do, things you may need to consider and documents that you might need to have to hand. You’ll also find contact details, depending on what product you have.

If you would like to take your pension due to serious ill health, find out more about your options.

If you need to let us know that someone has died, you can find more information on our bereavement page.

Please contact us if you would like this information in an alternative format such as braille, large print or audio.

Letting us know

You can let us know about your health claim by completing our health (illness) claim form, and one of our claims assessors will get in touch with you.

Alternatively, you can contact us by phone to let us know about your health claim. Please check carefully what type of policy you have from the list below, and telephone the number for your type of policy. This will help your claim to be dealt with more quickly.

SCOTTISH WIDOWS

0345 601 4839 (local rate) 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday

PLAN & PROTECT

0800 085 8310 (Freephone) 9am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday

MY LIFE INSURANCE

0800 849 6089 (Freephone) 9am to 5:30pm, Monday to Friday

LLOYDS BANK

0345 601 4389(local rate) 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday

HALIFAX AND BANK OF SCOTLAND

0345 030 6244 (local rate) 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday

HALIFAX FOR POLICY NUMBERS BEGINNING TMPP OR 14/

0345 600 1194(local rate) 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday

HALIFAX HOME PLAN

0345 600 1194 (local rate) 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday

CLERICAL MEDICAL

0345 788 3333 (local rate) 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday

VIRGIN LIFE COVER OR CANCER COVER

0345 601 9645 (local rate) 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday

We may record and monitor calls to help us improve our service. All medical information will remain confidential.

What you will need when you call

If you are making a claim for a critical illness, terminal illness, income protection or premium protection, some of the information we may ask for includes:

  • Your policy number — you will find this in your policy documents
  • Some details of your diagnosis and your circumstances
  • Your GP and hospital specialist’s name and address
  • Copies of medical notes and correspondence. If you can provide this to us, it will help us deal with your claim more quickly. This is because it can sometimes take a while for us to receive this information from GPs, which can delay the assessment and payment of claims.

We’ll contact your GP or hospital consultant for any additional medical information we need. When we do this, we’ll keep you updated on what’s happening and how your claim is progressing.

If you are making a claim on a life cover policy, you will find more detail about what information we will need on our bereavement page.

We will keep you up to date throughout the process but please call us if you have any further questions.

You should continue to pay your premiums until we have agreed to pay your claim.

Useful links

If you’ve recently been diagnosed with a serious illness or suffered a bereavement, the organisations below could provide practical help and emotional support for you and your family.

PEOPLE YOU CAN TALK TO

Macmillan cancer support 

Physical, financial and emotional support if you are diagnosed with cancer.

Samaritans 

Available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for people who need someone to listen.

RedArc 

If you have Scottish Widows Care through your Scottish Widows policy, you can get support from RedArc.
 

PRACTICAL HELP

Citizens Advice Bureau 

A network of charities offering confidential advice online, over the phone, and in person, for free.

Age UK 

Helping older people when they need it the most.

MoneyHelper

Free and impartial money advice, including learning how to deal with money after a death, from paying for the funeral to looking after the paperwork and household bills.

Turn2us 

Providing financial support to help people get back on track.

HM Revenue & Customs 

Help with tax issues and benefits.

Gov.uk 

Advice on what to do after someone dies, and information about wills, probate and inheritance tax.