Planning for Care

Like most aspects of our lives, the need for long term care can be covered by insurance, though it should perhaps be treated as much like a pension as an insurance policy.

Long Term Care Plan

A Long Term Care Plan typically pays out benefits when you can no longer perform a number of Activities of Daily Life (ADLs) or if you become mentally impaired.  Different insurers have different definitions of these ADLs.  It is also possible with some policies to get partial benefits when a smaller number of ADLs can't be performed.

Long term care plans, like pensions, cost more the older you are when you start and the more benefit you want from them but note that, if you don't need care, such a plan will not provide any income or return of capital.

Choice

Care funding is a fairly new but growing segment of the insurance market and choice of insurer is currently quite limited.  At Rosedale we monitor this situation regularly and will always provide recommendations and advice from the widest and most up to date range of companies.

A Care Plan could be suitable if...

• You want financial security that, should you need care in the future, will provide funds to help cover the costs
• You want to remove the burden of funding your care from your family
• You are healthy. Care plans are only able to cater for healthy applicants
• You understand and are happy with reviewable premiums

Paying for a Care Plan

• A single premium or regular payments until long term care is required.
• Premiums are based on the benefit and level of cover you choose, and on the waiting period you select.
• Premiums are also dependent on your age, gender and state of health at the time you apply.
• Premiums are typically subject to review every 5 years or so and may go up at the review date.
• Applications are underwritten so your medical history may also affect the premium.