Some insurers are refusing to cover serious medical conditions because they do not consider they are life-threatening, according to reports.
Some insurers are refusing to cover serious medical conditions because they do not consider they are life threatening, according to reports.
Six million Britons have critical illness cover, which pays out a lump sum on diagnosis of a critical condition.
However some insurers are moving toward reviewing premiums every five years, according to Legal & General, and policyholders could find they are insured against fewer illnesses.
Norwich Union's Lawrence Jackson said: "We could change the nature of the illnesses covered, restricting it to seven or a smaller number of critical illnesses that cause real disruption to people's lifestyles."
The warning comes just two months after Legal and General warned homeowners might not be able to pay off their mortgages under new FSA proposals to label critical illness cover as "higher risk".
The company estimates more than 116,000 homeowners will suffer from critical illness during their mortgage term.
Many would not have the protection in place if the proposal in FSA¹s CP160 and CP174 consultation papers were carried out.
A Legal & General spokesman said: "If the FSA makes it harder for advisers to sell critical illness cover then they will not promote it as a valuable addition to the basic mortgage protection with the subsequence of homeowners and families being left inadequately protected."
