Government’s New £60,000 Life Insurance for NHS Workers Fighting Coronavirus

The Government’s NHS Coronavirus Life Insurance Scheme

The government has introduced a new Life Insurance (Death in Service) scheme for frontline NHS and social care workers battling coronavirus (COVID-19).

The scheme, introduced on April 27th, will pay out £60,000 to the families of English frontline workers who sadly pass away from coronavirus and will be present for the duration of the pandemic.

Administered by NHS England, it will cover only frontline carers in England. However, the government is funnelling money to the devolved administrations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales through the Barnett formula so that they can implement a similar scheme if they wish.

As of April 28th, Wales is implementing a similar scheme and arrangements along these lines are being considered in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Who the NHS Coronavirus Life Insurance Scheme Covers

Those eligible for the £60,000 payout should they sadly pass away from coronavirus include English carers working for:

• GP and dental practices (including GP or dental contractors and GP locums)
• The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) arms length bodies, including Public Health England
• Wider non-NHS organisations which provide NHS-funded services and functions including commissioned services and outsourced services
• Organisations delivering public health grant funded services.

The above covers those who die from coronavirus during the course of their essential and lifesaving work, including both those providing direct care as well as cleaners and porters who continue to carry out vital duties in these care environments.

Also included are care workers, so those working for local authorities, care home providers for children and adults, domiciliary home care providers and directly employed carers, including personal assistants, where some of the funding is public for the care of the service users.

Is the £60,000 NHS Coronavirus Life Insurance Scheme Enough?

The government has stated that the £60,000 lump sum for the deceased workers’ families is roughly twice the average annual NHS pension.

While certainly a generous first step, it’s worth noting that, according to The Money Charity, the estimated average outstanding mortgage for the 11 million households with mortgage debt was £132,242 in January 2020, more than double the payout from this new government scheme.

This doesn’t include other debts, such as credit cards, or factor in a desire to offer some level of family protection or pay for a funeral.

As you can see, the £60,000 could quite conceivably be swallowed up relatively quickly on a breadwinner’s death, leaving little for a family to live on.

While the government can’t be expected to provide a full Life Insurance benefit to all frontline NHS staff that would cover every liability, pay for a funeral and protect their family, it does highlight that even a £60,000 payout could leave a significant protection gap for those without any cover elsewhere.

Top Up Your NHS Life Insurance With a Personal Policy

You can tailor a personal Life Insurance policy entirely to your needs, aligning it with outstanding mortgage liabilities or anything else you’d want to cover, such as providing a level of family protection should you no longer be around to provide for your loved ones.

To assist with achieving a level of Life Insurance that would provide sufficient protection for you and your loved ones, Drewberry is offering frontline NHS workers Life Insurance with 2 months of premiums on us.

Follow this link for more info → 

Robert Harvey
Head of Protection Advice

Life Insurance policies don’t tend to have pandemic exclusions, and we’re not aware of any policies currently refusing to pay out for COVID-19 deaths, despite many providers starting to see coronavirus-related death claims.

This means that if you take out a new policy and sadly pass away in the course of tending to and protecting the nation’s sick, your loved ones will receive the payout and financial support just when they need it the most.

If you need any help please don’t hesitate to pop us a call on 02084327333 for fee-free help and advice on getting Life Insurance arranged that will provide you and your loved ones with the cover you deserve, and get a discount for doing so?

It’s a small gesture we can make to say thank you for all the hard work you’re doing right now looking after the ill and the vulnerable, putting your life on the line day in, day out to ensure we’re all safe and cared for.