Humania Assurance now lets jobless clients access some of its simplified issue products for people hard to insure under the Insurance Without Medical Exam (IWME) line.

After five years in the hard-to-insure niche, Humania thinks it has enough experience to offer unemployed people the IWME Life and IWME Critical Illness versions of its simplified issue products, Kim Oliphant, Vice-President sales and marketing at Humania, told The Insurance and Investment Journal in an interview. At the same time, Humania raised the age limit for purchasing IWME Life from 60 to 70.

In addition to IWME Life and IWME critical illness, people on parental leave can also obtain IWME disability insurance in the form of IWME Debt and IWME Income. The same coverage limits apply to the unemployed as to workers, namely $300,000 in life insurance, $100,000 in critical illness insurance and a monthly payment of $2,500 in case of disability. 

Humania says it is responding to advisor demand. “Brokers asked us for this insurance for all clients without jobs. They also often asked for clients on parental leave to qualify for the IWME Debt and IWME Income products. Including this clientele will let us expand our offer of mortgage insurance – a growing market,” Oliphant explains.

Higher risk at the same price?

The insurer is not concerned that this expansion will heighten risk. “There was no change in product pricing. We formulated two specific questions for this clientele, which assure us that we have the same risk as before,” Oliphant points out. The two questions are:

• In the past 12 months (or the 12 months preceding your parental leave if applicable), were you unable to perform your regular occupations (28 weeks, 21 hours/week), on a permanent basis?
• In the past two years (or the 2 years preceding your parental leave if applicable), were you absent from work for more than 15 consecutive days due to illness, or received disability or critical illness benefits from a private, group or public insurance plan? This refers to any private insurance plan you may have, any insurance coverage provided by your employer, professional association or other group or organization, and coverage provided by government agencies, both provincial and federal.  

The simplified issue insurance market, including both traditional insurance and aggravated risks, has evolved the most in recent years due to pressure from advisors and consumers alike, Kim Oliphant points out. She adds that insurers that want to continue to prosper in this niche must get on the bandwagon. “Launching a new product is good, but it is just as good to revisit existing products, even successful ones,” she says.