Marissa Lam
The Cost of Cancer
Our statistics show that two-thirds of critical illness claims are cancer-related. The financial impact of cancer can be significant, with figures from Macmillan showing 83%*of those with cancer experience some form of financial impact as a result of their diagnosis. For those affected, the extra monthly costs can reach up to £891* on average.
Some of these costs incurred can include travelling to hospital for appointments, or using more heating and electricity because they are home more, at a time when their income might be reduced due to an inability to work. To add to this, the ongoing cost of living crisis has indisputably contributed to the additional financial and emotional stress of a cancer diagnosis. This comes at a time when people should be able to concentrate on their health and recovery, not worry about how they will afford to feed their family or heat their home.
What does the Partnership mean for your clients?
Scottish Widows is Macmillan's first insurance partner to offer both referrals to Macmillan's Financial Guidance team on their Support Line Service for our customers living with cancer and an opportunity to speed up, and guide customers through, their critical illness claims process. This enables some Scottish Widows customers to have their cancer diagnosis verified by their Macmillan Cancer Nurse Specialists which can help support them with their claim.
At Scottish Widows, we aim to put customers at the heart of all our decisions. That is why we have a proactive approach for our customers diagnosed with cancer. This means we refer them directly to Macmillan. By taking a holistic approach, this partnership enables Macmillan to aid customers, aiming to help them manage their finances following their diagnosis and during treatment, as well as providing emotional, clinical, and practical support. As such, Scottish Widows could alleviate some of the stress your clients with cancer may be facing by putting them in touch with the right support for them.
The Partnership in Action
As an example of the support this partnership offers; a customer was recently referred to Macmillan by Scottish Widows following their submission of a claim on their critical illness policy. Macmillan was able to provide guidance in several different areas: -
- The customer's options at claim stage, including the implications of using the money to pay off their mortgage.
- Possible options in the short term for the customer's mortgage payments while the claim was being processed.
- The customer was then taken through a benefit check which identified over £8,000 in benefits that they were entitled to. Macmillan provided guidance on applying for these benefits, identifying that the customer could get support towards prescription payments, dental, optical care, and travel expenses to and from the hospital.
This is an amazing example of how our partnership with Macmillan has supported and benefited a client.
Richard Manson, Service Knowledge Specialist, at Macmillan Cancer Support said:
"For many, the extra costs a cancer diagnosis can bring can be unexpected. Increased travel costs for hospital appointments, reduced working hours, and using more energy due to being at home more, all contributes to rising bills, and this is on top of the increased cost-of-living.
"On our support line we hear every day from people living with cancer who are struggling to make ends meet and are having to make incredibly difficult decisions, such as whether they will pay to travel to their hospital appointments or use that money to heat their homes. Our partnership with Scottish Widows and the referrals that take place between our organisations can help people living with cancer enormously providing them vital access to additional financial advice and support, aiming to take away some of their financial worries so they can concentrate on their health."
Investing in our Colleagues to Create Better Customer Outcomes
Scottish Widows is actively committed to investing in its colleagues, providing them extra support in building resilience, capabilities, and confidence in having truly empathetic customer conversations. To date, 1392 colleagues across Scottish Widows Insurance have undergone Macmillan's invaluable training so our colleagues can provide support directly to customers diagnosed with cancer. This aims to support you in providing good customer outcomes to your clients.
On 4th May 2023, Scottish Widows hosted an in-person event with Macmillan. The event helped colleagues from different business areas understand how Macmillan can support customers and showcased the breadth of available options of support such as Macmillan's Support Line, Financial Guidance Team, Online Community, and its website. With customers in mind, the session was tailored to put colleagues in a position to confidently explain and direct customers to the right support at the right time. Hearing Macmillan's representatives discuss the positive impact of this partnership brought home the customer value of Scottish Widows' commitment to investing in colleagues for the benefit of our customers.
If you would like to find out how Macmillan could support your clients when they need it most, please visit https://www.scottishwidows.co.uk/help-support/health-and-wellbeing/macmillan.html
