All Group risk articles – Page 13
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Opinion
Thinking differently
Remember the children’s poem ‘There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly’? There was a rather nice colourful book with holes in it that showed the strangely happy-looking woman munching her way from fly through spider through bird, cat, dog, cow and horse that ended, not surprisingly, in her ...
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AnalysisThe cost impact of an ageing workforce
If you read nothing else, read this…As the workforce ages, employers will need to rethink the design and provision of healthcare and group risk benefit offerings.Limited-term or flexible group income protection (GIP) provision is likely to become more commonplace, as employers try to retain some form of provision for older ...
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ArticleFormer BT employee is entitled to sick pay
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has upheld a case ruling concerning a BT Managed Services Limited (BTMS) employee who has been receiving income protection payments (GIPs) that ceased to be insured, and who is unlikely to ever return to work.In the case of BT Managed Services Ltd v Edwards & ...
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Article50% underestimate likelihood of occupational disability
Half (50%) of respondents think they have a less than one in ten chance of being unable to work through disability, according to research by insurance firm Zurich.Its survey of 1,000 working-age adults also found that nearly two-thirds (60%) think the risk of becoming disabled or too ill to work ...
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Analysis
41, 42 How to integrate group risk benefits into a serious illness strategy
If you read nothing else, read this…Health screening can help control the cost of private medical insurance.Second-opinion medical services can result in a change of treatment or diagnosis.Group income protection can support an employee’s return to work on a part-time basis or into a lower-paid position.While a key part of ...
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ArticleCancer accounts for 29% of long-term sickness claims
Cancer and mental health issues accounted for 47% of income protection claims paid over the last year, according to research by Unum. Its Annual claims statement, based on income protection claims paid to 1,700 employees between August 2014 and July 2015, also revealed that around a quarter (24%) of claims ...
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AnalysisGroup risk in numbers
24%: the percentage of employees that would like to receive income protection, but currently only 6% do (Source: Canada Life Group insurance, May 2015) bit.ly/1R6eg3R1,529: the number of employees that were successfully rehabilitated back into work in 2014 with support from an insurer (Source: Group Risk Development [Grid], May 2015) ...
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AnalysisTop tips on how to cut the cost of group income protection
If you read nothing else, read this…The design of group income protection (GIP) schemes can be tweaked to provide a valuable benefit but at a cheaper price for employers.Using added-value services can save money on the cost of providing the benefit.The benefit should be promoted to staff to ensure a ...
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OpinionClosing the digital gap
We are being bombarded by digital innovation, 365 days a year. Following a spate of ‘must-have’ apps appearing for consumers, group risk providers as a whole could still be missing one vital digital trick.Digital is everything. The internet has changed the world, and there is a world of online potential ...
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AnalysisAre group risk benefits relevant to younger employees?
If you read nothing else read this…Benefits are more relevant to younger employees than they realise.Blanket group risk communications skew relevance.Younger employees getting a mortgage need insurances as a collateral for lenders to see.Technology can help improve employee perception of the relevance of group risk benefits.A large proportion of this ...
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Opinion
05: What are employers' legal responsibilities when offering group risk benefits?
Most GIP policies will provide cover until retirement or a return to work, whichever is sooner, often at 50% or 75% of then current salary. Almost all potential legal problems can easily be avoided by appropriate contractual drafting.Avoiding costly errors in group risk provisionThe most costly error that employers can ...
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Article
Income protection take up could treble if part funded by employers
Take up of group income protection could potentially treble when offered via flexible benefits schemes if the benefit was partially funded by employers, according to research by MetLife.Its UK employee benefit trends study, which surveyed 500 employees and 300 employers, also found that take up of life insurance could potentially ...
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AnalysisKey trends impacting health and wellbeing benefits
If you read nothing else, read this…Preventative health and wellbeing support is a growing feature of employers’ workplace health support.Wellbeing-themed benefits that extend to supporting employees’ psychological and financial health are also popular.Data generated from wearable technology that tracks employee health can help organisations to shape their health strategies.Statistics:40% of ...
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ArticleOver 1,500 staff rehabilitated back to work in 2014
Some 1,529 employees were helped to return to work with some form of support from an insurer in 2014 before they were away from work long enough to make a claim on group risk policies, according to research by Group Risk Development (Grid).It also found that £1.26 billion worth of ...
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ArticlePunter Southall integrates wearable technology with income protection
Punter Southall Health and Protection Consulting (PSHPC) is to distribute and administer the first group income protection product linked to wearable technology.The product from the organisation’s Havensrock brand brings employee wellness and traditional income protection together. It is offered in partnership with Aviva.It also aims to engage all staff in ...
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Case StudiesBibby Financial Services bolsters flexible benefits to boost retention
But she believes that there is room for improvement, despite beating the exceedingly high 98% target she set herself for 2015. To put this into context, the average flex take-up rate among the financial services industry employer clients of Bibby’s flex consultant, Thomsons Online Benefits, is just 69%.This is because ...
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ArticleLess than a quarter of staff confident about retirement savings
Less than a quarter (24%) of UK employees are confident about their retirement saving plans, according to research by MetLife Employee Benefits.Its UK employee benefits trends study, which surveyed 300 HR directors and 300 UK employees, also found that just under half (47%) of respondents said their biggest financial concern ...
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ArticleBuyer's guide to group income protection 2015
The factsWhat is group income protection?Group income protection (GIP) provides an income to an employee when they are unable to work as a result of an illness or injury. Payment normally starts after a waiting period, typically six months, and can continue until the employee returns to work or, if ...
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AnalysisThe evolution of group income protection
When group income protection came about in the 1970s in the form of ‘permanent health insurance’, employers would dust off their policy when someone had been off sick for five or six months. By then, entrenchment would have set in, there would be little expectation of a return to work ...
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ArticleAviva and Friends Life finalise merger
Insurance organisations Aviva and Friends Life have finalised the terms of a £5.6 billion merger.The merger will create the UK’s largest insurance and savings business with more than 16 million customers.Aviva first announced the firms were in talks in November 2014.It is expected the merger will generate £225 million of ...