 |
Ride of Your Life Assurance
Ever had the feeling that you're being taken for a ride?
Pay too much for something; and then find complaining too much like hard
work to make a stand? Let me give you an example. After a hard night clubbing
you don't want to spend an hour finding a taxi, so you decide to take
an unlicensed taxi and pay £3.00 premium for the privilege of riding
in a skip on wheels. This makes you angry but you put up with it.
Chris Morgan reports…
I'm meeting more and more gays who feel they are treated
in a similar way when taking out a mortgage or life assurance policy.
They usually feel that they have been targeted due to their sexuality
and consequently charged too much.
These days it should not be necessary to feel this way.
There are a number of companies that do not discriminate and in some cases
do not even ask personal questions. I would like to share some of my recent
experiences while advising clients. Hopefully they will provoke thought
and make you all the more wary.
Carl Aged 27, a Computer Network
Manager
I met Carl in July following an 'unsavoury affair' with
a major high street bank. They had agreed to lend him £88,374 in
order that he could move house. They explained that it would be necessary
to have a life assurance policy. Carl agreed to see a financial adviser
from their own life company to discuss this at length. Carl felt that
it would keep things simple by agreeing to both Life and Critical Illness
cover. 
Problems did not arise until Carl filled in their application
form. He was asked a series of personal lifestyle questions, one of which
was asking him to confirm if he belonged to any 'high risk' groups. Homosexual
was one of them and Carl decided to tick the box.
Carl received a detailed questionnaire which asked questions
about his past relationships and activities. Carl felt comfortable in
answering this as he had had very few relationships, all of which had
been monogamous. Carl returned this to the bank and awaited his confirmation
of cover.
A week later he received a request to take an HIV test.
Carl felt obliged to take the test, as he was concerned that his mortgage
may have been dependent on the policy supporting it and with a clear result
he would be in a position to complete the transaction.
The company wrote to Carl confirming that he had been
accepted, but the original quoted premium of £39.15 had been loaded
to £76.13. Carl was upset and frustrated at not being treated equally.
Due to this unacceptable treatment Carl set about finding
a gay financial adviser. They are well used to dealing with these situations
and will be able to recommend a company from a list that are friendly
towards single males. The result in Carl's case was a recommendation of
a highly reputable life company whose offer of cover was at a premium
of £29.00 per month with no questions asked.
This case illustrates the importance of finding a gay
financial adviser who understands your needs. There are an increasing
number of firms who give specialist advice and the consequences of not
seeking their services could amount to a lot more than an expensive taxi
ride.
|
