In 2021, Juliet and her partner were in a good place. Both had successful careers, two children and a family home with a hefty mortgage.
They’d chosen not to get married, but they had put protection in place. Between them they had four joint life policies.
The pandemic had brought home the importance of personal protection, so when their Financial Adviser Rhys met with them he took the time to really get to know their individual personal, medical and financial circumstances and that of the household.
Rhys recommended separating the cover. He kept it affordable, but improved the structure by splitting the joint policies into individual plans to protect the family from the loss of each income, alongside their own critical illness policies and children’s critical illness cover for their two young boys.
At the time it was simple, sensible financial planning.
Four years later, life looked very different.
By 2025 Juliet and her partner decided to separate. The house was going on the market and the payments to their protection policies had been cancelled.
Rhys discovered this when he called Juliet for a check-in to see if everything was okay. Their circumstances had changed, so a review was needed to make sure their cover still reflected their new situation.
But during that conversation, he also learned something else.
Their youngest child had been diagnosed with a rare degenerative condition.
A condition that requires specialist care, surgeries, medications, therapies and living adaptations.
A condition that requires strength and resilience, time and - financial support.
A condition that takes so much, and leaves so little left over.
To Rhys, the news was heart-breaking, but in that moment he could do little more than help with one practical part.
He checked the policy terms.
Thankfully, the condition fell within the insurer’s definition of degenerative neurological disorder under the listed children’s conditions.
With Juliet’s permission, Rhys reinstated the direct debit to ensure the policy was active so she could proceed with the claim.
He also connected Juliet to Lilly, who became her dedicated Waddle Claim Support.
When the insurer requested a specialist report, Lilly proactively progressed and chased this through, keeping Juliet updated throughout.
The claim paid out £7,500.
Juliet didn’t immediately have a plan for how to use the money. But with countless appointments ahead, surgeries on the horizon and adaptations needed at home, she knew it would help make what lay ahead a little more manageable.
Over the following weeks, Rhys also reached out to Juliet’s former partner.
The relationship had changed, but they were still navigating the same family circumstances, so Rhys offered his support and financial advice as they worked through what came next.
It didn't change the diagnosis. Or what was to come next. It didn't fix the relationship breakdown, the house sale or everything else that was happening around it.
But it was some financial relief at a point when there wasn’t much relief anywhere else.
Life doesn't happen in isolation, or in neatly timed chapters. It can be messy and out of control, with or without a diagnosis. And a diagnosis doesn't wait until you're personally, emotionally, or financially ready for it. There's really never a good time.
According to the FCA, nearly a quarter of UK adults (24%) have low financial resilience - around 13 million people with limited capacity to withstand a financial shock.*
Perhaps that's why protection matters. Not because it can change what's happened, but because it can give you a little more room to deal with what comes next.
Real client but name and identifying details changed to protect the privacy of the client.
*Source: Financial Conduct Authority, Financial Lives 2024 survey.
It doesn't bare thinking about. But it does happen.
Children’s Critical Illness Cover can provide a lump-sum payment if your child is diagnosed with a serious illness covered by the policy.
Because protecting you means considering the whole family.
Graham came to us for a second opinion on his protection. We uncovered a 17-year-old policy with unbeatable cover - one worth holding onto. Two years later, after a stroke, that legacy policy paid out £75,000 when he needed it most. The right advice. At the right time. For all the right reasons.
We’ve supported hundreds of families through their protection claims.
Every claim is different, and behind every one is a unique and often emotional story.
By sharing what we learn from every claim, we can help improve the experience for the next family who needs us..
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