Legal &General (L&G) has streamlined its underwriting criteria for people taking out life insurance and critical illness cover .
For applicants aged under 40 a GP report will not be requested automatically unless the sum assured for life insurance is over £1 million. Correspondingly, for critical illness GP reports will not be required as a matter of routine for this age group unless the sum assured is over £600,000.
Legal and General has specifically targeted high net worth applications for improvement, with the removal of resting ECGs (electrocardiograms) for high sums assured, demonstrating a greater focus on large case business.
Russ Whitworth, underwriting and claims director for protection at L&G said: "We felt that there was scope to speed up the process and make it easier for people to take out cover. Therefore, for people under 50, GP reports are no longer the first piece of medical evidence that we will look for, instead focussing on nurse screening examinations, which take up less time."




