The Situation
A self-employed barrister was referred to Henry Dannell by his financial adviser after concerns arose around the availability and affordability of critical illness cover.
The client was seeking £800,000 of critical illness cover to provide a financial safety net in the event of a defined serious illness. As a self-employed barrister, his income was linked to completed cases, with no employer sick pay or group protection benefits to fall back on.
Recent medical disclosures, variable self-employed income and sensitive personal circumstances meant the case required careful handling from the outset. The client was concerned that meaningful cover may either be unavailable or priced beyond a level he felt comfortable accepting.
For the referring adviser, the priority was clear. Their client needed specialist protection advice from a team able to manage medical complexity, high-value cover and client confidence with care.
The Challenge
The case presented several underwriting and advisory considerations.
The first was medical disclosure. Recent health information needed to be explained clearly and submitted with appropriate context. Without a carefully prepared underwriting submission, there was a risk that the insurer could apply a higher premium, impose exclusions or decline the application.
The second was income structure. As a self-employed barrister, the client’s earnings were case-dependent and variable by nature. This did not diminish the need for protection. In fact, it made the need more significant. Without employee benefits, an extended period away from practice following a defined serious illness could have had a material financial impact.
The third was client confidence. Previous concerns around insurability meant the process had to be handled sensitively, with clear communication at every stage. The client needed to feel informed, supported and confident that the application was being presented in the strongest possible way.
The fourth was the value of cover. A request for £800,000 of critical illness cover required a detailed, well-evidenced submission. The insurer needed a full understanding of the client’s circumstances before reaching a decision.
Taken together, this was not a standard protection application. It required specialist expertise, careful underwriting management and an advice-led approach.
The Solution
Our role was not simply to submit an application. It was to understand the client’s position in full, prepare the case with precision and manage the underwriting process with care.
Given the complexity, sensitivity and value of the cover involved, we met the client in person at his chambers to complete the application together. This face-to-face approach allowed us to build trust, discuss the relevant medical information in the right environment and gather the detail needed for a complete and accurate underwriting submission.
For medically sensitive protection cases, this level of engagement can be particularly important. It helps ensure that the application is not treated as a routine submission, but as a case requiring proper context, clear explanation and close adviser involvement.
We then worked closely with the insurer’s underwriting team to present the client’s circumstances in full. This included preparing a detailed underwriting narrative, submitting a well-evidenced application package and maintaining regular communication with both the client and the insurer throughout the 11-week underwriting and application process.
The objective was to give the insurer the information needed to assess the case on its merits, while ensuring the client remained informed and reassured throughout.
Precision in Structuring
Cover amount: £800,000 of critical illness cover
Indexation: The policy was index-linked to help the level of cover keep pace with inflation over time.
Policy term: The policy was structured to run to age 70, aligned with the client’s expected professional working horizon at the Bar.
Outcome: Terms were offered by the insurer and accepted by the client, despite his initial concerns that cover may not be available.
The Outcome
Following a detailed underwriting process, the client secured £800,000 of index-linked critical illness cover, with a policy term running to age 70.
The policy provided the client with a substantial lump sum safety net in the event of a defined critical illness during the policy term. It also gave the referring adviser confidence that their client had received specialist support in an area requiring technical knowledge, careful disclosure and close insurer engagement.
This was not simply a case of placing cover. It was a case of interpreting complexity, managing the process with sensitivity and ensuring the client was supported through each stage of the underwriting journey.
Key Takeaways for Professional Advisers
Specialist protection cases need specialist advice. Clients with complex medical histories or sensitive personal circumstances may assume that meaningful protection is beyond reach. In practice, the outcome can depend heavily on how the case is presented, which insurers are approached and how the underwriting process is managed.
A well-matched introduction to a specialist protection adviser can help ensure the client’s circumstances are understood in full, rather than reduced to a single point of perceived risk.
Personal engagement can also strengthen the process. For high-value and medically sensitive cases, meeting the client in person can support clearer disclosure, stronger documentation and a more considered underwriting outcome.
For introducers, the value lies not simply in outsourcing a protection case, but in giving the client access to specialist support while preserving the strength of the existing advisory relationship. In this case, the referring adviser was able to provide additional value to the client without stepping outside their own area of focus.
Why Introducer Partnerships Matter in Protection Advice
This case illustrates what can be achieved when financial advisers, specialist protection advisers and insurers work together effectively.
A client who had significant concerns about his ability to obtain critical illness cover was able to secure a policy that met his protection objectives. At the same time, the referring adviser strengthened their client relationship by introducing a specialist partner equipped to navigate medical complexity, sensitive personal circumstances and high-value underwriting with care and precision.
For advisers, this type of partnership can be particularly valuable where a client’s protection needs are clear, but the route to securing cover is not straightforward.
Common Questions
Can a barrister get critical illness cover if they are self-employed?
Yes, self-employed barristers may be able to secure critical illness cover, subject to underwriting, insurer criteria and personal circumstances. The absence of employer sick pay or group protection benefits can make individual protection particularly important.
Can critical illness cover be arranged with medical disclosures?
Medical disclosures do not automatically prevent a client from securing cover. The outcome will depend on the nature of the disclosure, the insurer’s underwriting criteria and how clearly the case is evidenced and presented.
Why does underwriting take longer for complex protection cases?
Complex protection cases can take longer because insurers may need additional medical information, adviser context and underwriting review before offering terms. A carefully managed process can help keep the client informed and reduce unnecessary delays.
Why might a financial adviser refer a client to a specialist protection adviser?
A financial adviser may refer a client where the case involves high-value cover, complex medical disclosures, sensitive personal circumstances or specialist underwriting requirements. This allows the client to receive focused protection advice while maintaining the strength of the existing adviser relationship.
How Henry Dannell Can Help
At Henry Dannell, we work with clients whose protection needs are often more nuanced than a standard application process is designed to assess.
Whether your client requires critical illness cover, income protection or life insurance, our advisers can help present their circumstances clearly, manage insurer engagement and support the underwriting process with care.
If you have a client with a complex protection need, our team would be pleased to discuss how specialist support may help.
This case study has been anonymised to protect client confidentiality. The information provided is for illustrative purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Critical illness cover is subject to individual underwriting, policy terms, conditions, exclusions and insurer acceptance. A policy will only pay out for valid claims that meet the policy definition. Where cover is index-linked, premiums may increase over time. Henry Dannell Private Clients Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.