Dionne and Sky’s Story
Taking out a critical illness policy all the way back in 2019 after seeing an advert online, Dionne never imagined that she would be making a claim on her policy so soon, especially not for her daughter.
Dionne, mother to two girls, first began noticing changes in her eldest daughter Sky (aged 9) when she needed to use the toilet more often, was thirsty all the time and frequently tired. She was shocked to find out that the critical illness policy she arranged to cover herself would be a life changer when her daughter was struck ill with Type 1 Diabetes.
Taking action
A month before her diagnosis, Sky was off school sick on a Monday and then was sick again a week later and after seeing the other changes in Sky over the course of a few weeks enough was enough - Dionne knew something wasn’t right with her little girl.
Going off her trusty mother’s instinct and worried about Sky’s health Dionne remembered she had access to free, 24/7 GP appointments with AIG (her life insurance provider). Within a matter of minutes, she had booked an appointment on the Smart Health app.
Managing to get an appointment the same day - later that evening a UK-based GP called Dionne back and the online appointment that followed was a defining moment in getting Sky on the path to a speedy diagnosis.
Smart Health and the diagnosis
Smart Health is a free additional benefit included with your cover when you take out a life insurance policy with AIG. With Smart Health, you not only get access to 24/7 UK GP’s like the one Dionne spoke to, but you can also access free mental health support, health checks and tailored fitness/nutrition advice. In Dionne’s case, Smart Health was fundamental in getting Sky’s diagnosis as fast as they did.
During the online appointment, Dionne was amazed at how easy it all was. “They diagnosed it on the phone and believed diabetes is what it was - they also cleared any red flags which put my mind at ease. During the appointment, they advised me to go to my own GP the next day and take urine samples with me and request blood tests.”
“If I hadn’t had the online consultation, things might not have developed so quickly. The online appointment helped me get the ball rolling with the doctors as I already had a provisional diagnosis - it got them to act quicker. If I had waited for my GP appointment, I would have been waiting for at least two weeks - I don’t know what might have happened in that time.”
“I was very grateful for my online appointment which was really easy to book too. I had forgotten all about it and remembered whilst I was lying in bed worrying. It helped get us her diagnosis so I really am grateful. The rest is history really!” Smart Health is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, at no additional cost. All the elements of the service are also available to your immediate family, including children up to the age of 21!
Finding out
Dionne was in the process of re-mortgaging so was reviewing her cover, and this was the moment when Dionne found out she may be able to claim. “It was just a random comment I threw out there about Sky being ill and the lady on the line reminded me that my policy covered my children too.”
Dionne describes her first thoughts and feelings when she found out she could make a claim as, “Relieved, speechless. I was in shock, I didn’t understand! It’s such great peace of mind, in the event that something terrible happens, you haven’t got that worry of where am I going to get the money from? If that had been me suffering with a critical illness, and not being able to go to work. Having that payment as a lump sum would’ve taken that weight off my mind, we all have bills to pay and they don’t stop just because we aren’t well.”
How the money has helped
The pay-out from this policy has not only given Dionne peace of mind but it has also helped in ways she never would have expected too. “Of course the money always helps, a third of it has gone towards savings for the children’s future and a third of it has gone onto the mortgage - it’s really helping, especially with the cost of living at the moment.”“The rest has gone towards helping us adjust to this new life. Having T1 Diabetes doesn’t restrict Sky's diet in any way; she can eat everything a normal child can, but it does mean that she has to inject insulin for any food that has over 10g of carbs. As a nine year old, she likes to avoid any unnecessary injections, understandably! So we like to have lots of low carb snacks available for her which means she can grab and go without worrying about her diabetes. That, along with the regular stockpile of Lucozade to manage her hypo’s and the post-hypo biscuits means our shopping bill has gone up quite a bit with all these adjustments.”
“The last year has been so tough on everyone so I have booked a once in a lifetime trip to Lapland for all of us, something I never dreamed I’d be able to do. Having this money has enabled me to do this and to give the girls a much needed and well deserved treat after such a difficult time. I am going to tell them a day before, it’s a total surprise for them! Money is always something everyone worries about but with the pay-out, it has been one less thing to worry about throughout all of this.”
A new way of life
With a diagnosis confirming that Sky has Type 1 Diabetes, learning to manage the condition has been a challenge for everyone but the money has meant that they’ve had one less thing to worry about. Dionne explains, “Sky is managing really well, it’s obviously a rollercoaster! Trying to keep blood sugar levels in range is very difficult, especially with her being a growing girl. She’s changing all the time which means we really have to keep an eye on ratios etc. My working life has changed too, so I work from home more now because if something were to happen then I am closer to the school.”
“We have to be a lot more organised now and have to know what amount of carbs are in everything, we take her box everywhere with us and I need to check her levels at bedtime. She was only 8 when she was diagnosed and we try to make sure she understands everything that is going on and what diabetes is but understandably she doesn’t like talking about it.”
Critical illness cover
No one ever expects to have to use their cover but with statistics seemingly getting scarier by the day, a critical illness policy could be a life saver for you and your loved ones should the worst happen. When we asked Dionne about critical illness insurance she said, “I would 100% recommend having critical illness cover to everyone - you don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow.”
“It went from one minute not remembering I had a policy and two months later having money in my bank account - it’s incredible. In terms of the process we went through to claim this cover, I had no issues at all. As soon as I sent the claim form off and the nurses confirmed her diagnosis, the payment was made. It was such a short, non stressful process.”
Critical illness cover will pay-out a lump sum if you were to be diagnosed with an illness outlined in your policy conditions and in many cases the policy also automatically covers your children. Typically when you make a claim on the children’s element of your critical illness cover, your own cover will not be affected, meaning you can protect your little ones and still have your cover in place if you need it!
“When I initially arranged my policy back in 2019, Busy Bee was great. It was a while ago but it was really simple, straightforward, they went through everything - no complications. Every year since then, they call to see how we are getting on and if we need to update the policy!”
Support Dionne
According to Diabetes UK, there are 4.9 million people living with the condition in the country now. After experiencing first hand how diabetes can transform a families day-to-day life, Dionne wanted to give back and has now been accepted onto Diabetes UK team for the London Marathon next year.
“Diabetes has taken over our lives but in positive ways as well - I’m going to be running the London marathon next year to raise money for Diabetes UK! I never would have done anything like that before this but I've started my training already!” If you want to get behind Dionne, click here to donate and support both her and Diabetes UK.