When a woman asks me about accident insurance, she nearly always arrives with the same doubt underneath: "what has this got to do with my health?". It is a good question, because with this product the answer is "something, but with very specific rules". It is worth knowing them before you sign, not on the day you need them.
What accident insurance with women's health cover is
Accidentes de la Mujer combines two things in a single policy. On one side, the classic accident cover: death and disability resulting from an accident, with a capital for your beneficiaries or compensation on a scale, plus temporary disability for as long as the incapacity lasts. On the other, women’s health cover, including an indemnity on diagnosis of breast cancer.
It also includes medical assistance after an accident, emergency care too, travel assistance and a recovery/aesthetic course after a covered accident. And support throughout cancer treatment, so you do not face it alone in practical and emotional terms; I go through the exact scope with you according to the current policy wording.
If you want to see the full product, it is on the Accidentes de la Mujer page
- ✓Accident and women’s health cover in a single policy.
- ✓Death and disability from accident with capital or a scale, plus temporary disability.
- ✓Breast cancer indemnity on diagnosis, with its own rules.
How it differs from life insurance
This is the most common mix-up. Life insurance covers death from any cause; accident insurance covers what results from an accident and, in this product, certain women’s health cover. They do not compete: they complement each other.
The practical difference is when it pays and to whom. The breast cancer indemnity is paid on diagnosis, that is, to you and while you are alive, whereas the death capital goes to your beneficiaries. And it is a separate benefit: if you also have health or life insurance, each policy pays its own indemnity under its own terms.
Nor does it replace health insurance. Health insurance covers your general medical care; this one focuses on accidents and those specific covers. They are compatible. You can see each on its own page: Life insurance and Health insurance
In one sentence: life insurance covers death from any cause; this policy backs you up if an accident leaves you unable to work or if you are diagnosed with breast cancer.
- ✓Life death from any cause.
- ✓Accidentes de la Mujer accident and certain women’s health cover.
- ✓They complement each other and are compatible with your health insurance.
What it pays on diagnosis and the waiting periods
The breast cancer indemnity is a capital paid on diagnosis, with its own rules. The one most worth understanding is the waiting period: for pure accident cover there is none, but for cancer it is 1 year and for obstetrics, 2 years. That means the specific cancer cover does not count from day one, which is why it is worth taking out in good time.
An accident while pregnant is covered under the guarantees you have taken out; what has its own 2-year waiting period is the specific obstetrics cover.
There is one exclusion I want you to be clear about from the start: a cancer diagnosed before the policy took effect is excluded from the specific indemnity, and the same goes for recurrences or metastases of an earlier tumour. That is why it is taken out while you are healthy, not once there is already a diagnosis. Also, this indemnity is designed for breast cancer: for other types it is worth checking whether you have other cover, such as life insurance with a cancer guarantee.
- ✓Pure accident cover no waiting period.
- ✓Breast cancer 1-year waiting period.
- ✓Obstetrics 2-year waiting period.
What is left out and who it suits
Excluded, among other things, are high-risk sports and competitions, and injuries with no demonstrable accidental cause. Ordinary sport is covered. The full detail of exclusions and scales is in the General Conditions, which I explain before you take out the policy.
It suits homemakers, employees and self-employed women who want to combine accident protection with women’s health cover. As a guide, it can be taken out between the ages of 18 and 60 and the policy stays in force until 70; I confirm the current range when I prepare your quote. We adjust the death and disability capital to what you need, and it can be reviewed later.
If you are self-employed and your biggest worry is losing income after an accident, I explain it here
- ✓Left out high-risk sports, competitions and injuries with no demonstrable accidental cause.
- ✓Age as a guide, 18 to 60; the policy stays in force until 70.
- ✓Capital adjustable to what you need.