Genworth Financial confirms changes to Lifestyle Protection Insurance policies in Ireland
Dublin, Ireland - October 12 2009 - Genworth Financial, the specialist insurer confirms that the number of claims it has received on its lifestyle protection insurance products have more than doubled in the last 12 months.
“The deterioration of the economy over the last 18 months has led to an unprecedented surge in unemployment, and subsequently, a dramatic increase in the number of claims for unemployment cover,” said Redmond McDonnell, managing director, Lifestyle Protection, Genworth Financial in Ireland.
“We have received and paid out more claims in Ireland in the last nine months, than the total number of claims in the preceding five years. While this demonstrates the value of our products for thousands of families, given the fact that the economy continues to show signs of instability, we need to take some difficult, but necessary steps will help to ensure that we can continue to provide the cover for our current customers and those who may require it in the future.
Following discussions with our distribution partners, changes are currently being implemented. Policyholders are being informed of these changes via letters from Genworth’s distribution partners in Ireland.
The changes being implemented will include:
- Changes to the Terms and Conditions of new and existing policies with an extension of the deferral period within which clients can claim from 30 to 60 days.
- A policy premium increase of, on average, €9 per month.
Genworth Lifestyle Protection policies help consumers meet payment obligations on mortgages and loans in the event of a misfortune such as an illness, accident or a period of unemployment. The increased premiums and policy changes will be implemented for existing and new policy holders at differing times, depending on the institution distributing the policy. These should roughly fall over the October – November period and customers will receive a letter clearly stating the changes and giving 30 days prior notice. Other insurers have implemented similar action in Ireland earlier in 2009.
McDonnell said Genworth is paying all valid claims and will continue to do so. 90% of Genworth’s claims are accepted and paid.
Genworth has been providing Lifestyle Protection Insurance in Ireland since 1986 and employs over 400 staff in Ireland.
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About Genworth Financial
Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE:GNW) is a leading Fortune 500 global financial security company. Genworth hasmore than $100 billion in assets and employs approximately 6,000 people with a presence in more than 25 countries. Its products and services help meet the investment, protection, retirement and lifestyle needs of more than 15 million customers. Genworth operates through three segments: Retirement and Protection, U.S. Mortgage Insurance and International. Its products and services are offered through financial intermediaries, advisors, independent distributors and sales specialists. Genworth Financial, which traces its roots back to 1871, became a public company in 2004 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, USA. For more information, visit Genworth.com. From time to time Genworth releases important information via postings on its corporate website. Accordingly, investors and other interested parties are encouraged to enrol to receive automatic email alerts and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds regarding new postings. Enrolment information is found under the "Investors" section of Genworth.com.
For more information, visit Genworth.com.
Contact for media:
Guy Genney, +353 1 542 8412 or +44 208 380 3786; guy.genney@genworth.com
