http://bit.ly/paiNFo National Small Business Week Day 1

The U.S. Small Business Administration's National Small Business Week was held in Washington, D.C., marking the 56th anniversary of the agency, and the 46th annual proclamation of National Small Business Week.

More than 100 small business owners from across the country gathered at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel along with keynotes and panels fro leading speakers including Karen Mills,Administrator , U.S. Small Business Administration and Michael Porter
Bishop William Lawrence University Professor,based at Harvard Business School

(cc) Shashi Bellamkonda Social Media Swami Network Solutions If you use this picture please credit as shown.
Share





One in every ten insurance claims made by vulnerable people struck down by a devastating illness is being thrown out by insurers, Money Mail can reveal.The percentage of critical illness insurance claims being rejected is the highest since 2007, the year firms made a major commitment to make application forms clearer and treat customers more fairly when mistakes were made. Critical illness cover is an insurance which pays out if someone is struck down by a life-threatening illness that hampers the way they live.



Worry: Caroline Quirke with husband Spencer and children Georgia and Charlie

Insurers have been under intense
scrutiny to not reject claims for spurious reasons and technicalities.
Yet despite initial success in curbing the share of declined claims, the
proportion has begun to creep up again. Last year, nearly £80million
worth of critical illness claims were rejected.
And evidence is growing that many
claims are being turned down unfairly.  In one case, the Financial
Ombudsman upheld a complaint made by a 43-year-old woman diagnosed with
breast cancer who had her claim turned down because she had failed to
reveal she had asthma — an unrelated condition.
 



Our guide to choosing the right critical illness cover for you


Another family to be turned down by
insurers is now fighting back. Caroline Quirke, 38 (pictured with her
husband Spencer, 42, and children Georgia, nine, and Charlie, five),
from Hampshire, is battling Scottish Provident after it rejected her
cervical cancer claim on two counts: she didn’t mention panic attacks
and erred over giving up smoking — she hadn’t smoked for eight months
when 12 was the minimum.
Instead of paying out almost £130,000,
the insurer reimbursed her the £3,160 she had paid in premiums and
terminated the policy. Mrs Quirke is now in remission and taking her
case to the independent Financial Ombudsman.
Often, claims can be kicked out
because of small print about undisclosed medical conditions or honest
mistakes. This is leaving claimants struggling to make ends meet for
their families after the insurance they thought would protect them fails
to pay out.
There are 455,000 critical illness
policies in force and premiums vary from £50 to hundreds of pounds a
month, depending on age, sex and health.
As Money Mail revealed in May,
insurers face tougher rules to stop them wriggling out of paying claims.
The House of Lords is debating legislation which would force firms to
specifically ask about anything that could prevent a claim. They will
also have to pay out a proportion of a claim if the customer’s made an
honest mistake.
Bright Grey, part of Royal London,
rejected one in ten claims for critical illness in the first six months
of the year — double the rejection rate of a year ago. Last year, Legal
& General turned down almost one in 12 cases, up from almost one in
16 cases the previous year. Rejection rates have also increased at
Aviva.
The Association Of British Insurers
(ABI) has introduced a ‘non-disclosure’ code to ensure policyholders
aren’t worse off as a result of a genuine mistake.
Nick Kirwan, ABI’s assistant director
for health and protection, says: ‘Insurers know if they decline claims
under these circumstances they will end up paying them, as the Ombudsman
follows the same principles as our code.’