[tomParticipant]

Hi Eve
Yes you are correct and am sure you know i have heard the word NO many a time Lol
Yes and Pension people do give you more if you are ill and let them know.
6 til 2 is what i have done all my working life and prefer that shift more than the others 🙂

I will give it another think about it.

Many Thanks for all your Input's its been very eye opening to say the least.

Tom Onwards and upwards x

[HelenRParticipant]

Hi Babs

Thanks loads, that's really helpful to know the £6000 / £16000 figures, I had no idea what kind of level they would ignore. Not something I'll have to worry about for a good while, hopefully, but like you say there are always these choices about things like mortgage overpayments vs keeping it in the bank, so it's important to try to be informed. Sorry I didn't reply sooner – I've only just seen this as I'm only popping in here once or twice a month nowadays.

I hope the arrival of the spring sunshine today is helping remind you that winter is nearly over… even though it's freezing and snowing at the same time!! I was sitting in a massive sunbeam this morning, it was lovely.

I'm also about to reply on your post about hair!!

Take care,
Helen

[BillyParticipant]

Hello All
My Name is Billy and i was diagnosed with MM stage 3 in July last year with extensive bone damage to my legs ,ribs shoulder blade and skull ,i am a married man with 2 kids and a mortgage .
I was when diagnosed at a stage where i could not walk 10 yards climb stairs . I spent 5 months vertually laying down with all sorts of things going through my head .my savings helped pay my mortgage and feed wife and kids .I have worked in the construction industary all my life and was always an active man saving are all gone now and due to illness will never get the chance to recoup i went back to work just before Christmas 7.30am to 5.30pm 5 days a week its hard going but at least we can hold our heads up .
I made a claim on my insurance for terminal illness and listen to this they told me i was not sick enough .
Thank god for morphine and i hope that these insurance people never have to deal with insurance people .

Regards Billy

[tomParticipant]

Hi Billy
Sorry you had to join us but welcome anyway.
Its hard to keep your savings when you get ill let alone when you get proper ill 😐

I and my Young Bride (elaine) has seen our savings not only dwinndle but go the lot :-S as Elaine got breast cancer in 2008 and i with MM 2009 🙁
BUT I am pleased to say I dont have Bone damage and can walk about a fair bit (still get puffed and slight pain) cant get DLA but I also had a Low cost endowment for part of the morgage that had "Critical Illness cover" so we aplied to claim on that and after about just over a month the money was paid out not many Questions to answer just forms for Consultant to fill in.
I would reapply for that terminal claim and get your Dr on your side, good Luck

Tom Onwards and Upwards

[bikerchrisParticipant]

Hi Billy,
I was shocked to read how much trouble you were having making your insurance claim. I think the key to this is to have your GP on your side, as they have to fill in the most important part of the claim forms, but they are used to this type of illness and know what the insurance companies are looking for. They need the words 'malignant' and 'invasive' My doctor has also signed forms to the effect that I may only survive for 12 months so I could cash in my pension policies too.
Obviously I have not seen your critical illness policy, but surely MM is exactly the type of illness which is supposed to be covered! I have made successful claims under 2 different policies with no problems.
One thing I quickly realised was that unless you were down to your last farthing, the state or any of the charities will not lift a finger – you are on your own. I decided that as I would never be likely to receive a pension I would claim now for what I could. I have a Disabled Badge, and full DLA. It is a question of telling them what they want to hear.
In your case you were flat on your back in bed – you clearly should have been entitled to DLA and carers allowance.
My hospital has a cancer advice office who were also helpful with the claims forms.
My situation is the same as you, I am only 50 and have kids and a mortgage, and I have been shocked how little real help there is. if you have a few pounds as savings you are considered to be a millionnaire! Once you can't work you are f…ked.
You need to get some more advice, as you should be able to claim under your CI policy definately.
Mine is now paying under a reduced amount per month because I am working 3 days a week, but at least it's something.
Good luck, and keep trying,
Chris

[BillyParticipant]

Hello Chris
Thank you for reply, incidentally we share the very same birthday and birth date .
My insurance is not a critical illness insurance but a terminal illness insurance which is attached to my mortgage should i get terminally ill it was supposed to pay off the outstanding balance of my commitments .
i applied on the basis that my consultant confirmed that i was terminally ill with MM .
i think i am supposed to have one foot in a coffin in order to get payed out its not as if i am going to Las Vegas to have a spend up and go crazy for one last blow out .
Its at times like this my thoughts as a father and a family man are not for myself but for my wife and kids and making sure they are ok when i am gone , i know what is in store for me the only thing is time and determineing how long that time will be i am not a morbid person by any means but i does cross your mind being in this situation.
There seems to be a double standard as to what terminally ill means one for a doctor and the other for an insurance company .
MOAN FOR TODAY .
Regards Billy

[pjollopParticipant]

Hi, You [u]do[/u] have to meet some criteria. For the care element you need to have to have near constant personal care. For the mobility element you need to have very restricted mobility. I think its either ability to walk less than 100 ft or 100 yards, I can't remember.

I suggest that if you think you [u]should[/u]qualify, contact your nearest MacMillan centre and ask for a referral to a benefit advisor. (or the Citizens advice bureau – often the same advisor)

Myeloma in itself does not qualify you for DLA. (after all, LIFE is a terminal condition) This illness affects different people in different ways and with varying severity. The advice I got was to answer questions honestly based on the worst scenario (i.e. when I was on Chemo ) not on how I was when in remission. Although with Myeloma your condition varies from year to year (sometimes month to month)it is not feasable or possible to dip in and out of the benefit.
If your mobility is impaired and you are refused DLA mobility element, you may be able to get a Blue badge from your local authority by filling in the relevant form supported by a declaration from your doctor / consultant
Hope this helps

[BillyParticipant]

We seem to be getting away from my point as in I have paid for years for an insurance policy to protect myself and my family should i get ill .
Now that i am noty only ill but TERMINALLY ILL as diagnosed by a professor and various other doctors .BUT AN INSURANCE COMPANY SAYS I AM NOT ILL ENOUGH TO MAKE A CLAIM . All seems fine when they are taking your payments but when you need them they are useless .
I have a mortgage and 2 kids and wife to feed I know deep down i cannot work like i used to but this has forced me to go to work knowing that each day that i do is shortening my life and possibly making my condition worse but i cannot stand by and watch my family struggle .
2 DAYS AGO I GOT HOME FROM WORK AFTER HAVING A HARD DAY you know what i mean we all have them ,Pain ,depression , effects of drugs ,was not able to face family so i locked myself in shower ran the shower and cryed for ages ,not feeling sorry for myself but feel so cheated .

Billy

[eveParticipant]

Billy

A number of people on here,had problems with private insurance,one I can think of is Gill,her husband was at deaths door,and insurance still would not pay,I do not know if they ever recieved the insurance. Before he died.

The insurance make it hard to claim,there is only one way to go, Name and Shame to a national paper.Eve

[DaiCroParticipant]

Hi Billy,

I can only imagine that you are either on megabucks in your job or you believe that the difference between your wage and all possible benefits makes this suffering you are going through seem worthwhile.

Put it this way… your insurance firm gets a claim from you saying you have got a terminal illness and you wish to make a claim against it… but you continue to work full-time in a job known for its need for physical strength and endurance?!!? To any outsider it may seem that you are stretching a point… you want your mortgage paid off because you are terminally ill, literally dying but you want to continue to go to work and pick up a living wage.

Of course we know that that is a misnomer… the Billy who could not walk 10 yards or climb stairs is a far truer reflection of the Billy with MM – your determination to put food on the table and pay your mortgage is commendable but short sighted IMO. For very little shortfall you could be sharing valuable time with your wife and family without wearing your body out before its due time.

You could easily finish work on grounds of physical disability… simply not being able to continue to carry on working because of the physical strain on your body and your bones in particular. Then you could claim Jobseekers Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, including the higher element of Mobility Allowance that qualifies you for a new car. I don't know if your wife works but she could claim the full amount of Carer's Allowance, Housing Benefit, Family Tax Allowance etcetera. Then you could put in your claim, with all these benefits as proof that you are indeed not only living with a terminal illness but that you have reached a point where you simply cannot manage to carry out any sort of work anymore.

By continuing to go out to work, perhaps with the support of workmates who ensure you get a high proportion of light duties and non-physical jobs, you weaken your case for any kind of recognition of being terminally ill. Forget the 'terminal' and look at the 'ill'… that's what the insurance company are doing.

Good God, I wish that I could go out and walk a hundred yards, I would feel nearer to heaven than the grave, never mind go out and put in a day's work on a construction site… but I can guess that your position is not that clear cut and that it is taking a lot of sacrifice to do what you are doing.

If I was you I would bite the bullet… go see your GP and explain that you simply cannot work any longer… that you have reached a point where your body can no longer sustain the physical effort needed to do your job… any job. Then, armed with a letter from your GP you can go armed with a 6 or even 12 month note to your employer and ask for Redundancy on grounds of sickness… if that is not applicable then go to your Job Centre and get advice (perhaps to the Citizen Advice Bureau as well as).

Once you have a claim for unemployment everything else follows… Housing Benefit, who will pay your mortgage interest payments until your insurance company pays up, Disability Living Allowance, including the Higher Mobility Allowance, both of which are unaffected by any other claim or savings etcetera… and any Tax Credits of which I know very little about.

You could be at home, spending quality time with your family instead of making a needless sacrifice for a combined shortfall that is just not worth the time or effort.

[quote]I have a mortgage and 2 kids and wife to feed I know deep down i cannot work like i used to but this has forced me to go to work knowing that each day that i do is shortening my life and possibly making my condition worse but i cannot stand by and watch my family struggle .[/quote]

Sorry Billy but you are talking to the wrong crowd here IMHO. There is hardly a one amongst us who have not suffered financially, seen savings diminished to nothing and had to cut back in many ways compared to previous lifestyles. You do not 'have to' do anything… there is a solution that is not too painful and once the insurance have seen you reach their criteria and paid off your mortgage then the shortfall between a living wage and benefits will fall in your favour with the difference making you better off on benefits. (Even if the insurance company only initially takes on the mantle of paying your interest until the point comes where your Doctors say 'that's it, last legs'- either way the pressure is off you and on to them, never to return to your door)

Take advice Billy, start with the CAB and the MacMillan's Nurses financial advisers (they will also make a one off payment to help) then follow their advice as I have stated above. It may seem a tad premature but with the ignorance that surrounds MM you have to help yourself by taking positive action and not push yourself into an early grave for a few pounds a week.

Regards

Dai.

[eveParticipant]

Hi Dai

That is sound advice8-) 🙂

We have just had a problem and rang up Mac Millan . We were both amazed how much they helped us,and you know me,it takes a lot to please me. Lol

Slim rang because mu daughter and friends asked why we were not claiming VAT off are new vehicle ,truthfully I did not know we could.!!

Any way we rang Mac for advice,well Slim did as I am deaf as a doorpost. They asked all sought s of question s,about Slim and Myself,the next day all forms in post and they questioned why I was not claiming AA as I have long standing illness plus Since SLim had remission my health has got a lot worse,doctor daughters are alway,s telling me I am not looking after myself.

The out come is we are claiming VAT,and now looking at my health issues,I am no spring chicken!!!Love Eve

[jorgeParticipant]

I seem to be in much the same situation. Diagnosed with MM a couple of years ago, followed by a bone Marrow transplant 18 months ago (Sept 2011).

Had a private pension plan back in the early 80s and didn't qualify /couldn't pay in after a couple of years (yes, house was repossessed in late 80s as well).

Pension pot now worth just over 30k which would give me about 7,500 lump sum and a poorly less than 29 pounds a week to supplement my state pension (not a UK citizen).
Therefore, I estimate that if I live another 5 years, I will receive a grand total of 15k out of my 30k pot. I am single and have no relatives to inherit any estate – so who gets the other 15k – certainly not me.

Was I mis-sold my pension? No one told me that I would not receive my entire pension.

To wait until one is in such a state, just about at death's door, that one can't actually make any real use of one's pension is not on.

There need to be a change in the law – the USA and Australia both seem to have access to a pension pot in severe circumstances.

Furthermore, I don't even live in the UK and haven't done so for over 25 years yet i seem to be restricted to UK laws.

[Author]

Posts