Insurers are withdrawing policies for accident, sickness and unemployment from sale a result of the coronavirus crisis Comparethemarket has revealed as it stopped offering quotes on all income protection products.

Comparethemarket says it has had to temporarily suspend comparisons on tall types of income and unemployment protection due to the disruption.

However, advisers say it is only ASU providers that have been withdrawing products and that the type of policies the industry would refer to as income protection would not normally cover redundancy – only a loss of income through ill-health.

But IP providers have been adding in exclusions for covid-19 on new income protection policies they offer, according to advisers.

Comparethemarket director of insurance Anna McEntee says: “Due to the outbreak of coronavirus, some providers have decided to stop offering insurance or are reviewing the basis on which they will offer it, with the potential for coronavirus related exclusions to be introduced.

“At comparethemarket.com, our priority is to ensure that our customers can be confident that the product they purchase is going to meet their requirements. 

“In order to protect our customers we have therefore decided to temporarily stop offering income protection quotes via our website during this period of uncertainty.  

“We will resume income protection comparison as soon as we can be sure that the prices presented will meet the needs and expectations of our customers. 

“Other life insurance products are not impacted.”

She adds: “In excess of 95 per cent of providers on our panel are no longer covering new applicants for the unemployment element of accident, sickness and unemployment cover.

“Almost all permanent health insurance, which incorporates income protection, providers continue to consider new applications for cover but a number have put coronavirus exclusions in place already and we are awaiting guidance from more insurers who are currently reviewing whether to add coronavirus exclusions before they accept any further applications.

“We will not provide quotes for these types of policies until we are confident that customers are getting the right cover.”

Protection Review chief executive Kevin Carr says: “We have seen a number some of the smaller insurers adding exclusions for coronavirus on their income protection policies for new customers, but they have not been pulling out of the market.

“Income protection would not usually cover redundancy, but rather it is there to provide a replacement salary if you cannot work due to ill health.

“Short-term accident and sickness policies can include cover for redundancy and it is understandable in the current environment that unemployment cover is becoming harder to find.”