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Critical Illness Cover For Mums

Elaine Brookes Steve Case

Author: Steve Case - Insurance Expert

Reviewed & Fact Checked By: Elaine Brookes

Updated: 6th June 2025

Critical illness cover for Mums

Critical illness cover for mums is one of the most popular additions to life insurance cover for mums, and for good reason.

Any parent buying life insurance to safeguard their children’s future will recognise the enormous peace of mind that comes with knowing that, whatever may happen, their family’s security and financial stability are provided for.

Most of the top-value life insurance products we recommend offer the option to incorporate critical illness coverage, which provides an additional amount of coverage that pays out if the policyholder becomes unwell due to an illness or condition covered within the policy’s terms.

The significant advantage of health coverage for mums, single parents, and primary caregivers is that if they’re managing treatment and recovery or cannot work, they have a security blanket to cover the financial gap.

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Why Add Critical Illness to Your Life Insurance Policy as a Mum?

Depending on the life insurance product you choose, critical illness cover is usually an optional add-on, although some policies include a basic amount as standard.

Rather than being a type of life coverage, critical illness can help balance your income if you cannot work or sustain your family’s lifestyle. It gives you a payout you can use to arrange help with childcare, household bills, and other outgoings.

This cover is usually separate, which typically means that you’d be able to claim against your critical illness cover if you were diagnosed with a covered condition without that impacting the overall value of your life insurance. 

Like every aspect of insurance, there are varied terms and criteria, ranging from comprehensive critical illness products that cover pre-existing conditions to those with a longer list of exclusions.

Therefore, it is essential to rely on expert advice rather than selecting a critical illness add-on based on cost alone.

The clear benefit is that if, as a mum, you were managing a serious illness, you could focus all your energy and time on recovering and spending quality time with your children without the stress and pressure associated with a sudden and potentially dramatic drop in your income.

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What Is the Average Cost of Adding Critical Illness Cover to a Parent’s Life Insurance Policy?

It’s always difficult to provide an average cost because there are numerous types of mums critical illness cover on the market, and the premiums you’re quoted might depend on factors like:

  • How long you’d like the cover to last, perhaps with the same duration as your life insurance, until your planned retirement age, indefinitely, or until your children reach adulthood
  • The amount of critical illness cover you want, with a higher pay-out inevitably associated with a higher monthly premium
  • The scope of the protection. Critical illness cover that provides payouts for almost any long-term or serious illness will cost slightly more than basic cover with a specific list of conditions and diagnoses that will trigger a payout.

However, it’s important to clarify that life insurance and critical illness cover are considerably more affordable than most mums assume.

We have put together policy recommendations that cost from as little as £5 per month, with coverage starting from £10,000 and extending upwards to £1 million and beyond.

If you’re interested in life insurance, with or without critical illness, it’s well worth consulting the experts at Insurance Hero to review your options and ensure you can access the best value-for-money policies available.

Denied critical illness cover previously? Insurance Hero can help.

Top 15 illnesses that could be covered by critical illness cover in the UK:

Critical IllnessDetails / Qualification
CancerUsually of a specified severity
Heart attackTypically, it must be diagnosed by a specialist
StrokeMust cause lasting neurological damage
Multiple sclerosisWith ongoing symptoms
Kidney failureRequiring regular dialysis
Major organ transplantE.g., heart, lung, liver, or bone marrow
Coronary artery bypass surgeryFor disease of the heart
Benign brain tumourMust result in permanent symptoms
Parkinson’s diseaseOf a specified severity
Alzheimer’s diseaseOr other forms of advanced dementia
Motor neurone diseaseProgressive and incurable
Paralysis of limbsTotal and irreversible
Loss of speechPermanent and incurable
BlindnessPermanent and irreversible
DeafnessPermanent and irreversible

How Can Insurance Hero Help Me Find the Best Critical Illness Cover for Mums?

Our sole focus is on extending access to secure, accessible, and low-cost coverage that matches your requirements, and we endeavour to make the whole process straightforward.

Insurance Hero’s quote service is completely free of charge, curating recommendations based on exactly the coverage you want without anything you don’t.

We can also break down the ideal options if you want to set up a life insurance policy for yourself, you and a partner or spouse, a critical illness plan covering pre-existing conditions, or want ongoing life insurance as a young parent or a parent approaching retirement.

All you need to do is complete our quick, free quotation form, let us know your budget, priorities, and expectations, and we’ll get to work without any gimmicks or hidden extras.

We’ll get back to you with the information you need to make fast, confident decisions to protect your family’s future.

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