A 77-year-old Westpac Life policyholder who has been diagnosed with a ‘terminal’ illness has aired her disappointment after the insurer declined her claim on her term cover insurance policy.
Kathleen Earea has been diagnosed with polymyalgia rheumatic, a “permanent terminal rheumatic condition without a definitive cure.” She said she can now barely afford her $1,145 monthly premiums, with her growing age and increasing chance of dying adding to her burden.
“I took this policy out when my husband left. He took everything, left me with no money, no food, no furniture and three children. The policy was to leave for my children when I died,” Earea told Stuff.co.nz.
She claims she never received policy documents for upgraded policies introduced by the insurer to replace the one she took out in 1995, with one of the updates offering policyholders the ability to file for a claim once diagnosed with a terminal illness that would kill them within 12 months.
Nigel Jackson, head of investments and insurance at Westpac, confirmed that the senior policyholder’s claim did not meet the criteria of her policy.
However, he promised that they will refund the last two months of her premiums and not charge another until the Insurance Ombudsman has finished its investigation on the issue.
“We have great sympathy for Kathleen and her circumstances,” Jackson told Stuff.co.nz. “Our team is in contact with Kathleen and we are continuing to look at how we can support her further.
“We are working with the Banking Ombudsman to seek to address Kathleen’s complaint and have suspended her premiums until this process is complete.”
