Reference
Insurance glossary
Plain-English definitions for the terms you'll meet when choosing cover.
B
- Beneficiary
- The person or people who receive a payout from a life or income-protection policy.
C
- Claim
- A formal request to your insurer for payment under the terms of your policy.
- Cover
- The protection a policy provides against specific risks or losses.
D
- Deductible
- Another word for excess — the amount you pay toward a claim before cover applies.
E
- Endorsement
- An add-on or change that modifies the terms of an existing policy.
- Excess
- The fixed amount you contribute to each claim before the insurer pays the rest.
I
- Indemnity
- Restoring you to the financial position you were in before a covered loss.
L
- Liability cover
- Protection against your legal responsibility for injury or damage to others.
N
- No-claims discount
- A reduction in premium earned by not making claims over a period.
P
- Peril
- A specific risk or cause of loss that a policy may cover, such as fire or theft.
- Policyholder
- The named person who owns the policy and is responsible for its premiums.
- Premium
- The amount you pay — monthly or annually — to keep a policy active.
R
- Renewal
- The point at which a policy term ends and can be continued, usually yearly.
S
- Sum insured
- The maximum amount an insurer will pay out under a policy.
U
- Underwriting
- The process of assessing risk to decide whether and how to provide cover.
W
- Waiting period
- A set time after a policy starts before certain cover or claims become active.
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