The British Heart Foundation has designated February National Heart Month. Over the year, the BHF has not only raised significant sums of money in relation to heart disease, but also increased awareness in the general public concerning heart and circulatory problems.

In the past, the Life Insurance industry has been reluctant to offer cover to individuals with a history of heart disease.  We are pleased to be able to arrange life insurance involving an increasingly wide range of heart problems:

STABLE ANGINA - Cover is available provided there are no complications. Where there are other problems such as diabetes, moderate height/weight issues, cover may still be available albeit at a significantly increased premium.

HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE - Cover available especially where the condition is well controlled and there are no complications. Combinations of problems make cover more difficult to achieve and more expensive.

HEART ARRHYTHMIA (irregular heart beat) – cover should be available at close to normal rates provided there are no complications. It is possible to obtain cover where there are co-existing conditions e.g diabetes, although this will increase the premium.

HEART ATTACKS: We can arrange life insurance if the attack has taken place six or more months ago and there are no complications. If the applicant is a smoker we should still be able to arrange cover but the premium may well be at least double that of a non-smoker.

If the applicant has had more than one heart attack and/or has other conditions such as diabetes, terms are available at an increased premium, although in some cases it will not be possible to insure.

We are also able to insure those who have undergone HEART SURGERY – as follows:

ANGIOPLASTY (opening of partially blocked arteries in the heart using a balloon) and STENTING - cover should be available if an application is made six months after a successful procedure.

BYPASS SURGERY – Cover is available if an application is made one year after successful surgery, providing there have been no complications.

HEART VALVE REPLACEMENT – Cover is available if an application is made one year after a successful operation, providing there have been no complications.

AORTA GRAFT SURGERY FOR SWELLING OF THE AORTA (aneurysm) – Cover is available if an application is made six months after a successful operation, providing there have been no complications.

STROKES – Cover is available if an application is made one year after the stroke. Smoking and/or other medical conditions will increase the cost and may affect availability of cover.

The above are general guidelines.  If you have a client who has been declined life insurance or who you believe will experience difficulty in obtaining cover, please do contact us. We can tell you quickly if we think we can help. Because our premiums are usually more expensive than in standard cases we give indications of cost first, so that individuals can decided whether or not to complete a full application.

The objective of Pulse is to be able to arrange life cover for individuals and groups who have been declined are finding it difficult to obtain the cover they require from the standard market. Sometimes the nationality of an applicant may be the problem.

Pulse has successfully arranged life cover for a wide range of non-UK nationals, some of whom are not even resident in the UK. Applicants can qualify for the cover we provide simply by owning a property in the UK or mainland Europe. We are able to quote in a range of currencies, including Sterling, US Dollars and Euros.

Recent examples of non-UK nationals who were finding it difficult to obtain life insurance and who Pulse was able to help include:

• A Dutch national living and working in Holland, but working for a UK company
• An Italian national working in Poland for a Polish company
• An Irish national who was unable to find cover in Ireland due to his pre-existing medical condition

For more information or to obtain an indication of cost, please call us on 01280 841430 to speak to one of our account managers.

Pulse beat off stiff competition from five other companies in a competition organised by Cover Magazine, the health insurance and protection publication, to be awarded “Small Intermediary of the Year”, with the judges referring to the company as “a firm with an excellent proposition and ambition.”

The whole Pulse team are thrilled and honoured to receive this award which we regard as recognition from the insurance industry that we are providing a worthwhile and important service.

The awards ceremony was held at the Emirates Stadium in London on Thursday 8th October, and the Pulse team attended with several of its underwriters.  Managing Director Paul Sandilands collected the award from Bill Turnbull, of BBC breakfast and Strictly Come Dancing fame.

Paul Sandilands and members of the Pulse team after collecting the award!

Pulse is now able to offer Income Protection – click here to read more.

Welcome to our new website!  We hope you like it and find it easy to get around. The website enables you to fill in your enquiry online, with no need to download any documents, saving you precious time in the process.

It is a busy time for Pulse at the moment, in addition to our brand new website we are moving to new offices this month.  Our new address and contact details can be found on the ‘contact us’ section of the website.

If you would like to keep up to date with our news please email us at admin@pulse-insurance.co.uk and we will add you to our mailing list.