Maggie Fleming is a highly qualified, independent financial adviser, serving the gay and lesbian community in the UK.
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Last month I mentioned some unwelcome aspects of the life insurance industry and mentioned that PRIDE FINANCE (a group of finance professionals) was going to be policing the situation and blowing the whistle on some of the worst offenders. This month, happily, I have much better news to report. It seems that the darkest hour was just before the dawn.
The Association of British Insurers (ABI), the trade body for the industry, has issued over the last few weeks a new code of practice on the issues surrounding insurance and HIV/AIDS. This replaces guidelines originally put in place 10 years ago (and revised in 1997) which were badly out of date.
There are a number of welcome changes. Insurance companies will no longer be able to make assumptions about a person’s sexuality on the basis of their occupation. Similarly, they should not draw conclusions from the fact that someone is buying a mortgage with a person of the same sex.
Currently, many (but not all) insurers have a question on the application form which asks if the applicant belongs to a ‘recognised higher risk group’ for HIV infection. It goes on to specify these as gay men, bisexual men and intravenous drug users. Once the ABI code of practice is implemented, and this may take up to 12 months, this will be replaced by a question asking if the applicant has been exposed to the risk of HIV infection within the previous 5 years, with specific reference to unsafe sexual behavior. It will no longer be acceptable to ask if someone is gay. This is an extremely welcome change, virtually ending years of discrimination in the life insurance industry in the UK
There are likely to be some other changes in the level of testing limits before an insurer can request an HIV test for single males, gay or straight. These limits are currently much higher for married male and female applicants and technically at zero for gay men. This will vary from one insurer to another and there will still be a strong need to consult a specialist financial adviser in this area, especially when a gay couple apply jointly for life insurance.
The ABI should be congratulated for bringing their industry into the 21st century and credit is due to Chris Morgan, an independent financial adviser who has spent much of his professional career lobbying for these changes.
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