New protection challenger, Guardian, has selected RedArc to provide a dedicated nurse support service to its customers. The contract with RedArc will initially last three years and forms part of Guardian’s HALO service. HALO is Guardian’s personal approach to claims support. At point of claim, Guardian’s team will listen to each claimant’s concerns, identify the precise help they need, and with the help of their network of medical and legal experts make it happen.
RedArc’s nurse support service will offer Guardian’s policyholders and their families, free of charge, practical advice and emotional support for long-term physical or mental illness, disability, trauma or bereavement together with appropriate external services such as a course of therapy or counselling when needed.
Christine Husbands, managing director, RedArc, said: “In a much-commoditised market, it’s interesting to see Guardian enter with a ‘broader definitions and no general exclusions’ approach. However, as they have recognised, protection needs to go beyond just a financial payout, and offer more comprehensive support for the individual and their family in other areas.”
Guardian’s policyholders and families will benefit from RedArc’s extensive experience of providing practical advice and emotional support tailored to their individual circumstances. Examples include:
- Advice on diagnosis and support during treatment
- Return to work support
- Therapies to ease the consequences of treatment
- Adapting a home to meet the needs of illness
- Counselling to help customers cope with serious illness
- Bereavement counselling for the entire family
- Early intervention to support mental health issues
- Provision of reading material to give more information on a condition
- Sourcing charities and self-help groups to provide local support
Katya MacLean, Proposition Director, Guardian Financial Services said: “Guardian’s offer is built to get it right for the customer from beginning to end. That starts with designing policies that will pay out and carries through to personalised support at the point of claim. Peoples’ circumstances are unique and that’s why we will offer more bespoke support services through HALO. For those that need nurse support, we’ve partnered with RedArc due to their fantastic track record of helping people through difficult times.”
Christine Husbands, managing director, RedArc, continued: “Guardian knew they wanted to go that extra mile for their customers and took the decision to seek third-party help, in order to be able to offer their customers the best possible support and expertise.
“Having a professional medical expert on hand at every step of the way during an illness or bereavement can be pivotal in helping the family come to terms with their new normal and readjust to life in the future. We are acutely aware that unfortunately one issue can often lead to another and a physical ailment can, for example, be the catalyst for a mental health issue or vice versa. Where GPs and other services may only have the resources to treat a single issue, third-party support via an insurer, as Guardian has acknowledged, can be mindful of the wellbeing of the patient as a whole.”