Personal Accident policies compensate you for accidental bodily injuries that result in permanent injury or disablement - for example a total loss of sight or a limb. Personal Accident Insurance is a renewable policy whereby the Insurer neither guarantees the prices or the cover beyond the contracted term, which may be a year or a month. The majority of Personal Accident polices include an accidental death benefit, and often provide optional Life Insurance, which again are renewable and therefore the premium and cover are not guaranteed beyond the renewal term. These premiums are not dependant upon individual’s circumstances, instead there are usually a number of different levels at different price points to choose from, and these prices are the same for everyone.

In recent years the definitions of life assurance and life insurance have become increasingly blurred and often now refer to the same contract. At one time life assurance was a term used to describe a policy that would defiantly pay out so long as the premiums were kept up to date; two examples of this are endowments and whole of life policies. An endowment runs for a set number of years and pays out a lump sum upon event of death or maturity of the contract, whereas a whole of life policy runs for life and will pay out a lump upon death. The alternative to these 'life assurance' policies is a 'life insurance' policy which runs for a number of years and pays out on death only, for example if the policy reached the end of the term there will be no cash value.

The disadvantage, as many people are now finding with whole of life and endowment policies, is that not only are the premiums far higher but there are reviews that the policy must go through. In the past upon these reviews, it has not been uncommon for premiums to increase, which either means you pay more for the cover or you have to reduce your amount of cover to make the premiums affordable. For this reason, most individuals in the UK do not favour the old ‘life assurance’ plans and people are now leaning more towards taking out ‘Life Insurance’ for a set term.

As whole of life and endowments are no longer the popular way of insuring your life, the terms life assurance and life insurance now have little difference. You will therefore find that most companies who offer life assurance are actually offering life insurance.

There are 3 main types of Life Insurance:

Level Term Life Insurance whereby the sum assured is guaranteed and remains unchanged throughout the term of the policy. It is often used to cover interest only mortgages and loans or for family protection. Service Life Insurance is this type of policy.

Decreasing Life Insurance/Mortgage Life Insurance in which the sum assured decreases throughout the term of the policy. It is often used to protect capital and interest repayments on a mortgage or loan.

Optional Life Insurance extension to a Personal Accident Plan, which are renewable and therefore the premium and cover are not guaranteed beyond the renewal term but the premiums are generally not dependant upon individual’s circumstances, instead there are usually a number of different levels at different price points to choose from, and these prices are the same for everyone. PAX Optional Life and Critical Illness is this type of plan.

Life Insurance or Assurance pays a cash lump sum to your loved ones if you die. If you have a family or a partner who are financially dependent on you, or if you have liabilities such as a mortgage or loan then you should consider Life Insurance. Simply, Life Insurance benefits others, whilst Personal Accident and Critical Illness Insurance are there to protect and support you.

If the worst happens and you need to make a claim on your insurance, just how do you go about it?

Before you get on the phone to your insurers you should dig out your policy details to make sure you’re got the appropriate cover for the loss or damage.

You will probably have several forms of insurance so you need to decide which policy you’re going to claim under. If you can claim under more than one policy you might want to investigate which has the lowest excess. And do bear in mind the effect a claim could have on next year’s premiums.

Once you’ve decided which policy you’re going to claim on then it’s time to call up your insurer and get a claims form. If you simply haven’t got time to fill in insurance forms then most companies let you make a claim over the phone, that way you save time and you will probably have your claim dealt with more quickly.

Fill in the form as soon as you can. Bear in mind you may also need to get estimates on replacement and repair costs, together with an estimate of how much revenue you’re likely to lose. If you’ve had to make any emergency repairs keep the receipts and invoices, you may need these as part of your claim. Your insurance company will probably have some kind of emergency helpline to put you in touch with the appropriate tradespeople.

If you’ve been a victim of a crime you should also get in touch with the police as soon as possible.

In general, "kit and contents' policies do not provide cover for war damage. However, it may be possible to claim through the MoD.

You should first check with JSP 752 Chapter 10 Section 4 to determine your entitlement to make a claim. Further information can be obtained from your administration staff.

In summary, you can claim for loss or damage to items while you are on duty (not proceeding on, during or returning from periods of leave) so long as the value of the item exceeds £20. The form to be used in JS Form F014, which you can get through your JPA login, or from your unit administration office. Once you have completed the form, it should be handed into your unit administration office.

Following the introduction of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), it may not be necessary to take legal advice as the services of the FOS are available at no cost to you, their FAQs section provides excellent guidance and you can contact them with regards to specific queries.

In approaching your issue it is important to focus on the facts. Whatever the moral rights and wrongs of the case, insurance is a contract between the insured and the insurer with the intermediary acting as an agent for one party. Whilst the insurance industry is beholden to treat customers fairly, it is best to concentrate on what they were contracted to do and how they have failed to meet their obligations, for example (and this list is not exhaustive):

Did they fail to pay what you consider to be a valid claim?

Did they fail to pay you what you consider to be the correct amount for a valid claim?

If you later find out that the plan failed to meet your demands and needs, did they provide you with sufficient information to make an informed decision at point of sale?

Were undue barriers placed in your way when you attempted to cancel the plan or change your level of cover?

To answer these or other questions it may be best to refer to the plan's Terms and Conditions and you can ask them to send you a replacement copy of the current version. This process will also help you determine whether your complaint is against the company that sold you the plan or the insurance company itself.

Once you've established your case, contact the firm against which you have a complaint, explain your case and ensure that they register it as a complaint. This last point is important as it brings certain constraints on the other party such as:

They must respond in writing within 5 days;

If the matter is not settled within 4 weeks then a second letter must be sent;

The final letter, outlining the results of their investigation and subsequent decision must be sent within 8 weeks of you initially lodging your complaint.

If the outcome of their investigation is not to your satisfaction then you may consider contacting the Financial Ombudsman Service:

The Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR. Tel: 0845 080 1800

Note that if you contact the FOS to ask them to investigate your complaint before going through the insurer's or the intermediary's own complaints procedure then you will be referred back to them by the Ombudsman. However, you may well find it useful to consult their website or call them to talk through any issues as and when they arise.