Critical Illness Cover When You Have Epilepsy
Critical illness cover pays a lump sum if you are diagnosed with one of the serious illnesses listed in the policy. Availability depends on your seizure history, and underwriting is often stricter than it is for life insurance. We will tell you honestly what is on the table.
Reviewed by Andy Stevens, Co-Founder and Epilepsy Insurance Specialist, Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning (CII) and Member of the Chartered Insurance Institute, at More Than Money Ltd. Last reviewed: 29 August 2026.
Can you get critical illness cover with epilepsy?
Sometimes, and it depends on your seizure history more than for life insurance. Long settled epilepsy can be offered at or close to normal terms with some insurers. Recent or more frequent seizures can mean a higher premium, an exclusion, or an insurer choosing not to offer this product. One insurer's no is not every insurer's no here either, so it is worth asking before you rule it out.
What critical illness cover would and would not pay for
What it pays for
It pays out on the conditions named in the policy document, such as certain cancers, heart attacks and strokes, when the definition in the policy is met.
Why epilepsy itself is not usually covered
This is the part people are most often surprised by: epilepsy itself is generally treated as an ongoing condition rather than a listed critical illness, so a policy would not usually pay out because you have a seizure. It is there for a separate serious diagnosis in the future. Knowing that up front matters more than the price does.
How epilepsy affects the underwriting
Insurers ask the same kinds of questions as they do for life cover, but they tend to apply them more firmly.
Time since your last seizure, seizure type and frequency, and how settled your medication is all count. An offer may come with a higher premium, or with an exclusion, which we cover below. Some insurers will not offer this product where seizures are recent or frequent. The detail behind each factor is in our guide to how insurers assess epilepsy.
Will epilepsy be excluded from the policy?
It can be. Some offers come with an exclusion for claims linked to epilepsy or to neurological conditions, which means the policy pays out on the other illnesses it lists but not on those. Cover with an exclusion can still be genuinely worthwhile, because most of the conditions people claim for sit outside it. It is not the same as full cover, though, and you should know exactly where the line sits before you sign anything. We will point it out plainly rather than leave it in the small print.
Is it worth applying?
Often it is worth asking, as long as you go in with clear expectations.
We will look at whether cover is realistically available for your circumstances before you commit to anything, and we will say so if it is not. Many people pair this with life insurance, and some look at income protection with epilepsy instead, because it covers being unable to work rather than a named diagnosis. You can also read about specialist life insurance for people with epilepsy.
What affects the price?
There is no single price for critical illness cover with epilepsy. The main things that shape it are your age, the amount of cover, the length of the policy, whether the offer carries a loading or an exclusion, and your seizure history and general health. The seizure factors are the same ones covered in our guide to how insurers assess epilepsy.
Not sure if critical illness cover is realistic for you?
That's exactly what we'll tell you, honestly, before you commit to anything. No pressure, no judgement, no obligation.