LTCI Watch: The Consumers Are Talking

Other posters talked about the difficulty that people who already have health problems face when applying for LTCI.

I think the comments showed that many consumers are interested LTCI and the need for coverage but deeply concerned about how stable the issuers will be and whether the policies will work the way the holders expect when it comes time to file claims.

If insurers really want to send the LTCI lapse rates through the roof (and lose the goodwill that helps them sell other products), maybe they could make a point of causing aggravation for policyholders who seem likely to post comments about tales of LTCI claims woe on Internet message boards.

If insurers really want to maintain goodwill among LTCI policyholders, whatever the future holds for LTCI, maybe it would be a good idea to make sure policyholders know how the policies really work and discuss policy provisions, fraud checks and other matters that could lead to a gap between how a claimant might want a policy to pay off and how the policy really will pay off.

The policyholders may not read the disclaimers, let alone understand what they are reading, but, if insurers can show that they made a serious effort to warn policyholders of how the world works ahead of time, maybe the policyholders, future prospects and regulators will be a little more understanding of what happens when it turns out that LTCI policies aren’t magic genies that can grant all LTCI finance wishes.