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People With Certain Medical Conditions Will Get Life Insurance For Home Loan In Malta Under Planned New Policy

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The Ministry for Social Accommodation is drawing up a policy that will see it step in to facilitate life insurance for people with certain health issues and disabilities, in order for them to be able to obtain a loan to buy a home.

Last month Lovin Malta reported the story of 26-year-old Mark Anthony Cremona who was born with a congenital heart defect. 

Despite the fact that the defect had been operated on immediately and that he today lives a normal life, Cremona has encountered difficulties obtaining life insurance in order for him to be able to qualify for a home loan.

Cremona recounted to Lovin Malta how he had found a property he wanted to buy together with his partner and had been approved for a home loan by the bank, pending him taking out life insurance. 

This however proved to be far easier said than done, with Cremona being refused life insurance by successive insurance brokers leaving him lost and feeling like he is unable to live his life in the same way that others were able to. 

It would now appear that there is renewed hope for Cremona and others like him. 

Social Accommodation minister Roderick Galdes met with Cremona to discuss his situation earlier this week, with plans seemingly at an advanced stage for the government to step in and offer its assistance in such cases. 

Efforts had also been underway by the Beating Hearts Foundation – an association for adults and children with congenital heart defects – to find a solution with the government for people facing these difficulties.

A spokesperson for the ministry told Lovin Malta that the government estimates that some 35 to 40 individuals are refused life insurance every year due to past health issues or disability. 

They added that the number was likely higher given that it is reasonable to assume that some individuals in a similar situation might not even attempt to get life insurance or a bank loan. 

“After consulting with a number of individuals, it appears that the issue is not one of affordability, as most lead an independent life. The problem tends to be with getting life insurance in order to get a bank loan,” the spokesperson said. 

They said that in the vast majority of cases, applicants with such health issues were either outright refused insurance or were given it at a premium that is around 300% higher than the market price. “This can result in situations where the full premium amounts to almost the full value of the property.” the spokesperson said. 

Details of what the government would be proposing weren’t shared with Lovin Malta, however, it is understood that the ministry is at a “very advanced stage of policy design and consultation”. 

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Yannick joined Lovin Malta in March 2021 having started out in journalism in 2016. He is passionate about politics and the way our society is governed, and anything to do with numbers and graphs. He likes dogs more than he does people.

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