The Insurance Charities is keen to spread the word throughout the insurance industry, to make sure as many people as possible are aware of their support offering. We spoke to Victoria Sutton, Marketing and Communications Manager at The Insurance Charities, to find out more about the Charity and how they can help. Here’s what Victoria had to say.

Despite the turbulence of the last two years, The Insurance Charities has remained an essential lifeline, offering practical and financial support to those in the industry who are struggling due to challenging circumstances.

We want to ensure that no current or former insurance employee misses out on any help they might need to steer them through a difficult time. Whether you’ve been affected by redundancy, bereavement, sickness, or domestic abuse, we are here to help for as long as it’s needed.

Who are we?

We were established as a Charity over 120 years ago to help those working in insurance. Staying true to our founding principles, we continue to support anyone in the insurance industry across the UK, Ireland, and Channel Islands. In 2020/21 we awarded over £912k to help those facing hardship.

Whether you’re a previous insurance employee, retired, or are in the early stages of your career, with no other employment; no matter your job role we could help. All applications are dealt with in confidence. Current insurance industry employees, and those who are not currently working, can apply. We can also support the dependants of eligible current or former insurance employees such as partners and children.

Our help

We can provide one-off payments (including charitable loans) to help fund essential items such as property repairs, household appliances, furniture, and funeral expenses. We also provide ongoing financial support where income is restricted or insufficient, and offer practical support to those with health, money, and housing concerns.

“I cannot fault the Insurance Charities at all. They have helped me and my son hugely in a very traumatic period for us and I cannot thank them enough.” – Insurance Charities Beneficiary

Working in partnership

Since 2019 we have worked alongside the Alzheimer’s Society to support people affected by dementia in our industry. At the end of last year, we were delighted to become an official Dementia Connect Referral Partner.

Anyone living with dementia, or who has a loved one diagnosed with the condition, can contact us directly, where we will refer them to a Dementia Connect dedicated adviser to provide the help that’s right for them.

If you know of a colleague who may be affected either directly by dementia or through a loved one, we’d encourage you to share the details of the support we can provide.

Our unique partnership also offers volunteering opportunities to those in insurance. We are looking for volunteers to become ‘Companion Callers’ and give up to an hour a week to make friendly calls (not advice) to those affected by dementia and who have been experiencing isolation because of the pandemic.

We can also support those in insurance with housing issues via our partnership with Shelter. If you have any housing concerns, whether you are in rented or owned property, you can make an online enquiry for support.

Spreading the word

The Insurance Charities is keen to spread the word throughout the industry, to make sure as many people as possible are aware of our support offering. We’re more than happy to come to your workplace or attend local networking events to give a short talk or have a stand to demonstrate how we can help. We can also provide flyers and giveaways, plus additional resources such as presentations for employers to share with colleagues. 

We’d like to thank everyone who champions our work throughout the year; particularly those who support our national Awareness Week, which takes place this year on 20-24 June. We hope that you and your employer can get involved to ensure your colleagues don’t miss out on any available support.

For advice, support information, or details on how you can help raise awareness, please email info@theinsurancecharities.org.uk or call +44 (0) 20 7606 3763.

Please visit www.theinsurancecharities.org.uk for more information.