Whether a brain tumour is a critical illness depends on two things: whether it is cancerous, and which wording your policy uses. A cancerous brain tumour is tested against the cancer definition that the Association of British Insurers (ABI) sets as a floor for its members' critical illness policies, while a non-cancerous one is paid only if the policy lists a benign brain tumour and the tumour meets that insurer's definition.
Prefer to have the wordings explained? Asking an FCA-authorised broker for a free phone call about this takes nothing more than the short form on this page.
If a brain tumour has been found and it is, or might be, cancerous, the Macmillan Support Line gives free, confidential support on 0808 808 00 00, seven days a week from 8am to 8pm.
Cancerous or non-cancerous: which definition does a claim go under?
The NHS describes two main types of brain tumour: non-cancerous (benign) and cancerous (malignant). Policies treat them through different routes.
A malignant tumour is judged against the policy's cancer definition. The ABI's model wording for that condition begins:
Any malignant tumour positively diagnosed with histological confirmation and characterised by the uncontrolled growth of malignant cells and invasion of tissue.
The model's carve-outs name the prostate, urothelial tumours, the skin, the thyroid, neuroendocrine tumours and gastrointestinal stromal tumours, but not the brain. Critical illness cover for cancer looks at which cancers a policy leaves out; each insurer's own wording is in its policy documents.
A benign tumour is different, because the ABI does not require cover for it. Its Guide says insurers are free to omit any condition outside cancer, heart attack and stroke, but that where they include one the Guide defines, they must use the model wording, or one that gives more cover. So "benign brain tumour" appears on some insurers' lists and not on others, and a non-cancerous tumour can be claimed only under a policy that lists it.
What the ABI's benign brain tumour wording requires
This is the ABI's model definition (Guide to Minimum Standards, updated April 2023, page 12):
Benign brain tumour – resulting in permanent symptoms A non-malignant tumour or cyst originating from the brain, cranial nerves or meninges within the skull, resulting in permanent neurological deficit with persisting clinical symptoms. For the above definition, the following are not covered: Tumours in the pituitary gland. Tumours originating from bone tissue. Angioma and cholesteatoma.
Three parts do the work. The growth must start in the brain, the cranial nerves or the meninges (the membranes around the brain) and sit within the skull. It must be non-malignant, and a cyst counts as well as a tumour. And the trigger is its effect: lasting neurological deficit with symptoms that persist. A diagnosis on a scan does not meet the model on its own.
The NHS says a benign brain tumour usually grows slowly over many years and does not spread, and that small acoustic neuromas often just need monitoring with regular MRI scans. A tumour under watch, with no lasting deficit, is not what the model describes.
Are acoustic neuromas and pituitary tumours covered?
The NHS calls an acoustic neuroma a type of non-cancerous brain tumour, one that grows on the nerve used for hearing and balance. The ABI model and the Legal & General, Aviva and Royal London wordings all include growths of the "cranial nerves". Whether yours would meet a given insurer's definition, given its treatment and symptoms, is something the broker can explain without charge when they ring back; the insurer judges the medical evidence at claim.
Pituitary tumours are handled differently. The ABI's model, Legal & General's, Aviva's and Royal London's benign brain tumour definitions all rule them out, so under those four wordings a pituitary tumour cannot be claimed as a benign brain tumour.
Some insurers deal with them under a separate heading instead. Aviva's Life Insurance+ conditions define a non-malignant pituitary adenoma, with specified treatment, as a non-malignant pituitary tumour requiring radiotherapy or surgical removal; it sits in the extra-cost upgraded benefit, and a pituitary tumour treated "by any other method" is excluded. Royal London lists a pituitary tumour requiring radiotherapy or surgical removal among its additional conditions, which, where the cover is a lump sum, pay 50% of the cover amount or £35,000, whichever is lower. Scottish Widows lists a pituitary tumour among conditions for which it pays 25% of the cover, up to £30,000, with the policy continuing.
Which treatments can count towards a benign brain tumour claim?
Insurers may improve on the model, and the three below have done it in the trigger. The table sets the model beside their wordings:
| Document | What triggers a claim | Left out of the definition |
|---|---|---|
| ABI model wording | Permanent neurological deficit with persisting clinical symptoms | Pituitary tumours; tumours of bone tissue; angioma and cholesteatoma |
| Legal & General, Critical Illness Cover Policy Terms and Conditions (QGI14872 - 2026/10), page 8 | Either surgical removal or permanent neurological deficit with persisting clinical symptoms | The same three as the ABI |
| Aviva, Life Insurance+ Policy Conditions (AL50002 02/2026), page 35 of 51 | Permanent deficit with persisting symptoms, or invasive surgery to remove part or all of the tumour, or stereotactic radiosurgery or chemotherapy to destroy tumour cells | Pituitary tumours; angiomas |
| Royal London, Personal Menu Plan Critical Illness Cover plan details (July 2025), page 56 of 80 | Permanent deficit with persisting symptoms, or undergoing surgery or being on the NHS waiting list for it, or radiosurgery or chemotherapy; the brain and spinal cord are one definition | Pituitary tumours; tumours from bone tissue; cholesteatoma; angiomas |
So the same tumour can fall inside one wording and outside another. A tumour removed surgically without lasting damage can meet Legal & General's "surgical removal" limb, which the ABI's model does not have. Aviva's and Royal London's wordings also count stereotactic radiosurgery or chemotherapy to destroy tumour cells. Aviva lists benign brain tumour among its full-payment conditions as standard.
Beside each other, those triggers are easy to compare, and the broker who calls you after the form can do that without charge.
Two more insurers list it in their policy summaries. LV= names "Benign brain tumour – resulting in permanent symptoms or specified treatment" in its policy summary (49027-2022 04/26), and Scottish Widows lists a "Benign tumour of the brain or spinal cord" in its summary (61041 01/26). Scottish Widows adds that if the person is on an official UK waiting list for treatment for it, it makes an advance payment of the current cover amount and the policy then ends.
A brain tumour before you buy cover
A past or current brain tumour is something an insurer will ask about at application, and the law puts a duty on you: under section 2 of the Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) Act 2012, "It is the duty of the consumer to take reasonable care not to make a misrepresentation to the insurer." For what can follow if an answer is wrong, see when an insurer can refuse to pay.
Critical illness cover for pre-existing conditions and life insurance with medical conditions explain how insurers weigh a medical history.
Frequently asked questions
Is a brain tumour classed as a critical illness on every policy?
No. A cancerous one falls under the cancer cover every ABI-member policy includes; a benign one only where the insurer has listed it.
Does critical illness cover pay for a brain tumour found by chance on a scan?
Under the ABI's model wording, the claim turns on permanent neurological deficit with persisting symptoms, not on the scan finding alone. Some insurers also count surgery or other treatment, so the answer depends on the definition in the policy.
Can you get critical illness cover after a brain tumour?
Terms vary by insurer, tumour type, treatment and time since. A broker can ask the insurers they work with how they would view your history, though cover is never guaranteed.
Whenever it suits you, a broker can talk through how the policies they arrange word this, on a free call you can book with the form on this page.
Sources
- Association of British Insurers, Guide to Minimum Standards for Critical Illness Cover (16 September 2022, updated April 2023), read 26 October 2026. abi.org.uk
- Legal & General, Critical Illness Cover Policy Terms and Conditions (QGI14872 - 2026/10), read 26 October 2026. legalandgeneral.com
- Aviva, Life Insurance+ Policy Conditions (AL50002 02/2026), read 26 October 2026. aviva.co.uk
- Royal London, Personal Menu Plan Critical Illness Cover: Plan details (JULY 2025 PCP8P10008/16), read 26 October 2026. royallondon.com
- Scottish Widows, Scottish Widows Protect Personal Protection policy summary (61041 01/26), read 26 October 2026. adviser.scottishwidows.co.uk
- LV=, Life and Critical Illness Policy Summary (49027-2022 04/26), read 26 October 2026. lv.com
- NHS, Brain tumours (page last reviewed 12 June 2023) and Acoustic neuroma (vestibular schwannoma) (page last reviewed 29 November 2022), read 26 October 2026. nhs.uk, nhs.uk
- Macmillan Cancer Support, Macmillan Support Line (undated page), read 26 October 2026. macmillan.org.uk
- legislation.gov.uk, Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) Act 2012, section 2, read 26 October 2026. legislation.gov.uk