Are lesbian and homosexual people still discriminated against by financial services companies? A new insurer argues they areThere is a UK insurance company that will give you cover whether you are an airline pilot,but not whether you are cabin crew. There are travel insurance policies that routinely bar anyone with HIV, even whether the person has lived with it for years and has an almost undetectable viral load. There are policy documents that can’t cope with a Mr and Mr heading, and insist on describing married homosexual couples as Mr and Mrs. And family discounts that won’t be applied to homosexual partners. There are call centres that assume that when you mention your partner the person is the opposite sex.
So say Steven Wardlaw and Heidi McCormack,respectively founder and chief executive of new insurer Emerald Life. They argue that while Britain’s 2.2 million lesbians, gays, and bisexuals and transgender/transexuals rarely suffer serious direct discrimination by banks and insurers,the latter are still failing to deal with customers in a way that makes them feel comfortable when buying.
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Source: theguardian.com