Specialist medical provider MorganAsh completes hundreds of medical interviews as part of Nationwide’s new annuity service

The medical interviews are a key part of the annuity service launched in March by Nationwide to ensure Nationwide’s consumers secure the best annuity rates.

A key focus of the Nationwide annuity service is to make enhanced annuities accessible to as many customers as possible. Enhanced annuities enable those consumers with less than perfect health to obtain a higher priced annuity, thus giving them more money during their retirement. MorganAsh has been appointed to support its annuity service by providing a telephone-based medical interview, which is proving to be very popular.

MorganAsh uses trained and qualified nurses to interview consumers about their health, helping consumers to provide all relevant health information that could boost their income in retirement. The data is then used by Nationwide’s annuity panel to provide the best possible annuity quotation, tailored to the personal circumstances of each customer.

The MorganAsh process has a number of advantages over traditional routes and makes it easy for the customer to achieve the highest rate for their annuity. The MorganAsh service increases the annuity price for many consumers, compared to traditional application processes.

MorganAsh is delighted that Nationwide has taken a market-leading approach to this issue.

Andrew Gething, managing director of MorganAsh, said: “As the majority of consumers qualify for an impaired annuity, it is critical that the medical information is collected correctly. By using this thorough process, Nationwide is ensuring its customers get the best annuity rate.”

Guy Simmonds, head of product, protection and investments, said: “After 40 years of working and saving hard we want retirees to have a long and enjoyable retirement. However, worrying about money and confusion over the best retirement-income options can be highly stressful at this pivotal time. We launched the Nationwide annuity service to help retirees secure the best possible annuity income available and take away the confusion by making advice available on the high street to customers. The MorganAsh service is an essential component in our service to help our customers secure the highest possible retirement income available.”