Royal London Helping Hand


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Explained by an independent adviser

Royal London Helping Hand

Helping Hand is Royal London's free support service included with all advised protection plans. It gives plan owners and their families access to wellbeing support, recovery support, and legal, career and medical helplines — whether or not they ever make a claim.

Written by Ben Tomlin, Financial Adviser  ·  FCA No. 1038034  ·  Last reviewed June 2026

▶  In plain English — what is Helping Hand?

When you take out a Royal London protection plan, you automatically get Helping Hand included for free. It's not insurance — it's a package of real, practical support: a 24/7 GP you can video call, mental health tools, physiotherapy advice, and a dedicated nurse if you or your family face a serious illness or bereavement. You don't need to make a claim to use any of it.

It also includes legal and career helplines, and access to second medical opinions. Everything is accessed through the My Royal London online portal.

On this page

See Helping Hand in action

Video produced by Royal London. That's Family Finance is not responsible for its content. This page represents our independent view only.

What is Royal London Helping Hand?

Helping Hand is Royal London's support service designed to help plan owners take charge of their wellbeing and lead a healthier lifestyle. It provides online access to early care medical services, helping people stay healthy and address small health issues before they become a bigger problem.

Helping Hand can also support the plan owner, their partner, and their children if they are going through a serious illness, injury or bereavement — and they can get this support whether they make a claim or not.

According to Royal London, Helping Hand is included with all advised protection plans at no extra cost, supporting clients at every stage of life.

Cost: Helping Hand is included at no extra cost with all Royal London advised protection plans.

Wellbeing support

Helping Hand's wellbeing support provides advice on staying fit, looking after mental wellbeing, and addressing minor health problems. It starts with a simple health questionnaire from LiveSmart, which gives personalised insights to improve health.

After completing the questionnaire, three services become available through My Royal London: HealthHero, Thrive, and TrackActiveMe.

24/7 GP Service

HealthHero

24/7 access to virtual GP consultations by qualified, experienced, NHS-practising doctors. Book by phone or app — choose your preferred doctor and video or phone consultation.

Mental Health

Thrive

Personalised mental health advice, with recommendations to help prevent, detect and manage mental health conditions.

Physiotherapy

TrackActiveMe

Created by physiotherapists, TrackActiveMe assesses musculoskeletal problems such as joint pain and gives access to physiotherapy advice and personalised exercises. Clients can self-refer — no GP visit needed.

All wellbeing services are accessed through the My Royal London online portal. Once a plan starts, clients receive an email invitation to register.

How to access wellbeing support

Step one

Register for My Royal London

Once the plan starts, clients receive an email invitation to register

Step two

Complete the LiveSmart questionnaire

A brief health questionnaire after logging in for the first time

Step three

Access support and health report

Wellbeing services and a personalised health report become available in the account

Recovery support — RedArc

Based on Royal London's published information about RedArc at the time of writing.

Royal London's partner RedArc provides recovery support for the plan owner, their partner, and their children if they are going through a serious physical or mental illness, injury or bereavement. This support is available whether or not a claim is made.

RedArc assigns a dedicated nurse who provides tailored practical advice and emotional support for as long as it is needed. The dedicated nurse can also:

What RedArc can arrange
Extra services such as therapy, counselling or second medical opinions
Relevant literature and information
Signposting to useful organisations
Clients can find additional information about RedArc in their My Royal London account, or call Royal London directly to be put in touch with RedArc.

Legal, career, and medical helplines

As well as wellbeing and recovery support, Helping Hand includes helplines for legal issues, career advice, and further medical support including second opinions. The career helpline can also help with business matters.

Career advice and help

Royal London works with FPSG Specialist Recruitment. They can help if a client is looking to make a career change, facing redundancy, or is unemployed. Support includes CV writing, interview preparation, and reviewing transferable skills.

Independent legal advice

A legal helpline providing independent advice on legal issues. Contact numbers are listed in each client's My Royal London account.

Medical helpline and second opinions

A helpline for further medical support, including the ability to request a second medical opinion. Contact numbers are listed in each client's My Royal London account.

All helpline contact numbers are listed in each client's My Royal London account.

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Get Independent Protection Advice

Not sure which policy or benefit is right for you? Send us an enquiry for an honest, whole-of-market view.

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Independent advice, available across the UK

That's Family Finance provides independent protection advice to families and individuals across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Whether you're in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Bristol, Sheffield, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Essex or anywhere in between, we work with you remotely or in person to find the right cover for your circumstances.

We also advise on Aviva Global Treatment, Zurich Accelerate, and Vitality Life Insurance as alternative or complementary value added benefits.

We are not Royal London. We are an independent, FCA-regulated firm (No. 1038034) that can advise on Royal London and many other providers — and we'll always tell you honestly which one suits you best.

Want to know if Royal London is right for you?

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Common questions

Questions we're asked about Royal London Helping Hand.

What is Royal London Helping Hand?

Helping Hand is Royal London's free support service included with all advised protection plans. It provides online access to early care medical services, wellbeing support, recovery support via RedArc, and legal, career and medical helplines.

How much does Helping Hand cost?

Helping Hand is included at no extra cost with all Royal London advised protection plans.

Who can use Helping Hand?

The plan owner, their partner, and their children can all use Helping Hand.

Do I need to make a claim to use Helping Hand?

No. All Helping Hand services — including RedArc recovery support — are available whether or not a claim is made.

What is HealthHero?

HealthHero gives plan owners 24/7 access to virtual GP consultations by qualified, experienced, NHS-practising doctors.

What is RedArc?

RedArc is Royal London's recovery support partner. They provide a dedicated nurse who gives tailored practical advice and emotional support for serious illness, injury or bereavement.

Will using Helping Hand affect my policy terms or premiums?

No. Using any of the Helping Hand services does not affect your policy terms or premiums.

What legal issues can the legal helpline advise on?

The legal helpline provides independent legal advice. Contact numbers are listed in each client's My Royal London account.

Helping Hand is a package of support services, and each service is provided by third parties that aren't regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority or the Prudential Regulation Authority. These services aren't part of Royal London's terms and conditions and don't form part of the insurance contract, so they can be amended or withdrawn at any time.

We are not Royal London. That's Family Finance is an independent, FCA-regulated firm (No. 1038034). This page contains information about Royal London's Helping Hand service based on Royal London's published materials at the time of writing. Always refer to Royal London's own documentation for the most current details.