Ask yourself this question. Without an income to support you, how will you keep your car, your Sky TV subscription, your golf club fees and pay for your holiday abroad each and every year? How will you continue funding your lifestyle should illness prevent you from earning?
We always recommend you consider the necessary steps to protect your current standard of living before planning any form of wealth building activity to improve your financial future. In fact, we regard protection planning as the bedrock of every wealth creation strategy. Secure your position today before worrying about tomorrow.
The impulse to protect our loved ones is one of the most basic instincts a person can have. Yet the fact remains that many people don’t take out sufficient insurance to protect themselves and their family should something happen to prevent them from being able to work. And if the main breadwinner in a household suddenly becomes unable to earn a wage, it can very quickly lead to serious financial hardship.
So how do you protect yourself against the financial risks associated with disability, accident or death? Life Insurance is the most common form of protection, but most policies don’t provide cover for accidents or sickness. You can purchase Accident, Sickness and Unemployment cover, but this tends to provide just short term protection, typically for a period of 12 months only, and that’s unlikely to meet your needs should you suffer a life-changing event like a serious accident.
So what are the options? Income protection insurance is, in many respects, the most basic insurance of all, and can provide for your bills and day-to-day living expenses in the longer-term should the unexpected happen, whether that’s an accident, critical illness or other traumatic event. Quite why it’s called income protection I’m exactly sure. An more accurate term would be expenses protection as it’s used to cover your regular outgoings.
Choosing the right kind of protection is critical, but it’s also it’s also important to get the right level of cover, because people’s requirements change as they get married, have children, move jobs or have their terms of employment changed.
So whilst you may have had sufficient protection last year, if your personal circumstances have altered, you may need to review your cover to ensure you have optimal protection. And like most kinds of insurance, if you want to make sure you get the protection that’s right for you, it pays to get the advice of an expert. Where income protection is concerned, it’s absolutely vital that you consider ‘own occupation’ cover where claims can be considered if you’re unable to continue working in your current position as a result of long-term illness or injury.
As always, if you’d welcome the opportunity to chat things through with us regarding your own particular needs we’d love to hear from you.