Whether Income Protection is worthwhile insurance cover for you to have in place or not is dependent entirely on your own circumstances.
If you have a high level of savings in place.....You may be fortunate enough to have a significant level of savings in place. If so, as long as you are not adverse to the idea of using that money to support your normal day to day living costs, it could be used to meet your income needs in the event of the main wage earner in the house being unable to work.
If your employer provides sick pay benefits.....Alternatively, your employer may have a very good sick pay arrangement in place that will provide you and your family with enough money to pay the bills and maintain your standard of living for a reasonable time period. If this applies to you, you should investigate how much and for how long you would receive an income form you employer as some employers sick pay plans will pay out for months, whilst others may only pay for weeks or even a few days. In addition, you may also find that the level of income payable would not be enough for your family's needs, in which case complimentary cover may also need to be made.
In both cases, you may only need to worry about what happens when these short term solutions are no longer viable.
If not.......However, if neither of these situations apply to you, or you are self-employed or run your own business, it is strongly suggested you look further in to Income Protection plans to establish what is needed to provide you with some financial security in the event of you or the main wage earner of the household is unable to work due to an accident or illness.
Putting an appropriate income protection plan in place will provide you with the peace of mind of knowing that income is available for you to live off in the event of it not being forthcoming from your normal means of earning a living because of an accident or illness that was perhaps no fault of your own in the first place.
Our online interactive research tool, the Finance Navigator can help you determine what type and level of cover might be most suitable for you.
Next: How much can I expect from the government in the event I am unable to earn?
