Income Protection Insurance

[dailyconniptions]

I'm 55 and have recently spent HOURS trying to sort this out, for cover until my 67th birthday when the pension kicks in.

I've finally gone with Royal London and the premium is £64 per month, but this doesn't increase over the term, apart from in line with the usual RPI

Is this ultra expensive or pretty average would people say? Yes I know it depends on many factors but I'm just hoping for a bit of reassurance! I'm on NMW in my job. Thanks in advance. 🙂

You are on NMW??? No not worth it at all

Why not? If I can't work due to illness, then what? Surely it's worth it. I live alone and can afford everything on my wages plus also save some too. I could manage on the monthly amount the insurance pays, if that's what you meant.

Put the money towards your pension as I’m guessing on NMW you don’t contribute much if at all

Does your employer not pay sick leave? I'm have income protection insurance because I'm self employed.

Employer pays 12 weeks. This is about if I'm off work long term, for example if I can never work again and have years to go until retirement.

I think you'd be better off paying it into a private pension.

What do you think universal credit is for?

Then you’d get state support
put the money in to your pension. Please!
how much is in your private pension if you have one?

Is that I cover your mortgage, benefits wouldn’t cover that, rent would be covered.

I don't have a mortgage or rent. Flat is paid off. I can't see how putting it into a pension would help, as pps have suggested. I only have a small private pension but a couple of reasonable workplace ones.

Have you pretty much always been on NMW?

Workplace pension is a private pension

Always in low paying jobs, yes. Ah OK, re pension.

Anyway, I really wanted to find out the kind of monthly figure others might be paying for Income Protection Insurance?

If they own there own property no kids you will literally get nothing cover your council tax water and a bit to energy but certainly not enough to live off plus there’s a qualifying period

Premium does not usually rise at all during the term. Mine hasn’t.
Not clear how much you are covering, typically it is 70% of gross pay but can be lower than that.
I cover enough for essential bills. I also have an emergency fund, so the insurance starts after initial 2 month period which keeps cost down.
I’m younger than you, so that may also be a factor. I pay £42 per month, covering £900 of income per month. You cannot really compare though, as many factors are involved in pricing insurance.

Like you I don’t have a mortgage. Statutory Sick Pay is a small amount so not sure why people think you should not have Income Protection insurance.

If you went to a Financial Advisor (don’t, not worth it about this) , I can almost guarantee that in your circumstances (no mortgage / no rent) and age and on NMW the FA would practically beg you to invest this £64 a month in your pension

Why? Because this op is on NMW and always has been, in her fifties, no mortgage/rent to worry about and likely very small pension

It’s a very good idea

I got really ill and couldn’t work and didn’t have this and had to force myself to take another job just to be able to pay my bills. First thing I did was organise this (though obviously once you’ve had a chronic illness, it’s much harder to get!). I wish I had had this. There was zero help from benefits for me.

Read the t and c very carefully.
Just as an example, I retired early on the advice of my neurologist due to being diagnosed with a progressive condition.
I had paid into an insurance policy for 30 years but they wouldn't pay out because my condition wasn't on their "list".
It was a tough few years until I could claim my state pension.

Your employer didn’t have sick pay?
Were you mortgage free?
in your mid fifties with a tiny pension on minimum wage?

A lot of companies only pay ssp £123 a week and even then that’s limited to 28 weeks

I don't understand why you keep mentioning a pension? Just to be clear, my pension predictions are fine, income will be similar to what I currently earn if i retire at 67. This is to cover my essential bills in the event of serious illness between now and then. Limited help from the state as I own my flat outright. I live alone. The pension would not help me tomorrow if I become too ill to work, whereas this does.

I was too ill to work and had to leave my job (this was/is a chronic illness which is still with me now, 3 years later). I am in my 50s and mortgage free.

I either sold the house I lived in to downsize to get some money or tried to recover some capacity and got another lower paying job with different expectations which I had to do

had I had income protection, I would have had a lot more options!

Thank you. This is so helpful and what I was trying to enquire about!

you could have been signed off
and if you could not continue work due to a debilitating health issue which had professional medical involvement - you’d have been entitled to benefits

The op may have over £16k of savings. So as they own their flat, no mortgage, what help from Universal Credit would they get if they were longterm sick?

Yes adding to pension is great, and I would be adding to ISA and easy access savings.

Given their age they could take out from pension if necessary but I don’t see how paying into pension would results in the £x per month of income that they would get from the insurance.

They may pay into this insurance for a year and then have 11 years of claiming.