Income protection insurance

[impulsive25]

Hi, can I ask for advice/experience on how to organise critical illness cover?

Im late 40s, employed and a relative has sadly been diagnosed with cancer which has made me think about this

What makes a difference in price: medical history obviously, more than 6 months in a job? I can wait 12 months for it to pay out also

lastly, has anyone had difficulty with insurers not paying out?

[Title edited at OP's request]

I would speak with a broker. They would be able to help you look at all the options.

Medical history and age for critical illness cover. Smoking, family or personal history of illness will hike your premiums, and the longer you leave it the more it will cost.

CI cover is typically more expensive than life insurance as you are statistically more likely to be diagnosed with a critical illness than die during your mortgage term.

Also depends what sort of payout you want - if it's to cover bills while you're off work then you're looking for payment protection rather than CI. CI usually pays out a sum upon diagnosis.

Dont bother - they will do everything in their power to not pay out. Including that you omitted to put on the form that you had a verucca when you were 9.

Are you looking for income protection or critical illness cover? IP is linked to your employment and designed to replace some of your salary while off work, and pays out for a wider range of conditions - which makes it the more expensive product.

CIC covers more serious, life-threatening conditions and usually is set up to pay out a lump sum if you survive more than 14 days from diagnosis. I would use a broker to do the legwork for you in comparing different policies/providers. If you choose to do it yourself then my best advice would be that you look for a policy where all the underwriting is done upfront before the policy is accepted/goes into force. It may cost a little more than the cheapest policies but is far more likely to pay out, with no fuss, in the event of you making a claim in the future.

Thanks for the replies

i am looking for income protection if I could not work due to illness/disability- to cover the mortgage

I already have life insurance and am employed (with decent sick pay), so it’s really to insure against not being able to return to work if I was ever really ill. I could manage on about half my salary if needed I think

Currently trying to find out what company offers if anything beyond sick pay, and thinking I could manage without a payment for a year at least (sick pay + my savings), also I guess I could also access pension funds after 55 or so, on which case no need to go right to 68

is there anything else I should be thinking about?

I used a fantastic broker recently to set mine up. He talked me through the whole thing and secured me a really good package, that offers everything I hadn’t really thought about - critical illness cover (for me and the kids), income protection, cover of up to some millions (I can’t remember exact amount) for international treatment for me and the children, mortgage protection etc.

Happy to pass on his details if you’d find it helpful. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind me sharing.

Check out your employer's offering first. If it's a very large organisation, as well as offering long sick pay, they may also have some sort of insurance policy they shift you onto when that expires.

@Chewbecca: thanks, am chasing HR for this today

@TokenGinger: yes please, thanks a lot

Of course, I’ll figure out how to send a message now and will send over the details x

I went for income protection but not critical illness. Went through a broker.

Thank you

I think it’s income protection that I need actually not critical illness

Do you have an intranet? All details should be on there.

I’ve found sick pay details, but wondering if the company has a (paid for) group policy for income protection

I also need to find out if the death in service offers any benefits too

Employer Income Protection benefit, its much rarer these days as its so expensive! But like others have said, always good to understand what your employer does offer so you don't duplicate by buying more cover.

Thanks - been looking into various options today

I have income protection insurance, organised via work flex benefits scheme.

Just one thing to look out for - mine only pays out for 5 years if i do need it. Make sure whatever you buy meets your needs in terms of both payout AMOUNT and PERIOD.

I took out Income Protection insurance about two years later had to claim on it. I haven’t been able to work since and the steady income it provides has been great.

You can shave the cost down by building in a delay to the start of cover (I had sick pay from work for the first 12 months) and by opting for a smaller monthly payout if you do need to claim. If you become too ill to work the amount you can claim in benefits is an absolute pittance - just £92 a week. Having a few hundred pounds in IP a month can make a huge difference to what you can afford while you’re ill.

We have just taken this out for my husband whose income supports our family. We did it through an excellent insurance broker.
Medical history, how much you want to receive each month, how long a delay you are willing to have before you start receiving the benefit - all this will affect your payments. It is always higher than life cover because you are much more likely to not be able to work due to illness than being dead.
Because we are claiming the highest monthly payments from the insurance company (husband a high earner), the medical stuff is quite hardcore (in person health checks by insurance company, all medical records requested, cotinine test required).
Absolutely worth it for the peace of mind IMO.