Has anyone got personal accident cover, I am single mum of one, and halifax rang me, but it has been making me think.

[piratecat]

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not sure what product you're referring to? Is it income protection in the event of accident/sickness/unemployment?

it was this one

www.halifax.co.uk/insurance/personalaccidentplan.asp

If the Halifax have been ringing you and encouraging you to get it, then it probably isn't the best value for money. From looking at it, it will only pay out if you're injured, but you're more likely to have an illness that stops you working. There's an article about income protection insurance here - which covers illness or accident. I think that it's pretty expensive though. DH and I have life insurance, and we keep thinking about income protection insurance but put it off because of the cost.

Message withdrawn

I've got it but its a waste of money. I took it out with Norwich Union when I was younger as I figured out that I was more likely to die in an accident than of disease etc.

It's cheap i.e £1.99 a month but I think you should look at life insurance instead. It may cost around £10 per month depending on your age etc, but would pay out if you die for whatever reason not if you happen to be hit by a truck, god forbid.

The down side of life insurance is that it only lasts at the cheaper rates for a certain period of time. Say 15 years as the older you get the more chance of you dying. So you have to start again with increased premiums until you get to 70 then its inaffordable.

The Halifax have cold called me a couple of times and I've told them that imo its worthless, unless I do get hit by a truck tomorrow!!!!

Sorry I was talking about personal accident death insurance, I think.

This sounds like something else, how much did they charge for it. Agree that some insurances are very expensive.

hi

this one pays out on all sorts of accidents, like toe lost. it's about 10 a month, and pays out on illness and also covers you dc.

i don't work atm, so it's not an income replacement thingy.
it does say that the payouts are less for the children but will be detailed in the policy documentation, so i'd have to ring up to find out those details as can't seem to find them on there.

www.firstassistinsurance.co.uk/halifax/healthcaredb/personal_accident_policy_summary.pdf

No, unless you regularly frequest A&E.

As someone pointed out you are more likely to get ill than have an accident. If you don't work anyway, I'm not sure how this would affect your incomings anyway?

Does it also include life insurance in that? If not I wouldn't touch it. How many people lose a toe etc. lol.

I think you could get a good value life insurance for £10 a month. Then you would have peace of mind in case the worst happened so your DC's would have financial support.

I have got a mortage life insurance so I know that DD would be OK if I went but I don't have a life insurance as I smoke and the premiums go up considerably. Making a note to quit again soon.

I have no idea what ive got, but i pay 20 a month and if i peg it, who ever looks after the dds gets something...a monthly something to contribute towards thier keep.
But if i dont die, then i get a lump sum at the end of the term. 15 years...only 4 to go...avoids buses, falling trees etc lol

Charliecat, sounds a reasonable deal. Do you get a lot more than you paid in after 15 years? I think I've also got something like this but I only get back what I've paid in. Therefore they have had my money to use and gain on it. I probably got a dumb deal, I think they are hoping I lose the paperwork.

I havent done the sums. It get bonuses etc. Sum assured is 3,500. 20x12x15...errrrrr no idea...

Charliecat, quick calc makes that £3,600 paid in.

I trust that the insurance companies make plenty of money and unless you peg it at 45 etc they are quids in.

And iirc the man who signed me up got 100 quid for doing so. Remember reading the small print and thinking Hmm he didnt tell me that
So i get back what i put in, plus bonuses. Which I guess they cream off the top of..
I would never save £5 a week otherwise so is good for me.

Just remember to look at the policy when its due to mature and make sure that we both cash in at the right time. I'm sure I've kept it somewhere.

If you don't work right now, then I can't see much point in getting that kind of insurance. It's designed for people who have large commitments (e.g. mortgages) who wouldn't be able to cope on a reduced income or benefits if they suddenly developed MS, had a stroke or were hit by a bus. You are already coping just fine on a reduced income, so what would be different?

Life insurance is a really good deal, as it will pay out a lot more than you put in (on the assumption that you won't die young). If you don't die within the term then you get nothing, but that's the whole point of insurance, in my opinion, to cover you for things that you couldn't possibly deal with yourself. Ours will go until DD2 is 21, after that we reckon that they should be OK to look after themselves if we both go.

Otherwise, it's better just to save up a bit of money to act as a financial cushion, as then you'll get the interest on it. It does take a bit of discipline, but I have a standing order into a savings account on the day that our money goes into our account - if we don't ever see it, we can't spend it!

i understand about the commitments thing. Yet i thought it would be a huge help if god forbid i did have an accident? Help towards paying soemone else to help me cope with care or school runs, that type of thing.

It payys £75k on death. DD has noone else to look out for her.

Sorry, I hope I wasn't abrupt. I completely agree that it's a good thing to think about your DD if the worst were to happen to you. I think that a lot of people brush it under the carpet, as it's not a nice thing to have to face up to.
It's probably much better value for you to get regular life insurance though. Like I said, you are much more likely to fall ill than have an accident. And in either case, your benefits would increase to help you cope with needing extra care. Whereas if you died there would be no money coming in from you, and life insurance would provide money for your DD's guardians. You can shop around for life insurance, as the premiums can vary a lot. We have term insurance, which as I said, won't pay up if we don't die within 25 years, but I would consider that a good outcome! And the premiums are much, much cheaper for term insurance. We have fixed premiums too, so they can't increase them if one of us turns out to have a nasty disease.
One last thought (honest!) - do you have a will? With a will you can set out exactly who you would want to look after DD, and who you would want to look after the money from the insurance. They don't have to be the same person, but obviously if you picked different people they would need to get on! It would be another way of protecting your DD's interests if the worst happened.