The increasing need for income protection

Everything is going up. Most of us have felt the pinch on our pockets resulting from the cost of living crisis and increasing mortgage rates. This can have a massive impact on stress levels to the extent that it can also affect people’s ability to work. Financial advisors have a duty to step back and take the time to explain to clients the possible impact of stress on household earnings. After all, if you were signed off work due to stress, how would you be able to keep up to date with your financial commitments?

Income protection makes sure that a percentage of your income is covered in the event of you not being able to work due to an illness or injury. Stress, anxiety and depression are some of the most common conditions cited in claims, with Aviva stating that 30% of their claims for income protection in 2022 were due to mental health conditions¹. One in four people will experience a mental health problem of some kind each year in England.²

It’s great to see that the stigma of talking about your mental health is slowly fading away. With more education out there, it’s now time the financial services industry followed suit and showed clients what products really could protect them in these tough times to ensure that finances are managed even in the worst case scenario. Not only will the insurance companies make sure that income is covered in the event of a successful claim, they have also added services within their policies which can help speed up the recovery period. For example, most providers have a 24-hour GP service available within their plans as well as rehabilitation support to help promote a speedy return to full health.

It really is a conversation worth having and one that may provide you with some all-important peace of mind in these challenging times.

Sources:

¹ https://connect.avivab2b.co.uk/adviser/articles/news/protection/Our-2022-individual-protection-claims-results/

² https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/statistics-and-facts-about-mental-health/how-common-are-mental-health-problems/