Archive for April, 2008

Suddenly losing your income would cause a great deal of upheaval in your life and your careful planning for the future would be thrown into disarray if you hadn’t got the money needed for all your essential outgoings. How would you find the income needed to continue feeding your family or be able to pay the electricity bill? All of these outgoings plus of course the most essential, paying your mortgage and loan repayments would build up. This would mean serious changes to your lifestyle would have to be made. That is unless you had taken out a form of back-up plan, and one excellent plan is income protection insurance.

Taken with a standalone provider such as British Insurance, income protection would cover possibilities such as losing your income through being made redundant. It would also safeguard your income if you were to be unable to keep working after you were involved in an accident or came down with an illness.

How much you would pay for a premium with British Insurance would be based on the amount needed to cover your monthly income and how old you are. Quotes are some of the lowest to be found and the peace of mind cover brings is well worth the cost. With British Insurance you could receive 12 monthly payments which can be used to cover all your expenses each month.

Income protection insurance can be used just as you would use your own income, to pay your mortgage outgoing each month, loan, credit card outgoings and of course to keep up with all commitments in general. This means no worrying or struggling to find money at the end of the month. With the security of a policy behind to rely on you are able to concentrate on getting well or of getting out and finding work again.

From 2006 – 2007, over 36 million working days were lost, which is on average 1 and half days for each worker. Some of these were down to ill health caused by the workplace and others being due to injuries happening in the workplace as a result of accident*. A huge majority of these people would have been left struggling to find the income each month to cover their mortgage repayments if they had not had the foresight to take mortgage cover.

The figures speak for themselves and are proof that accidents do happen. They also show that protecting your outgoings is essential and this is without considering sickness and unemployment through such as redundancy.

“I have savings” you may say, however you have to take into account the possibility that you could be relying on them for several months. Several months of mortgage repayments along with paying for groceries, heating, lighting and other essential outgoings would quickly drain those savings away.

The same applies to the belief that State benefits would maintain your repayments. There has been a big shake up and reduction in the help provided. If your mortgage was taken after October 1995 you could be waiting a full 9 months before you would see any money and even then it would only be for the interest part and up to the first £100,000. Exactly how much help you would receive would depend on your circumstances and there are many conditions to be checked.

A far more reliable way of protecting your repayments and ensuring you keep your home is by taking out mortgage cover. This type of protection is also called accident, sickness and unemployment benefit as this is what it covers. When taken with standalone provider British Insurance you can choose the level of protection. A full policy would provide cover for all three, alternatively you can either insure just for accident and sickness or just for unemployment. How much you pay in premiums will reflect this and your age.

As British Insurance can offer age related cover this means that for the younger generation cover is now more affordable than ever. Savings of up to 40% when compared with quotes from other providers can be made.

With mortgage cover you wouldn’t have to worry, because you would be protected from the 30th day with British Insurance and for up to 12 months. The income you received would be tax-free and be backdated to day one. If you shop around it is possible to find cover that lasts for up to 24 months but you have to check the starting date of any policy you are considering because some providers make you wait 90 days before cover would commence.

* Source: http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/

There is a way of protecting yourself against the possibility that you could lose your income while you have debt hanging over your head by way of credit card borrowings or loans. A specialist in payment protection offers loan insurance which would present you with a monthly tax free income to replace your lost one.

If you were to suffer from sickness that meant you were unable to go to work for at minimum 30 days, or have an accident then protection would kick in and begin payout. You would then receive 12 monthly repayments if you remained incapacitated or unfit for that long. That is if you take your cover out with specialists British Insurance. Other providers might offer different terms so check the conditions.

British Insurance offers protection that come with one of the lowest quotes to be found and when compared with the likes of lenders on the high street, you can make savings of up to a third on the cost of cover. You would have to ensure the suitability of loan protection, as while it can be a lifeline there are exclusions as with all insurance type cover. However British Insurance includes the least and they do give you all the information needed so that you can make your own mind up.

You might think any savings you had could be relied upon while you recovered or found work, but then you also have to consider the fact that you might have to rely on them for many months. Not only this, but you would also have to continue meeting any other outgoings, such as heating and lighting bills and putting food on the table. Savings would soon run dry and this could lead to seeing a decline in your credit rating if you were not able to preserve payments. This would make borrowing again next to impossible and in the worst case you could be making an appearance before a judge and gain a County Court Judgement. For a low monthly repayment with loan insurance, all of this could be avoided.

Loan protection insurance would allow you to keep up with any loan debts and credit card debt repayments when the monthly bill became due, if you did not have the income. You could lose your own income after compulsory redundancies at your workplace; if you were unlucky enough to be involved in an accident that left you unable to work for a long period; or if through illness you were incapable of working.

Loan insurance would cover all of these and therefore you would have no fear when the date for your repayments came around. It is essential to realise that a policy does not have to be taken out when you take out the borrowing. You can go online and compare quotes, and by doing so you will find that they vary both in price and terms and conditions. Historically, one of the cheapest possible quotes will come from standalone payment protection specialist British Insurance.

If you have British Insurance behind you, you would be entitled to receive an income after 30 days of continuous unemployment or after being declared unfit for work. After commencement all insurance policies will continue for a fixed time. If you have chosen British Insurance you would enjoy tax free payments for 12 months. There are some providers who offer policies that cannot be claimed against until 90 days after you became unable to work and some would offer coverage of your repayments for as long as 24 months. So do check the terms and conditions to ensure you buy the right level of cover for you.

Loan protection insurance can be an excellent form of income replacement to cover your loan repayments and would ensure that would not have any problem in future obtaining credit as you will not fall behind on your repayments which could negatively affect your ability to get credit in the future. While it can be very tempting to gloss over the terms and conditions, with loan cover you have to not only read them, but also understand what you are reading. If you do go to an ethical provider such as British Insurance you should be given access to information written out in easy to understand terms, which enables you to make the right choice for your needs.

Protecting your mortgage outgoings with mortgage insurance cover does not have to be expensive. Cover is available for just a fraction of the cost that other providers might charge, with ethical British Insurance. They offer one of best value for money policies (they regularly feature in the ‘Best Buy’ tables in the media) that comes with few exclusions and to make sure that you get the best possible from the policy, it is dated back to the first day of your claim.

This means that should you become unable to work due to illness, accident or involuntary redundancy, you will receive a tax free amount towards your mortgage repayments.

Depending on the type of employment you are in and other personal circumstances, you can take different levels of protection. For instance you could choose to protect against unemployment, or for incapacity. Of course your premium is based on this fact and also your age. British Insurance does not take into account factors such as if you are a smoker and you are not penalised if you enjoy a drink. Some types of insurance do take these and more into account and this boosts up the price of insurance, but mortgage cover does not.

A policy supplied by British Insurance would provide enough to cover the mortgage outgoings for a full 12 months if you were to need it. This would be from the starting date of 30 continuous days of unemployment or incapacity and then protection would stop after 12 months. It is possible that some providers might offer 24 months but do not forget to check when it would begin as with some providers it can be up to 90 days after the event before you are able to make a claim.

Mortgage protection cover is excellent in bringing peace of mind that you would not be at risk of falling into arrears through no fault of your own. You do have to check to be sure, before buying cover that you are eligible to make a successful claim, if you need to. British Insurance gives plenty of information and makes the key facts easily accessible on their website as well as sound advice if you need it.

The only way you can be sure that your circumstances would permit you to benefit from and claim on loan protection cover is if you read the FAQs that surround a policy. These can vary depending on the provider you choose for your protection. Independent providers are more likely to provide you with the information needed than lenders found on the high street. Those on the high street who provide a policy will only do so if you take out a loan from them, as a profit making add-on whereas specialists only sell payment protection.

An ethical specialist should warn you beforehand that protection might not be suitable as opposed to the lenders on the high street who push cover in order to make huge profits. Indeed if you select specialists in payment cover British Insurance, they will provide all the necessary information needed in order to buy the right cover. These will tell you about the exclusions and remind you that it is down to you to ensure suitability.

You can get 12 months of loan/credit card repayment cover once 30 days of unemployment has been reached or of not being able to work after suffering an accident or an illness. You need to be working in a full time position and you must live in the United Kingdom, Isle of Man or the Channel islands. If you are in self-employment then cover could be suitable, however you would only be able to make a successful claim if you stopped trading on a permanent basis. While there is an exclusion that would stop you from taking cover if you suffered an illness which was ongoing, if you had not suffered for 2 years prior to taking out the policy you would be eligible.

Anyone who borrows needs to give serious consideration to protecting their repayments in case of the unknown with loan protection cover. If you get behind on repayments it might be hard to get back on top of them, that is even if the lender gives you some leeway. Nine times out of ten, being known as a bad payer would affect your credit score and then future borrowing could be impossible.

Every individual who has mortgage commitments to make for 15 to 25 years worries about repossession. A loan such as this over this period of time with continuous payouts means that you have to remain in work and be bringing in an income. However there could be many spanners thrown into the works over such as a long time. Illnesses happen, as do accidents and you also need to consider the possibility of unemployment. Luckily, you can consider mortgage protection insurance as a way of ensuring you have a monthly income with which to meet your repayments should you become unable to work.

Mortgage cover can take the weight off your shoulders for a period of between 12 to 24 months continuously, depending on the policy terms and conditions. This is the term that cover would pay out for, and providers differ, so checking how long a particular policy continues is crucial as is checking the starting dates. Usually it is anywhere sandwiched in-between 30 days and the 90th day.

The cost of your protection will be based on the amount you pay out in mortgage repayments and related outgoings per month as well as how old you are. As age is taken into consideration when giving you a quote, this means that the younger generation can afford to take out protection against what are sometimes borrowings of up to 5 times more than their income. However all ages will find they can make huge savings when comparing a quote from independent provider British Insurance against their competitors.

A mortgage protection insurance policy can be chosen based on your needs. You might want full cover if you think your situation warrants it. However if you only need provisions in place in case of unemployment, you can choose to cover just this. Or if you are worried about being unable to work if you suffer from an illness for a period of time, or due to inability to be able to work after an accident, then you can protect against just this too.

In order for you to benefit from buying mortgage payment cover, you have to understand what it is and is not capable of doing. If you go to standalone specialist British Insurance when considering a policy you will be presented with the information needed to check the policy against your circumstances. These are namely the exclusions which are to be found in all policies and vary depending on the provider. Some are generally found and the basics ask that you are in full time work in the UK, Isle of Man or Channel Islands.

However this information is not the only reason why you should consider British Insurance as your payment protection insurance provider. Policies vary in cost and they offer one of the cheapest monthly premiums. Savings of up to 40% can be made if you compare with the likes of high street lenders.

You will also get a policy that comes with few exclusions, which would provide you with an income after becoming unemployed or after finding yourself unfit for work if you should suffer from an illness or accident. The income would be tax-free from the 30th day and dated back to the first day you came out of work or lost your job. Some providers state you have to wait 90 days before you could put in a claim. You could then enjoy 12 months’ protection which would mean paying your mortgage each month would not be a problem. Other providers could offer a maximum of 24 months payout.

Ensuring that you are able to maintain the repayments on your borrowing is essential if you are to keep your home. Lenders will only tolerate at the maximum 2 missed payments and then they would be in touch with you and could possibly start repossession proceedings. Mortgage payment cover will help you avoid this and this security would allow the policyholder to recover or give them space in which to secure another job.

For those who have the commitment of mortgage repayments each month, mortgage protection insurance cover can be a lifeline you can cling onto if you lose your own income. A loss of income can occur if you were to be involved in an accident and had to take time off from work. The same could happen if you were not well enough to work should you become ill. If you fell victim to unemployment by way of involuntary redundancy, then again you would have no income to rely on at the end of the month.

While you might be able to survive for a couple of weeks by relying on savings, a more serious accident or illness could mean a longer period without an income. It could also take a while to find work. You could of course apply for State benefits to take you through the hard times. However there is a lot of criteria that has to be met and one of them is you need to be eligible to claim income support from the State. Even if you were successful in your claim, any benefit you would be entitled to would only be towards repaying the interest only part on your mortgage.

While mortgage protection does have some conditions that must be met, you would be able to claim towards the monthly amount that you pay out for your repayments. This gives total security and you would not have to worry about the end of the month coming around, once you had ensured the protection suits your circumstances.

Once you had started to claim on your mortgage protection insurance cover, which is from day 31 with ethical, standalone providers British Insurance and up to 90 with others, a policy lasts for 12 or 24 months. You would receive a monthly tax-free sum to help you meet your mortgage repayments. After this period it is assumed that you would have had time to find work again or a full recovery would have been made and regardless, the policy would stop providing.

Mortgage protection cover can work as a back-up plan to provide you with an income to meet your repayments after being incapacitated which left you unable to work or if you suffered unemployment. This alleviates your biggest worry when losing your income, which is of course how you would manage to keep up with your repayments. If you cannot, then repossession is hanging over your head and threatening you the whole time you are recovering, or hinders your job search.

Mortgage payment protection insurance (MPPI) will only begin to provide an income should you be out of work for a continuous period, between 30 days with some policies and 90 days minimum with others. This lifeline then continues for period of either 12 months or 24, again set out by the provider. It is important to bear in mind that a policy assumes this is plenty of time to recover and get back to work or that the policy provides sufficient time to secure another job. It does not extend indefinitely and would end after the time specified in the conditions.

You also have to certify your eligibility to make a claim on the cover. Exclusions have to be checked so this is one policy where reading the small print is crucial. General conditions which need meeting include working in a full time job, being fit and well at the time of applying and being a full time resident of the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man or the Channel Isles.

Finding a standalone provider protection insurance provider who is ethical and provides information on all aspects of payment protection is also important. Buying direct from the high street banks and lenders will, in most cases, cost you much more that it needs to. While you could take out mortgage protection cover from you lender when going for your mortgage, this is not the best way to get the best deal. Simply by choosing to shop independently, you can get a quote with ethical provider British Insurance that means your pocket will be better off and you will have a quality product on which to fall back on.