Frequently Asked Questions
Basic answers to, what we have found to be, the most commonly asked protection insurance questions.
Whilst we hope you find these helpful, please remember that no two peoples needs and situations are the same, so these FAQ’s are not a substitute for seeking professional advice.
Yes – Many of our clients are self-employed or Limited company Directors. If you were unable to work due to illness or injury, and would receive a reduced or no continuing income, income protection insurance could be for you. There are plans available where you can begin a claim from as early as Day 7 of your inability to work. As with all protection insurances, it’s important to get advice based on your personal needs and circumstances before you commit, as each Insurance Provider will have their own T&C’s and underwriting conditions
Yes – There are UK insurance Providers who have policies available that cover ‘high risk’ occupations, sports and hobbies, for both amateurs and professionals. However, it’s important to get advice based on your personal needs and circumstances before you commit, as each insurance Provider will have their own T&C’s and underwriting conditions.
On average, UK insurance Providers will allowed you to cover up to 65% of your income. If you are employed, that means your Gross Annual Income, including overtime and bonus. If your self-employed, that means your Net Taxable Income, and if your a Limited Company Director, that means your annual salary and dividends. It’s important to get advice based on your personal needs and circumstances before you commit, as each insurance Provider will have their own T&C’s and underwriting conditions.
This is an area of insurance we don’t advise on. However, if you visit our ‘Motorsport Vehicle Insurance’ page, you will find information to assist you to identify companies and/or resources that can help you.
There are some plans available in the UK market that can pay a set amount in claim, on the basis that you can prove and satisfy a minimum income per annum requirement, opposed to the more common policies that pay a percentage of your income. It’s important to get advice based on your personal needs and circumstances before you commit, as each insurance Provider will have their own T&C’s and underwriting conditions.
This is a tricky one. You can, as long as both of your income protection policies don’t take your total allowable benefits in a claim (how much the insurer pays to you during your claim period) above each of the policy Providers ‘percentage of insurable income’ terms. In the event of a claim, you would have to declare this information to each of the insurance Providers, who would then undertake checks to assess your eligibility, which may affect a payment in a claim. In the vast majority of cases, you would only need a single income protection policy. As you can gather, this is not clear cut, so it’s extremely important to get advice based on your personal needs and circumstances before you commit, as each insurance Provider will have their own T&C’s and underwriting conditions.
You can have as much life cover as you would like, as long as you can afford the ongoing monthly premiums and, from the perspective of ‘best advice’, there is a clear rationale for that amount of cover. When you get advice from a whole of market protection insurance intermediary, like Properly Protected, the recommendation(s) you receive are based on your needs and personal circumstances. For business protection, cover will be assessed on the needs of you, the shareholders, and/or your company.
This is not easy to answer. It would be dependant on factors including your circumstances and advice from your company accountant. Certain insurances could be put through your business, such as Key Person insurance and business protection. Whilst it is possible to have your business pay for certain protection insurances, you would need to discuss the tax implications of doing this with your accountant. As you can gather, this is not clear cut, so it’s extremely important to get professional advice before you commit.
Yes – it is possible to cover your children. There are certain UK insurance Providers who’s plans have the option of including enhanced benefits to cover children. So, if your child sustained a covered fracture / had an overnight hospital stay due to an accident, or they suffered a covered critical illness, you could make a claim on your plan in relation to this. It’s important to get advice based on your personal needs and circumstances before you commit, as each insurance Provider will have their own T&C’s and underwriting conditions.
No – Our Advisers are available for both day time and evening appointments, at a time to suit you and these can be via phone, remote video call or, where geographically feasible, in person.
There are policies available in the UK that can offer immediate cover. However, whether these are suited to your needs is subject to your personal circumstances. Therefore, it’s important to get advice before you commit, as each insurance Provider will have their own T&C’s and underwriting conditions.
It totally depends on your personal circumstances and the extent of advice you need. In cases where only one area of risk is identified (e.g. the absence of an ongoing income in the event of inability to work due to sickness/injury – so there is a need for income protection), initial appointments can be completed in around 30 minutes. For cases where there are multiple areas of risk to consider (e.g. those looking for advice on business protection insurance, as well as personal protection), appointments will take longer.
It can take anything from 10 minutes to two hours. It’s very important that you feel confident that you fully understand the advice we have given, the products we have recommended, and why/how they suit your identified needs. We want you to feel able to ask as many questions as you need, so you can make an informed, confident decision. If that means we need to book an additional appointment, we’ll be all too happy to do so.
No – we don’t charge any fees for advising on, or for the arranging of, protection insurance products. Instead, we receive commission from the insurance Provider for all plans we have arranged, that go ‘In-Force’. Furthermore, we won’t charge you for updating your details/information, late payments or if you cancel (NOTE: we are not the insurer, so please refer to Terms & Conditions of your policy Provider for their terms in relation to amendments, late payments and cancellations). Whilst it is not our current practice, for business clients, where it is deemed both appropriate and agreeable, we can charge an agreed fee in relation to the arranging of business protection. In cases where we have referred a client to a member of our 3rd Party Introducer panel for advice/services on products that we do not offer, and these are subsequently taken up, we may receive an ‘Introducers Fee’ from the advising company in relation to this.
No – you make payments for Protection insurance products on a monthly basis, and only once your plan(s) are ‘In-Force’.
Whilst there is no legislative requirement for us to conduct client reviews, we feel it is important and therefore endeavour to offer you a review annually. However, as changes to your personal circumstances can happen at any time, we strongly recommend that you let us know about changes as soon as possible, so we can arrange a review of your current plans/cover to reassess suitability.
No – a mortgage Provider does not require you to have life cover in place to secure a mortgage. The only plan a lender would want to see is in place is Buildings insurance.
Properly Protected Ltd is an Independent Protection Advice Firm, who is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). We will send you full documentation in relation to the advice we give, including the information we have gathered about you that formed the basis of our advice, and the rationale behind our product recommendations. We also retain the services of an external independent compliance company, who conduct random checks of the advice we give our clients. These processes allow both transparency and accountability in relation to the advice we give, and in doing so, supports the firm in its desire to demonstrate it’s commitment to acting in the best interests of it’s clients and thus, building client confidence.
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