Accident Disability Insurance

Accident Disability Insurance

In life, there are many unforeseen things that can happen – failing a driving test due to a stall on the hill start, or tripping up just as your about to take a penalty kick, and sending the ball skywards. However, as much as these events are annoying or embarrassing, one of the most disastrous unforeseen event is having a serious accident, or even worse, suffering some form of disability because of it.

Although something like this is bad enough on its own, when you counter in the fact that it may happen to you while you have a mortgage, and you still need to make payments even though you’re not working, and the overall feeling can be one of helplessness. However, if you have accident or disability insurance, then some of the worry can be disposed of.

Why Do I Need Accident Disability Insurance?

One of the most common mistakes people make is in thinking that their National Insurance Tax covers them for disability. While this was true to a certain extent prior to 1995, this has changed dramatically since then. Due to a change in how long-term sickness was covered by state payments, you will only be liable for help from the government if you’re disabled to such an extent that you cannot work at all.

Even then, the most you can expect to receive from the government is a paltry £60 per week – barely enough to pay for the most basic of household bills, or a week’s shopping, never mind taking the cost of a mortgage into account. Worse still, any disability payment from the government is applicable to tax, so you’ll be lucky if you even receive the complete already ridiculously small sum.

Something else to keep in mind is the research carried out by Norwich Union, which shows that almost 2 million people are currently off work due to an injury or long-term illness. Couple that with recent statistics that show you’re more likely to suffer a long-term illness before you’re 65 than you are dying (up to 20 times greater, in fact) and you can see why accident or disability insurance is so important.

What Am I Covered For?

If you do decide to take out accident or disability insurance cover, it’s very easy to understand. As the name suggests, you are covered in case you need to make a claim involving either n accident or disability. The amount of time you are covered for depends, although the general length of cover for an accident is usually 12 months.

If you’re unfortunate to have a more serious problem that results in disability, this will determine how long you need to make a claim for. Like the accident cover, it will usually be for a maximum of 12 months – however, if you’re going to be incapacitated or disable for a longer period of time, there may be a cover that takes this into account. The best thing to do is to speak with your insurance advisor at the time of opening the policy.