• Home
• All Products
• Customers
• Press
• Contact Us
• About Us
• Affiliates
• Company
• Blog
• Help for Buyers
• Site Map

Protect your Mortgage and Lifestyle choose i:protect Insurance

Find out why iprotect are in the "UK's Top MPPI Providers" section of the on-line buyers guide published by consumer champion Martin Lewis on his website 'Money Saving Expert'. See our Links and Resources and 'Helping you choose the cover you need' section where you can select a link to take you directly to Money Saving Expert buyers guide.

On-line help provided so you can select the Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance, Mortgage Cover, Income Protection or Lifestyle Protection Insurance for your needs

There is a section dedicated to explaining Unemployment Insurance and how to choose the best value insurance for your individual circumstances

How do I know that i:protect offer the lowest premiums?

You don't have to take our word for it. Please see this article by the Personal Finance Editor of the Guardian dated 4 September 2010.  http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/sep/04/ppi-cover

And several other primary sources for independent advice and comparison include:

• FSA’s Money Made Clear comparison tables data since 10 September 2010, i:protect top for Payment Protection Insurance. For a typical buyer age 30-35 seeking £1000 Accident Sickness and Unemployment Insurance to cover their mortgage repayments and other expenses for one year, i:protect take the first 8 places for lowest premium out of the top ten policies. The Money Made Clear comparison tables are now transferred to the Money Advice Service (see below). Supported by the independent Consumer Financial Education Body. The Money Advice Service is a free, independent service set up by the government and funded by a levy on the financial services industry. "Because we're not selling anything ourselves, or for anyone else, you can trust our advice."

 

• Money Advice Service payment protection insurance comparison tables show i:protect continuing to dominate their comparison tables for offering cover at the lowest price for the majority of buyers of Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance up to 45 years of age.  This is a completely independent and unbiased consumer financial advice service. It is the only true comparison website as it does not charge the companies listed to be included. The Money Advice Service is i:protect's shop window in terms of the value for money cover we offer to our on-line customers. Don't forget commercial comparison websites charge commission, at least 25% of the premium you pay goes to the brokers running the price comparison service for Money Supermarket, Compare the Market, Confused, Beat that Quote and their smaller price comparison competitors. Click here for a simple guide to finding the lowest prices on the Money Advice Service website.  

 

• Money Saving Expert’s buyers guide to Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance (MPPI) continues to list i:protect as offering the “cheapest unemployment cover” for anyone under 45. They advise shopping around for MPPI to save up to £500. This is great assurance, especially because people are shopping around to save money on their insurance bills due to their household budgets being squeezed during the current recession.

The full i:protect range includes Unemployment Insurance and Loan Insurance that enable customers to choose the best value product to cover their needs. 

i:protect are not on price comparison websites. This means we do not pay them commission and fees, we pass on the savings to you instead. Compare i:protect Mortgage Protection Insurance with the equivalent policy advertised on MoneySupermarket and you will buy at a lower price through i:protect for any MPPI policy up to age 45 EVERY TIME.

Please click here to see 'Help choosing the cover you need'

We seek to revise and constantly improve the scope and content of the information we provide to customers and potential customers of i:protectinsurance. Therefore we would like to encourage you and other readers to ask questions and feedback through 'contact us' on any aspect of our Buyers Guide, Top Ten Tips etc. We believe in acting upon customer led improvement.

Though please bear in mind one very important point, i:protectinsurance is authorised to provide insurance by the FSA however we are not authorised to offer advice to individuals in respect of their individual insurance needs. We cannot offer what is called an 'advised sale' this is where specialist brokers and IFA's can assist you.

We do however hope to provide potential purchasers with a wealth of general information, including links to other relevant sources. These should enable you to make up your own mind. Treating customers fairly is a core value of i:protectinsurance and therefore we have only used examples which relate to this company and have  avoided comparison with others and have tried to be as objective as possible.

For a full list of iprotect articles, press releases and other free downloads to help you choose the most appropriate insurance for you, please click here.

 Mortgage Protection Insurance link to further information

Unemployment Insurance click for further information

Articles, Financial Protection information and publications are free to download as PDF's

 

 

Short Term Income Protection Insurance Buyers Guide

How to Buy “Unemployment Insurance”        Also available to download as a PDF - please click here

While the recession may be officially over, the economic climate in the UK remains bleak and cutbacks look set to continue for years to come. Many people are now looking for Income Protection Insurance to protect their income in the event of redundancy. But what do you look for when buying this kind of cover?

Most of us need to work in order to support a family and pay the bills. The majority of people tailor their lifestyle to suit their income, so if their earnings are suddenly withdrawn, they may find themselves in serious financial difficulties. This is inevitable as we all become locked into paying for certain things in our lives, such as a mortgage or rent, loans and regular household bills. These commitments must be met whether we are working or not.

Most people would like to have savings to fall back on if, for example, they are made redundant. However ‘real life’ can get in the way. For many, particularly first-time buyers and young families, saving a large sum of money for a ‘rainy day’ is simply impossible. This is usually because regular outgoings and living costs consume almost all household earnings. Income Protection Insurance is an economical alternative for people who are concerned about the impact of losing their job, but have little or no savings to pay their bills whilst they are looking for work.

How much?

Paying £30 to £40 a month for an insurance policy is far easier than saving, say, £12,000 in a contingency fund. Income Protection Insurance is designed to ensure you can still pay your bills in the event of job loss. However, it is vital that you do not rush into making a purchase without inside knowledge. You need to know what to look for, to check the policy is right for your needs and to ensure you are buying at the best price.

Ten Buying Tips

1. Look for the right product at the outset - don't waste your time.

The terms used by insurance companies can be confusing, so it is important that you know exactly what you are looking for. This is more complicated than it seems, as many insurance providers do not always name their products 'Income Protection Insurance' or 'Redundancy Cover'. You will sometimes need to look for 'Lifestyle Protection Insurance', ‘Unemployment Insurance' or something similar. Confusingly, full term Income Protection Insurance does not cover unemployment, it is actually for long term disablement until retirement and is sometimes called Income Protection Insurance (IPI) previously known as Permanent Health Insurance (PHI). Don’t waste time needlessly researching the wrong product.

If you want a policy to pay you out if you were made unemployed or your job was made redundant by your employer you need to look for (short term) Income Protection or Unemployment Insurance.

2. Ten percent saving or more selecting Mortgage Payment Protection

If keeping up the payments on your mortgage is your main concern, you may want to consider Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance (MPPI), as it is competitively priced and may be the best option to suit your needs. If you do not have a mortgage and just need to cover rent and living costs, you will want short term Income Protection sometimes called Lifestyle Protection.

3. Check on-line first

Research on-line is the best place to start to get a broad overview of the kind of policies available and the prices charged. Use comparison websites, such as Money Supermarket, as they will give you a good idea of which providers are out there and how they stack up against their rivals.

4. Get a feel for what the market will offer you from the comparison websites

When using comparison websites, restrict yourself to the biggest, best known ones. Other supposed comparison websites simply want to sell on your contact details and leave you open to a world of spam mail and junk calls, which is not pleasant for anyone.

5. Big brands mean big premiums, look for the specialist

Specialist providers have the best reputation for offering value for money. Unfortunately, you may not be familiar with the names of these companies, which makes using comparison websites useful to identify them. Money Saving Expert recommendations for Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance are also a good option for finding the best value providers.

6. Selective Underwriting means lowest prices

The providers with the lowest premiums are almost always those that are particularly selective about whom they cover. If you are fortunate enough to meet their criteria, you can expect to pay a lot less than you would from other less discerning providers. You will find it works the opposite of motor insurance, as the older you are, the more expensive your cover will be.

7. Don't have a steady job? Good deals are hard to find

Many providers will not be willing to offer you insurance if you have been made redundant in the last year, have been your job for less than six months, or work for a company which has begun to make cutbacks. You may find that only the most expensive will be prepared to cover you, particularly if you work in areas of the economy where job losses are forecast such as, in 2011; Local Authorities or public works civil engineering.

8. How Underwriters view your application

You are unlikely to be offered instant cover, as providers like to make thorough checks on your situation before they accept your application. They may focus on your employer to see if cutbacks are planned, and look into your medical background if your policy includes accident and sickness cover.

9. Although their service adds to the price, brokers can help

A local mortgage broker or an IFA can usually sell you with a suitable insurance policy, but you rarely get a choice of provider. Naturally, you should expect to pay considerably higher premiums because you are relying on their professional expertise and they handle all of the paperwork for you. With this option, it is important you know exactly what your requirements are before you speak to an intermediary. Just bear in mind they are very likely to see any discussion as an opportunity to also sell you a whole host of financial and insurance products.

10. Always complete an application honestly

To ensure that people don't take out Income Protection Insurance just before their employer publicly announces redundancies, insurers all have an exclusion period (between 90 to 180 days) after your policy starts. This means you can't claim for unemployment that arises during this period. It is intended as an anti-fraud measure, but it is possible for an entirely innocent person to be caught out by a sudden change in their employer's fortune, so it is something you need to be aware of.

Is Income Protection Insurance Worth the Money?

The recession and negative economic climate has meant that the number of people claiming on their Income Protection Insurance policies has rocketed. Also, as jobs are harder to find, UK specialist provider i:protect Insurance statistics show that the average length of time people are out of work seeking employment has risen from under 6 months to close to 8 months.

People buying Income Protection Insurance usually select around £1,000 as their monthly benefit. This covers their critical bills and household expenditures. These policies also pay for free assistance to help claimants find employment again, including help with their CV, job searching and interview techniques (usually called a ‘back to work’ service).

Income Protection Insurance is a sensible option to help ease the financial pressure of potentially losing your job and being out of work for more than just two or three months.

Policy claim payments are not taxed and you are not prevented from claiming for any State Benefits to which you are entitled. One of the added bonuses for people who do claim, is the knowledge that because they are receiving enough to pay their critical bills, they can focus on getting another job. More importantly they have the time to get the job they want, rather than being forced to take the first job that comes along due to spiralling debts.

Author: Dennis Haggerty FCII  M IDM Income Protection Insurance Expert.  First published April 2011

Also available as a free to download PDF 

 

There are other providers of Payment Protection Insurance and other products designed to protect you against loss of income. For impartial information about insurance, please visit the website at www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk

Welcome - Save money with i:protect insurance, much more cover than just Redundancy Insurance