0800 141 889It’s never fun to consider what would happen to you and your family should you become too sick or injured to work.
But it’s something that New Zealanders do need to think about – after all, according to the Financial Services Council, almost 85% of Kiwis don’t have any insurance in place to protect them from loss of income. They also point out that ‘there are nearly one million households with incomes above $20,000 that would be vulnerable if they faced a long-term illness that stopped a major earner in the household working.’
Why income protection insurance is so important
Protection against what the future may hold
While New Zealanders are generally more clued into the benefits of life insurance in case of their death, the same awareness of risk protection doesn’t appear to be the case for loss of income due to illness or injury.
However, we’re far more likely to find ourselves unable to work for a period of time than to die suddenly or prematurely during our working lives – in fact, 40% of working people become unable to work for at least six months at some point in their careers.
Income protection cover is a valuable insurance product that can provide peace of mind for you and your family, particularly for the self-employed who have no company sick leave safety net. You can insure up to 75% of your pre-tax salary, which will be paid monthly in the event that you’re unable to work due to sickness or injury. So, your mortgage payments, bills and living expenses will continue to be covered.
Why ACC and sickness benefit aren’t enough
One of the reasons why uptake of income protection insurance may be so low is that many people think they are fully covered by the NZ government safety nets of ACC and sickness benefit. However, this isn’t always the case, with ACC only applying in the case of injury and WINZ sickness benefit payments being means-tested based on total household income.
Therefore, income protection insurance remains the best way to protect your family from periods of unemployment due to accident or illness.
Income insurance: Compare the market in just a few clicks with Ease Insurance
At Ease Insurance we’re passionate about the benefits of income protection insurance for NZ families. That’s why we’ve made it as simple as possible to get quotes from 8 of the leading NZ income protection cover providers, direct on our website. Once you’ve received your quotes, we’ll be in touch to provide the guidance and expert advice you need to ensure that your income protection insurance quote is suitable for your needs.
Don’t hesitate to contact our insurance broker specialists for more information today!
