Aussies easily get confused by Income Protection attached to their life insurance products. This is because most of us don’t fully understand the advantages of income protection.

So, let’s go ahead and discuss the reasons why do we need income protection. At this point, you’ve probably started to save up for your retirement, so what’s in it for you? Well, this type of insurance will potentially replace approximately 75% (plus 10% towards superannuation) if you are unable to go to work due to sickness or injury. There are heaps of benefits that you can take from it. Here are 8 of them:

Continue Paying Mortgage

A survey by the insurer—Asteron Life, revealed the following motivations of some Aussies to get income protection:

  • 46% of the respondents say it’s because they wanted to get Mortgage.
  • 35% says it’s because they are having kids.
  • 29% says it’s for retirement.

New homeowners find themselves buried to a mountain of debts as soon as their home loan gets approved. A heap of these loans doesn’t get paid off for years, some even reach decades. Now, if you get stuck with an injury or illness and is no longer able to work, how are you going to pay those repayments?

Continue Paying Debts

Getting sick would not write off your bills and debts. On the contrary, as if recovery is not painful enough, you’ll probably acquire more debts due to the lack of income. Talk about kicking people while they’re down, eh? Income protection can make it easier for you.

Keep Your Focus on Recovery

You certainly don’t want to find stress on the other side of the bed while you’re sick and bedridden. Stress will make your recovery harder than it already is. It’d be nice if you can keep your mind off debts and bills while trying to get better, wouldn’t it?

Maintain your Quality of Life During the Interim

The lack of income is no news with you being unable to work. But with income protection, your lifestyle and routine won’t necessarily have to change drastically. Especially, if your incapacitation is not supposed to last for a very long time.

Safety Net for Those Who Don’t Qualify for Worker’s Compensation

If you’re lucky, you may qualify for worker’s compensation, but only if you get injured at work. Although, the amount that you will get from worker comp will likely be less than your income protection. Additionally, workers comp won’t cover you for any illness or injury outside of the workplace, so income protection provides an awesome safety net.

Financial Security for the Family

Medical bills would eventually take a toll on your household budget. But with the right Income Protection set perfectly for you, you’ll be able to write off those medical bills. Protecting your household budget and ultimately sparing the whole family from an additional heap of stress. Furthermore, the aforementioned Asteron Life survey accounts two in five Aussies, saying that they feel “peace of mind” that their families won’t have to be burdened with medical bills, once they get insurance.

Conclusion

While we certainly don’t want to have bad things happening to us, we can’t shy away from its possibility either. Again, based on Asteron Life’s survey, 28% of all income protection claims are due to accidents. Accidents are naturally unpredictable, so it’s ideal to be prepared. Not to mention, health risks such as cancer or stroke are most likely unexpected. The numbers don’t lie and the odds are obvious, talk to your insurance adviser today!