Telephone: 01483 212957
Protection policies are an extremely important part of successful financial planning. Apart from life assurance, the other protection policies include:
- Critical Illness Cover
- Income Protection Plans
- Private Medical Insurance
- Long Term Care
Critical illness Cover
These policies pay out in the event of you being diagnosed as suffering from one of a number of critical illnesses such as a heart Attack or cancer as defined by the insurance company. The illnesses covered can vary from insurer to insurer and therefore it is important to seek independent advice from Sapphire Asset Management to insure that you get the right policy.
Income Protection Plans
We will advise and arrange a suitable policy to provide you with an income should you be unable to work through accident, sickness or unemployment and we will source the best policy on the market for you. We will also take into account:-
- Any no claims benefit available
- That your chosen occupation class is fully catered for
- We can arrange for your benefits to increase each year
- Cover is available to both Employed and Self Employed Individuals.
Private medical insurance (PMI)
With NHS hospital queues still growing, private medical insurance is an appealing though often expensive buy. And what you pay for is what you get. Premiums are worked out on the basis of age and the type of cover required. And there is a wide range of different insurances to choose from.
At the basic level PMI clicks in when you need specialist treatment or you need to go into hospital. Some policies cover you if the NHS cannot provide treatment within a certain period of time.
At the luxury end of the market there are policies that cover a wide range of medical services such as dentistry, eye care and even spectacles, although the more a policy covers the higher the premium will be.
PMI is complicated for those approaching it for the first time. In order to make sure the policy you choose is the right one to meet your needs it is worth speaking to an adviser who has specialist knowledge in medical policies and can guide you through the maze of different offerings on the market.
Long-term care
We tend not to think about how to pay for long-term care until one of our relatives has to go into a residential or nursing home.
Average weekly nursing home costs can start at about £300 and reach over £500 (source: Laing and Buisson Market Survey of nursing home costs at the end of December 2001). By paying either a regular or single premium, the insured can add to the amount that may be available through state benefits to fund the cost of such care and this could mean having to deplete less or none of your assets to meet the cost.
This is why long-term care should form part of your discussion with your financial adviser. There is no doubt that the need for care is likely to increase as life expectancy continues to rise and with only limited care facilities available, the costs are likely to rise.
If you require more information, contact us on 01483 212957