Would you say it is your house, your car, boat? Or would it be your sense of humour, natural sense of optimism, or your outgoing personality.
Well how about your good health? If you couldn’t work, how long could you keep your current lifestyle going?
At the end of the day if you are injured or have an illness that incapacitates you, or severely limits your natural lifespan, the impact on your life is immeasurable.
Not only may you need to get more support for yourself, but in many cases your income is also affected, as you can’t necessarily work either.
Not only that, while you may have health insurance – will it cover the cost of the medical treatment required? Or it may be that you need some kind of treatment which isn’t covered by your health insurance policy at all – so what do you do then?
Income Protection insurance is a way that you can protect your income in case you get sick or injured. It can give you and your family piece of mind and financial security while you recover enough to get back to work
For some, having the choice of an early pay out on their life insurance policy gives them the freedom to make the right choices for them and their family. That might be a choice to tick off their bucket list; or look for alternative treatments that require them to travel away from home. For others, it’s all about being able to pay off the mortgage and get things set up for the family to reduce other areas of stress.
There is no right choice –because it depends on your personal and family circumstances, but the most important thing is that you can make the choice if the unexpected happens. And for many people, life insurance that includes a Trauma benefit; or Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) benefit is what will enable them to have choices at a time like this.
So what is the difference between these two types of benefits? Typically, TPD pays you a lump sum if you are permanently unable to work, or are permanently disabled no matter the cause, while Trauma can pay you a defined lump sum if you develop a serious illness or condition - like cancer, or a stroke, which seriously affects your quality of life.
If you want to know more about how Income Protection cover, Trauma or TPD benefits work come to Pinnacle Life. or, if you have more questions check out our 'Feeling Lost' pages.
