On the surface, the above question might seem a rather silly one. After all, no one considers a protection insurance product - such as critical illness cover or income protection insurance - with a view to buying poor-quality cover. And even an attractive ‘headline’ price will be of little use if the given coverage doesn’t protect against the risks the policyholder needs it to protect against.
However, many of us have been forced to consider quality versus price matters more frequently in recent times as far as protection insurance is concerned. So, let’s take a closer look at how you can best square this particular circle.
Make sure you’re purchasing the right type of insurance product
The term ‘protection insurance’ is a broad one, and the different forms of protection insurance tend to protect against very different things.
If, for instance, you are currently doing a life and critical illness cover comparison, it is important to appreciate that critical illness cover is designed to help protect the policyholder while they are still alive, but suffering from a serious illness such as cancer or a stroke. By contrast, life insurance only pays out when the policyholder dies, to their surviving family members. It is intended to give a measure of financial protection to the policyholder’s surviving dependants.
So, one of the very first steps to conquering the ‘quality or price?’ conundrum is to ensure you are purchasing the right protection insurance for your needs in the first place. This will help make sure you don’t spend money unnecessarily on ill-suited cover that you might not even need.
Get specific about what your protection insurance needs to include
It can reasonably be ‘taken as read’ that we all want the protection cover we buy to be of a high quality for our specific needs. So, that leaves the question of cost.
Not all the factors that typically drive up the premiums for a protection insurance policy - such as your age, marital status, job, or current health - are ones that you will be able to easily control, or control at all.
However, there are other things that you might be able to exercise a decent amount of control over, and that could help bring down how much your policy ultimately costs.
If, for instance, there is scope for you to reduce your current day-to-day living costs, or if you have savings that you could draw upon in the event of the worst happening, this could enable you to purchase a lower amount of cover than you initially intended. This, in turn, could reduce how much you are required to pay for insurance.
If you’re still struggling to balance quality vs costs considerations when you are looking into protection insurance policies, it can be useful to consider what would happen if the dreaded event occurred and you were uninsured. If, for instance, you became unwell and couldn’t work, would you have any support arrangements in place to help you in the absence of income protection cover?
Your answer to such a question as the above will help you determine what the risks truly are of being uninsured. Those risks might be higher - or for that matter, lower - than you first imagine.
Would you like to receive a bit more help with your search for suitable insurance, and to ensure you only purchase the cover that meets your needs and is available for an acceptable price? If so, you are very welcome to call our free no-obligation advice and quotation line, on 01604 436919, now.
