Income Protection
Protection: Keep Life on Track, Even If You Can’t Work
Your income is what keeps everything moving – from paying the mortgage and bills to covering everyday living costs. But what would happen if illness or injury stopped you from working?
Income protection is designed to provide a regular monthly benefit if you’re signed off work for medical reasons — helping to cover essential outgoings like your mortgage, utilities, food and other living costs until you’re able to return.
You choose:
How much cover you need (usually a percentage of your income)
When the payments start (known as the deferred period)
And how long the benefit will last (short-term or until retirement)
Policies can be adjusted if your income changes, and in some cases may include stepped benefits — supporting a gradual return to work with reduced hours.
Unlike some other types of insurance, many income protection policies:
Remain active even after a claim
Won’t increase in price just because you’ve claimed
Can cover self-employed and employed clients alike
At Clear Path Mortgages, we’ll help you understand how this cover fits into your wider plan — so you can feel confident that your lifestyle, and your family’s, is protected if life takes an unexpected turn.
Understanding Your Income Protection Policy
When setting up income protection, there are a few important features to consider. These help tailor the policy around your personal and financial circumstances:
Deferred Period (Waiting Time)
The deferred period is the length of time you wait before the policy starts paying out after you’re unable to work. You can usually choose from 4, 8, 13, 26, or 52 weeks.
If you’re employed, this often aligns with your sick pay entitlement. If you’re self-employed or don’t receive sick pay, you’ll need to think about how long you could manage financially without income. Choosing a longer deferred period usually reduces the cost of your monthly premium.
Indexation (Inflation Protection)
Some providers offer the option to link your cover to inflation. This means your monthly benefit — and your premium — increases each year in line with the Retail Price Index (RPI) or by a fixed percentage.
It’s a valuable feature to consider, especially if you’re taking out long-term cover. As the cost of living rises, this option helps maintain the real value of your benefit over time.
How Much Does Income Protection Cost?
The monthly cost of your income protection policy will depend on a few personal factors — but it’s always built around what you’re comfortable paying.
Some of the main factors that influence your premium include:
Your age
Your job type and level of risk
Any relevant health history
The amount of income you want to protect
Your chosen deferred period (how long you wait before the benefit kicks in)
Whether or not you smoke
At Clear Path Mortgages, we take time to understand what matters most to you. We’ll compare policies from a wide panel of trusted providers and guide you through the options — including how long your cover should last and when it should start paying out — so your plan is shaped around your lifestyle, not just your job title.
Our goal is to make sure you feel confident in your cover, and that it gives you the right balance between protection and affordability.