Ensuring that you can continue to pay your mortgage if you’re off work through sickness should be one of your main priorities. Without it you may have to rely on your savings in order to meet your financial commitments as government support is limited.
But how does accident and sickness insurance work? And what should you look for when you compare mortgage protection insurance quotes?
What is mortgage sickness insurance cover?
Sickness mortgage protection insurance is designed to pay a monthly sum to you in order that you can maintain your mortgage payments if you’re off work after an accident or through illness.
Most MPPI sickness cover policies will also allow you to cover an additional monthly amount to help you meet your other main household bills.
Sickness mortgage insurance typically covers you until you return to work or for a fixed period (typically 12 months).
A mortgage sickness insurance cover policy will have a ‘deferred period’. This is the amount of time you have to wait before you make a claim. For example, if the policy you choose specifies a deferred period of 26 weeks you would not start receiving payments until you'd been unable to work for 26 weeks.
This also means that you would have to continue to meet your mortgage payments from your own resources for this period.
What to look for when you compare mortgage protection insurance quotes
When you’re shopping around for accident and sickness insurance you should take the following into account:
- The number of months’ worth of cover
- The maximum percentage and amount of cover you can buy
- Whether the policy covers accident and sickness
- What the deferred period is
With dozens of sickness mortgage insurance policies on the market, it’s a good idea to compare before you buy. As well as comparing the monthly cost it’s also important to compare the quality of cover that is offered.
For example, how long will your chosen mortgage sickness insurance cover policy pay out for? Most policies will make payments for a maximum of 12 months although other options are available.
Similarly, you should make sure you can cover your mortgage payment in full.
Different insurers have different limits on the amount of cover you can buy. Typically you can benefit from covering around 50-60% of your income to a maximum of £1,500 to £2,000 per month so you need to make sure this will be sufficient.
When you compare mortgage protection insurance quotes you should also determine whether the policy covers you for both accident and sickness. Whether there are restrictions on claims relating to pre existing conditions and if there are any other criteria that you'd need to fulfil in order to receive payments in the event of a claim.
Additionally you must always check what the ‘deferred period’ is on the policy. You may pay less if you choose MPPI sickness cover with a long deferred period but you’ll need to make sure you can pay your mortgage in the meantime.
You should get quotes from a number of different providers and the choose the policy that gives you the benefits you need for the cheapest price.
