What is Income Protection
Income protection offers you financial security for you and your family if you are unfortunate enough to be out of work because of an illness and suffer a loss of earnings as a result of a disability, an injury or an accident. If you are unable to work we will pay you the agreed monthly benefit, after a short waiting period which is chosen by you at the outset of your policy. This income is a weekly benefit payable after a deferred period of 4, 8, 13, 26 or 52 weeks. The deferred period is the length of time between when the illness is first diagnosed and when you start receiving an income benefit. Benefit will continue until you are able to return to work or your selected retirement age (up to age 65), whichever happens first.
What does my plan cover?
Your plan will protect your income against:
- any illness
- any injury
- any disability or
- any accident
It is important to note that an Income Protection Plan does not cover redundancy, it provides for replacement of income if you are unable to work due to ill health that is medically certified.
Why do I need Income Protection?
When illness, injury or disability leaves you unable to work, you need to know that you can stay on top of the bills that matter and maintain your lifestyle. If you do not have an alternative source of income, how would you maintain the lifestyle that you’ve grown accustomed to? The State Illness Benefit amounts to just €10,556 per annum (€203 per week) for a single person and €0 if you are self employed. Could you survive on this? (This has temporaly been increased to €305 because of Covid 19)
Is Tax Relief available on premiums?
Yes, tax relief is available on income protection premiums
- Personal Tax relief is available of up to 41% on premiums
If you are a Company Director, it is possible to pay for income protection through your business – the premium can be offset against corporation tax.
Is there tax on income benefit?
Income Protection policies provide you with a replacement source of income, therefore it is still subject to the normal tax regime that applies to you.
Does income protection cover redundancy?
Income Protection Plan does not cover redundancy, it provides for replacement of income if you are unable to work due to ill health that is medically certified.
How long will you pay the benefit if I'm out of work?
Income Protection pays you a regular income until you are able to return to work or until the end of the policy term.
How many times can I claim on this policy?
You can submit claims on your Income Protection policy as many times as you require benefit, right up until the end of the policy term.
What do I do if my salary changes?
There is an automatic benefit on this policy which allows you to increase the cover on your policy by 20% of the original cover every three years without having to provide evidence of health. You can also select the Indexation Option on your policy. This means that your benefit will increase by 3% and your premium will increase by 3.5% each year on your plan. This can help ensure that your benefit automatically stays in line with any salary increases and with inflation. All of these options help ensure that as your salary increases, so will your Income Protection. If these options are not selected, you can contact us to increase your benefit as your salary changes. This type of increase will be subject to evidence of health. Note: The maximum income that can be provided is 75% of your salary, less State Illness Benefit of €10,192 (2010) per annum for employees. State Illness Benefit is not paid to self-employed people and therefore is not deducted from the maximum allowable benefit.
How do I make sure my Income Protection benefits keeps up with inflation while I am claiming?
At the outset of your policy, either separate from or in addition to indexation, you can select escalating benefit. This means that while you are being paid benefit, the amount being paid to you will increase by 3% each year unless you have also selected indexation. When your claims payments stop, your benefit will return to the level it was at before you started claiming. Your premiums remain level with this option.
If I am out of work and claiming a benefit, will I have to pay my premium/will the premium still be deducted from my account?
You do not have to continue paying premiums while you are receiving an income from your policy. When your claim finishes you will start paying premiums again.
What if I change jobs, do I need to let you know and will my premiums change?
We will continue to provide cover if you change jobs, regardless of what the new job entails. If you are made redundant, you can continue your plan while looking for another job but you cannot claim benefit while you are unemployed.
I plan to leave the country to go and work abroad. Will this policy still cover me if I am out of work?
There is full cover if you are living within the EU. If you claim Income Protection benefit while you are outside the EU, we will pay your income for 13 weeks in any 52 week period, or 39 weeks in total. If you return to Ireland or the EU within this time we will continue to pay your income protection benefit.
What support will you give me other than benefit payments if I make a claim?
Rehabilitation Benefits – For so many of our clients recovery means a chance to return to work or begin a new career. We can offer resources and assistance to help you get back into the workforce when you are ready. Our partner companies work closely with the Irish Centre for Occupational Rehabilitation to help you continue normal everyday activities, and ultimately assist your return to employment.
Relapse Benefit –
We will immediately restart paying your benefit if you have a relapse within six months of returning to work. There will be no waiting period in this case.
Partial Benefit –
If you return to work part or full-time, either in your old job or a new career, and your new earnings are less than previously earned, you may be eligible to receive partial benefit.
Claims Visitors –
Independent qualified nurses or professionals visit you and assist in the completion of paperwork, guide you through the claims procedure and discuss rehabilitation options when the time is right.
Return to Work –
We can organise Occupational Health Specialists who supports you in getting back to work and focusing on your particular job and workplace to see if any adjustments can or should be made to assist you.
Career Change –
Our partner companies can support you in seeking a new career if you are unable to return to your original occupation.
Are there any other benefits applying to my Income Protection policy?
Hospital Cash –
A daily replacement income is paid if you are in hospital for more than seven days during your deferred period.
Guaranteed Increase Option –
Our Income Protection policies can provide you with an automatic guaranteed increase option. This means that every three years, we will contact you to offer you an additional 20% of the original sum assured, without the need to provide us with any further medical information. We will offer this to you five times, from the 3rd anniversary to the 15th anniversary. If you fail to take up the option more than once when offered, we will not offer it again.
Both hospital cash and the guaranteed increase option are automatically included with some of our Income Protection products.
