In today’s modern way of life, we constantly rush through our full daily agenda, trying to seal that deal, make that contact, sell that product. Whether you are a business owner of a big corporation, self-employed or a key employee in a company, your day-to-day activities, missions and visions keep you focused on the big picture. In your big picture, you probably have a nice home, a loving family, a new flashy car, and you’re travelling to popular touristic spots such as Brazil and Argentina , without having financial trouble and obstacles.
However, accidents can happen at any time! The unfortunate scenario of you having an accident or suffering a serious illness and being unable to work for a prolonged period is not something you think of every day, but it can still happen. An unexpected injury or illness can make it difficult to manage the numerous financial obligations, save financial loss and keep your family financially secured.
With the right sickness cover insurance, you can keep up with payments while you’re off work without having to spend all your savings. If you haven’t thought about sickness insurance so far, it might be the right time to start looking for ways to protect your income in case disaster strikes.
Protect Your Income When an Unfortunate Instant Occurs
Accident and illness insurance is also known as accident and sickness protection cover and provides cover as a portion of the insured person’s income if they are unable to work due to a covered event arising from a bodily injury or sickness. This highly necessary sickness cover insurance is designed to provide you with a monthly benefit of up to 80% of your income until you are able to return to work. For example, if you were to break your arm in a car accident and this injury prevented you from returning to work, you would be entitled to a weekly benefit consistent with the scope of cover you selected.
Most policies allow you to choose either accident only or accident and illness combined. Depending on your needs, you can also find an option of lump sum payment for death by accident or temporary total/partial disablement. When constructing your solution, you need to consider a few features. The best way is to choose a reliable insurance agency that can provide you with all the necessary information about critical illness insurance. You need to consider the waiting period, benefit period, ownership structures and scope of cover.
The waiting period is the amount of time you must be unable to work for until you can make a claim. The options may vary, but typically they include seven days, 14 days, 21 days or 28 days. Selecting a longer waiting period usually results in a lower cost of the insurance, but it may also mean waiting longer before you can claim.
The benefit period length of time you will continue to receive benefits for once you’re on the claim. The options vary here too, but a typical set of options includes 6 months, one year, two years or three years. You can always opt for a shorter benefit period to cut insurance cost, but that is also limiting your cover. The professional can advise you on getting the right insurance without compromising the stability of your company and family in case of an unfortunate event.
Who Can Benefit from Sickness Cover Insurance?
Sickness cover insurance can benefit most people who work to earn a living, but it’s particularly valuable for sole-traders, contractors and small-business owners. Those who do not qualify for Income Protection Insurance can also benefit a lot from sick and accident insurance. If you know that your livelihood depends on your wellbeing and a prolonged period will have a direct impact on your income, affect your savings, family and lifestyle, then you have an exposure. Whatever your profile is, you can customise your level of cover by choosing from a range of policy options to tailor your cover to suit your lifestyle.
What Is Typically Covered?
Sickness cover insurance will protect your income in a plethora of unfortunate instants. By investing in this type of income protection, you are securing your earnings in case of an injury that happened anywhere, loss of income as a result of an illness or loss of income as a result of injury or illness combined. The kinds of illnesses that are covered are usually long-term and very serious conditions such as a heart attack or stroke, loss of arms or legs, or diseases like cancer, multiple sclerosis or Parkinson’s disease. Some optional extensions can also include death benefits, disablement benefits and business expenses.
What Is Typically Not Covered?
Although your insurance company can cover sickness and injury in most cases, most of the insurers do not cover pre-existing conditions, pregnancy and childbirth, and injuries that occur while being under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Acts that are intentional, criminal or otherwise deliberately caused by you, participating in professional sports and acts of war and terrorism are also not covered.