Sole Breadwinner advice

Hello

Thanks for getting in touch. I’m sorry to hear about your diagnosis. Hopefully we can provide some information to help and support you.  It’s only natural to worry about what may happen in the future if you are no longer able to work due to ill health.

As part of our Money and Work Team, we have a dedicated group of Welfare Rights Advisers. They can check if you’re entitled to any state benefits and can help to access other financial support, such as one-off grants. You can contact them on freephone 0808 808 0000 and they’re available weekdays 8am – 8pm and weekends 9am – 5pm. If you’d prefer you can also contact them via webchat here by selecting “Chat to us” and then the “Welfare Benefits & Grants” option.

They will ask you for some financial details such as your household income, amount of any savings, cost of mortgage, council tax and utilities just to see if any other help is available.

Regarding income protection, unfortunately, a cancer diagnosis, or any other serious medical condition, is likely to make getting income protection cover much harder.  The application will normally require a more rigorous underwriting process, requiring medical reports and sometimes an examination. But this depends on the type of cancer, the stage it reached and the length of time since diagnosis.

It’s important to remember that insurance companies look at ‘risk’ when assessing an application and will consider the likelihood of a claim during the term of the policy. If the insurance company believes that this risk is higher than average, they might accept the application but increase the premiums.

If the insurance company sees the risk as being too high, they might decline immediate cover but agree to review the application at a later date or may even refuse to offer any cover at all.

Sometimes, an insurer might agree to offer income protection cover, but with an exclusion for a pre-existing medical condition (like cancer). Before agreeing to an exclusion, think about the implications of not having cover for that particular illness.

If cover is refused, it may be worth speaking to an Independent Financial Adviser who will be able to search the whole of the insurance market. Maybe check with family and friends to see if they can recommend an adviser.

 
Just to clarify, the Financial Guidance Service can provide information and guidance on all aspects of your personal finances to help you make informed decisions in the following areas;

Pensions and retirement options

Questions about insurance policies

Mortgages and money management

Arranging wills and trusts to protect your family

General financial planning questions

If there is anything from the above list that you would like to discuss, please reply to this message, or speak to us directly on the same number. To reach the Financial Guidance team just select options 1 then 2 then 1 again. Our team are available Monday to Friday 8am – 6pm

Kindest regards,

Thanks so much Sheena. I will digest this properly tonight as am at work at the moment, but am so grateful for the speedy response. Thank you also for pointing out the other resources available - it's very reassuring to  know there are places to look, and it feels less like a mountain. have a good day and I'll be in touch once I've gathered some more thoughts. Warm regards, caroline