Yes. However, your occupation, earnings, health and insurer criteria will decide what sort of policy you are offered. The eligibility, cost and available cover will on depend on your circumstances.
Income cover for self-employed individuals
Self-employed? Do you know what will happen if you have to stop working, perhaps through injury or illness? With income protection, you can enjoy peace of mind.
Speak to a James Leighton adviser, who can tailor income protection to your circumstances.
Get in touch
Get in touch
Protect your income
What is self-employed income protection?
Did you know that income protection can pay a proportion of earnings if illness or injury leave you unable to work? That way, you can continue to meet regular personal financial commitments. As a self-employed professional it’s particularly important to have this safety net, as you don’t have an employer to provide sick pay.
As you never know what the future will bring, it’s prudent to invest in income cover for the self-employed. However, it’s important to make sure your income protection fits around your situation, occupation and budget. And that’s where James Leighton comes in.
- Call: 0115 870 9520
- Email: enquiries@jlfs.co.uk
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Cover for illness and injury
Income protection is designed to provide a regular payment when the worst happens. As long as you’re incapacitated in a way that meets policy terms, you’ll have a financial safety net to catch you.
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Choose when payments begin
With income protection, you get to choose when payments begin. That means you can start by using savings or other financial resources before the payments kick in. In other words, you get some flexibility locked into your policy.
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Cover that reflects your income
The level of cover is based on earnings and the insurer’s criteria. This means income protection works differently for different people. There’s sole trader illness cover, contractor ‘can’t work’ insurance and Limited Company director sick pay. With this diversity, sound advice is crucial.
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Long-term financial protection
Income protection doesn’t have to be for the short-term. Depending on the policy you select, you can arrange payments for a longer-term absence.
No employer sick pay?
Being your own boss is great. But having no workplace sick pay isn’t. This is why you need to make income protection arrangements: self-employed sick pay.
Your income
How much cover might you need?
When it comes to the level of income protection, the amount depends on your income and individual circumstances. This means considering your monthly expenditure, mortgage/rent, bills, family commitments and existing savings. The final figure will be critical when it comes to the insurer’s calculations, so it’s important to do your maths carefully and not miss anything out.
Waiting periods
How soon would you need support?
If you’re ill or injured and you want to rely on savings before using income protection, this is entirely possible. However, if a deferred period would leave you struggling after only a short time without income, you may want to arrange for your income protection to start much sooner. Just remember that the chosen waiting period can also affect the cost of the cover.
Your occupation
How does your work affect your cover?
What’s your occupation? Be aware that the policies open to you depend very much on your job. For example, a tradesperson with a physical profession will have certain policies offered to them, whereas a desk-based consultant would get a different set of policies. These policies may have different availability, premiums and definitions of incapacity. All occupations are assessed differently by insurers, so it’s important to get advice from a James Leighton professional.
Tailored advice
Finding income protection that works for you
Finding the most suitable income protection means discussing a number of factors with an adviser. Why? Because they need to know about you in order to recommend the right self-employed sick pay. We’re talking how you earn your income (sole trader, freelancer, contractor or Limited Company director), your earnings, occupation, existing financial safety net, monthly commitments and desired level of protection. With this information, the adviser can recommend the appropriate cover and help you understand important policy details such as benefit amount, deferred period, claim definitions, exclusions and length of cover. Although pulling all the information together may seem an onerous task, it’s essential to finding the most suitable cover for you.
- Call: 0115 870 9520
- Email: enquiries@jlfs.co.uk
FAQs
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Can I get income protection if I'm self-employed?
A
Q
How much income protection can I get if I'm self-employed?
A
First of all, remember that you will probably only receive a proportion of eligible earnings, not 100%. Secondly, the calculation and evidence required can vary depending on how you work and receive your income, particularly when it comes to sole traders versus Limited Company directors. In short, there is no set percentage of earnings you’ll receive. It all depends on factors such as your occupation and earnings.
Q
How is my income calculated if I'm self-employed?
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There’s no simple answer to this. Every insurer will assess income differently, and will apply different calculations for, say, sole traders, contractors and company directors. Some may use tax or information from your accounts, but not all.
4.2 million
people in the UK work for themselves, and almost none of them have a statutory right to a penny of sick pay if illness stops them working*.
For many self-employed people, a blended approach (a smaller emergency fund to cover the deferred period, backed by an income protection policy for anything longer) works out cheaper than a policy with no deferred period and more resilient than savings alone.
*Source: https://moneychest.co.uk/blog/self-employed-sick-pay-protection-gap-6493028175