How will you pay the bills if you are unable to work and lose your income? An injury or serious illness could happen at any time, not only when you are working, but also outside of work during your leisure time. It could be when you are driving to the shops, doing the gardening, playing sport or even putting the kids to bed!

So, you may have a Personal Accident & Illness policy or Income Protection to replace your income, but how will you actually be paid in the event of a claim?

‘Income’ is defined within the policy and it sets out how your payments will be calculated. This is why it is important to know how to select your sum insured, which is the weekly benefit that you will be entitled to.

Personal Accident & Illness policies require you to prove your income, which would normally be by providing:

• Your most recent personal tax assessment; or
• Your pre-tax earnings less the business expenses

The income required is for a 12 month period, however if you have been self-employed for less than 12 months, it can be calculated from just the period since you first became self-employed.

Our Trades insurance Personal Accident policy will then pay 85% of your average weekly income up to the selected sum insured. Remember that you will still need to pay tax from the benefits that you are paid.

Income Protection is a great option as it can provide broader cover, however the most common cover for our tradies is Personal Accident & Illness Insurance. We have tailored our policy to specifically suit the requirements of trades people and are able to provide an affordable solution for keeping the bills paid.

Make sure you get the right advice so you aren’t left short.