It's one of the most common things we hear from clients in their twenties and early thirties. Insurance feels like something for "later": once you've bought a home, settled down and have a family to look after. But there's one person who relies on your income completely, and that's you.
Here's why income protection deserves a place in your plans now, not in ten years' time.
Your income is your biggest asset
We insure our phones, our cars and our holidays. Yet the thing that pays for all of them often goes unprotected.
Take someone earning £35,000 a year at 25. If their salary simply keeps pace with inflation, they could earn well over £1.5 million before they retire. That earning power is the engine behind every financial goal they have: saving for a deposit, building a pension, travelling, starting a business.
If illness or injury stopped that engine for months, or even years, everything built on top of it would stall too.
Who pays the bills if you can't work?
Not having a mortgage doesn't mean not having commitments. Rent is often a bigger monthly cost than a mortgage, and your landlord still expects it on the first of the month. Add bills, phone contracts, travel, a car loan or a student overdraft, and most of us have far less financial slack than we think.
If you're signed off work, here's what you might actually be able to rely on:
Statutory Sick Pay: a flat weekly amount that is a small fraction of most salaries, and it only lasts for a limited period.
Your employer's sick pay: often generous for a few weeks or months, then it drops sharply or stops. Check your contract; many people are surprised by how short it is.
Savings: an emergency fund is brilliant, but three months of expenses doesn't go far if recovery takes a year.
State benefits: means-tested and modest, designed as a safety net rather than a replacement for your salary.
And if you're self-employed or a contractor, there may be no sick pay at all.
It's also worth remembering that long-term absence isn't only about accidents. Back and joint problems and mental health conditions are among the most common reasons people make income protection claims, and they can affect anyone at any age.
Why now is the best time to look at it
Age and health are two of the biggest factors in what you pay for income protection. When you're younger and healthier, cover is usually cheaper and easier to get.
Wait until your late thirties and premiums will typically be higher. Develop a health condition in the meantime and it may be excluded from your policy, or make cover harder to find at all. Locking in a policy early can mean better terms for longer.
Many policies also let you adjust your cover as life changes. When you buy a home or start a family, you may be able to increase it without fresh medical questions, so the plan grows with you.
It's about protecting your plans, not just your dependants
Income protection isn't only for supporting other people. It's about protecting the life you're building.
Think about what a year without income would do to your goals. The house deposit you've been saving for could be spent on rent. Pension contributions could stop just when they have the most time to grow. You might have to move back in with family, or lean on parents who are planning their own retirement.
A regular monthly payment while you recover means you can focus on getting better, rather than worrying about how to cover next month. Many policies also include extras such as rehabilitation support, physiotherapy or mental health services to help you get back to work sooner.
Common myths, answered
"I'm young and healthy, it won't happen to me." Most of us feel that way, and that's exactly why cover is cheaper now. Illness and injury don't check your age first.
"It's too expensive." You can shape a policy to fit your budget. Choosing a longer waiting period before payments start, for example to line up with when your employer's sick pay ends, can bring the cost down significantly.
"My employer already covers me." Some do, through group income protection. But it may only last a set number of years, and it usually ends when you leave that job. It's worth checking exactly what you have.
"Insurers never pay out." Income protection insurers pay the large majority of claims. Answering questions honestly when you apply is the best way to make sure your policy works when you need it.
How GDA Financial Partners can help
There's no one-size-fits-all policy, and the details matter: how much cover, how long you wait before it pays out, how long it pays for, and how your occupation is defined. Getting those right is where good advice makes the difference.
At GDA Financial Partners, we'll look at what you already have through work, what your monthly outgoings really are, and what you can comfortably afford. Then we'll help you find cover that fits your life today and can adapt as it changes.
You don't need a mortgage or a family to have something worth protecting. You've got your income, your goals and your future.
Get in touch with the GDA Financial Partners team to book a no-obligation conversation about protecting your income.
Income protection policies have terms, conditions and exclusions, and cover depends on your health, occupation and circumstances. This article is for general information only and does not constitute financial advice.
