The right time to talk about a back up plan

If you are in the situation like me where maternity leave comes rushing to an end, and you have to get back to earning some pennies to make sure the family finances stay afloat, then just getting back into the office is probably the first and last thing on your mind.

In fact, there is so much focus on getting back to work that I hadn’t even considered what might happen if I left it again not because I was having a baby (and that’s certainly not on the cards for a while if I can help it!) but instead due to an accident or ill health. Being struck down with Bubby D’s chest infection shortly after starting back at work and realising I had no back up plan for childcare or meeting household expenses (overly dramatic perhaps given that I was only off work for a week but feeling poorly tends to have a problem inflating effect like that…) it suddenly flipped to the top of my agenda.

So I began to investigate how much we spend, and how much we’d need if my wages and ability to care for the children were out of the picture. Turns out, it’s actually quite a scary figure!

Having worked for my previous employer for many years, I was always safe in the knowledge that I had built up to the maximum level of occupational sick pay (six months full pay, and six months half pay). Now I realise having only worked for my current employer for a few months, I’m only entitled to one months paid sickness absence. Eek!

Following an absolutely farcical experience with attempting to get life and critical illness cover, that’s still not sorted out either.

So basically, that’s it. One month of sickness absence pay should we need it. Time to investigate other alternatives…and so I started to look at income protection.

And you can pretty much tell what it is from the name. Should you become unable to work, your income is protected. Once the occupational sick pay stops paying out, the income protection kicks in. Unlike occupational sick pay, it doesn’t necessarily end after six months either – policies can last 2 years, or 5 years, or…well forever if that’s what you choose.

Of course, it costs a bit of money, just like any kind of insurance. But (and I didn’t realise this before) the good news is that friendly employers can choose to offer it as an employee benefit for very little cost to them…

Cue alarmed looks from the HR department on my return to work, as I came striding towards them with a purposeful demeanour.

‘Do you offer income protection insurance as an employee benefit?’ I asked them. ‘No’ they said.

‘Well, have you thought about it?’ I asked. ‘We will now you’ve brought it up – it sounds interesting’ they said.

Easy as that! Of course, there’s no guarantee that it’ll emerge as an employee benefit for me in the future – but at least now there’s a chance it might. And if it doesn’t, then I know how it works and what my options are, and I can choose to get it myself anyway.

So…now all I have to worry about is what to worry about dramatically next time I’m sick!

I am a member of the Mumsnet Bloggers Network, a group of parent bloggers picked by Mumsnet to review products, services, events and brands. I have been asked by Mumsnet and Unum to blog about income protection. I have received a voucher for this blog post but I have editorial control and retain full editorial integrity.