According to new research from Standard Life, nearly 6 million Brits have lost income through illness and/or injuries that prevented them from working.
- A staggering £31.651 billion has been lost in wages
- The average loss is £5,320 per person
- One in three have been off work for over a week because of illness or injury
- Including 58% for more than a month and17% off work for more than a year
Assessing the financial impact of a long-term absence from work due to illness or injury is difficult to quantify, but a third of those who said they had been off work for more than a week confirmed they were the main bread winner.
And the cost?
- 26% said they had lost between £250 and £1,000
- 13% said they had lost between £1,000 and £5,000
- 11% said they had lost between £5,000 and £40,000
- 5% said they had lost upwards of £40,000
How to cope financially while off work?
- 38% said they had struggled to make ends meet
- 23% had borrowed from friends and family to get by
- 11% of employers had continued to pay them while off work
- 11% had borrowed money from the bank or credit card
- 5% had deferred mortgage or other big bills while they recovered
- 8% had some form of insurance to help them out
Mick James, Protection Marketing Manager, Standard Life Assurance Limited, says:” Income protection is a key part of personal financial planning often overlooked. The state will currently pay a maximum of £78.50 through Incapacity Benefit for every week someone is off on long-term sick leave, although other benefits may also be available like housing benefit or a reduction in council tax. People should understand the risks they face if they don’t have a way of replacing lost income during a period of enforced absence from work. People who are off work for long periods though illness or injury face some stark choices if they have no way of replacing lost income.”
Related links |
Income protection insurance : News update: January 2007