The new product completes Guardian's "full protection menu"
Guardian, the life and protection insurance business, has announced that it will be launching income protection in the coming weeks, to sit alongside its existing protection propositions.
“We know many advisers have been keen to see us enter the income protection space, and we’re delighted to announce today that it’s coming very soon!” stated Jacqui Gillies (pictured), marketing and proposition director at Guardian.
With the launch of income protection, the company will offer a “full menu” on its Protection Builder 2.0 quote and apply system, allowing advisers to combine different cover types, amount, and terms to create bespoke, needs-based protection recommendations for clients.
The new income protection product has been created in collaboration with advisers, considering their feedback to form an affordable protection solution for clients looking to protect their income if they’re unable to work due to illness or injury.
Guardian currently offers life protection, critical illness protection, combined life and critical illness protection, and children’s critical illness protection covers.
Gillies explained: At the core of our design is the customer and what they should expect from an income protection policy; namely, a definition that is easy to understand and pays out when they need it to. So, one particular highlight of income protection, is that we’ll cover ‘own job’, rather than the more traditional ‘own occupation’.
“This distinction gives our customers more certainty that, if they need to claim, their cover will pay out based on an assessment of the actual job they do, and not just a wider assessment of their occupation. ‘Own job’ is language customers know and understand, and that’s important for customers to know what they’re covered for. We also won’t offer terms based on activities of daily working as this rarely results in a successful claim.”
Gillies added that by offering a choice of two-year and full-term payment periods with a variety of deferred periods, Guardian’s income protection would provide a range of options to suit different needs and budgets.
“We also have the option to add children’s critical illness protection to standalone income protection and to choose the amount up to £100,000, which gives families greater cover,” she continued.
“Income protection completes our full protection menu, and we’re looking forward to working with advisers to make sure more people get the protection they need.”
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