Make sure that you get the best mortgage payment protection insurance
If you want the best mortgage payment protection insurance then you will have to secure the cheapest premiums for a good quality product and there is only one way of doing this and that is by going independently for your cover to a specialist payment protection provider.
When taken out correctly a mortgage payment protection insurance plan will kick in after you have been out of work for 30 consecutive days and with good policies will be backdated to the day you came out of work. Once you have started receiving a tax free income from the policy it will continue to pay out for up to 12 months and with some providers extending policies to 24 months. This can give great peace of mind that your home isn’t at risk of repossession from not being able to find the money each month to carry on paying your mortgage until you get back on your feet and back to work. Mortgage cover can be taken to cover against coming out of work due to accident and sickness only, unemployment only or due to accident, sickness and unemployment together.
Only a specialist who knows their products off by heart is able to give you the essential advice that is needed in order for you to ensure that you get not only the cheapest premiums, but also understand the exclusions that exist in all payment protection products. Exclusions are what cause you to be ineligible to make a claim on your insurance and include some of the most common reasons which keep people off from work such as back problems and stress related problems. They also include being retired, self-employed, in part time employment or suffering from a pre-existing medical condition at the time of taking out the policy.
While an ethical provider will ensure that you have access to these exclusions and the key facts regarding a policy, some providers of payment protection aren’t as ethical and this has led to wide spread mis-selling of protection products including mortgage payment protection.
Starting in 2005 the mis-selling was brought to light by the Citizens Advice after a super complaint to the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) after it was found that many high street lenders weren’t giving the information needed for the consumer to make an informed decision and in some cases the cover was added onto the cost of the loan or mortgage without even asking if you wanted the cover. Along with this very little information if any was given out about the policy and this led to many holding a policy they couldn’t claim against. The Financial Services subsequently handed out fines to many well know high street names with the latest being a mortgage company and the investigation continues along with a review by the Competition Commission which is set to reach conclusion in Feb 2009.
If you want the best mortgage payment protection insurance it can be found but you have to go independently and shop around for the cover getting several quotes from specialist independent providers if you want to be absolutely sure of keeping the roof over your head through a sustained period of unemployment.
