These three things may happen to any of us, at any time. Nobody is able to predict how safe their job is any longer or how well their company may do. Nobody may be able to avoid illnesses that strike out of the blue or accidents that put them out of action for significant periods.

Without income protection insurance in place to cover these things happening you may have to rely on:

Whilst these alternatives may help and may be useful, they may not, in many cases, be enough and they may not last for long enough. Not having a regular salary coming in, even for just a few months, may make it hard for you to pay your mortgage, meet any debt commitments and pay for your general living costs.

Adding money worries to the mix when you aren't able to earn because of illness, accident or unemployment may not be a great idea. It may be that looking at this kind of insurance might be useful if you want to avoid this happening. What benefits might you typically get?

If you have income protection insurance in place and qualify for a claim then your provider pays you a significant percentage of your income. This may be useful to have and may make the difference between having enough money coming in to meet your financial needs and having to worry about how make ends meet.

Jason Hulott is Business Development Director at Long Term Income Protection.