Home / - Mortgage Payment Protection
What is it?
Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance, or MPPI, is insurance that will pay out a sum of money to help you cover your monthly mortgage repayments and related expenses if you are unable to work. Benefits are payable under this policy if you have an accident or sickness, or become unemployed through no fault of your own.
The insurance company will pay you the benefit you have selected so that you can make your monthly mortgage repayments for a fixed period of time. Benefits are usually payable for up to one year. MPPI can provide worthwhile cover against unexpected changes in your personal circumstances.
What are the main features?
MPPI cover is usually available without medical questionnaires or references from your employer. However, because of this there are specific conditions that apply to this type of cover that you should be aware of to ensure that your claim will be paid. For example, to claim on the unemployment part of the policy typically you must have been employed continuously by the same company for the last 6 months on a permanent contract.
Check carefully if you are self employed and require cover, as additional special conditions usually apply. Sickness benefits also have conditions which apply. To claim for sickness benefits you may not be able to make a claim for an illness you already have or have had before unless you have been symptom free for 24 months. Make sure you check this before you take out the policy. This will be called a pre-existing medical condition.
Stress or back complaints, and possibly other conditions, may not be covered, even if you can't work because of them. Again, it's worth checking before you take out the policy. If the cover does not meet your needs you have a legal right to cancel the policy and get a refund within 30 days of taking it out.
23 August 2007 16:32:55
Leading UK life insurance provider Friends Provident has again been praised for its financial strength.
The life cover firm has received an A+ rating from credit rating agency Fitch in its Insurer Financial Strength rating, reports Reuters.
Friends Provident was applauded for its continued attempts to develop new business and diversify.
The life insurer's new business increased by 13 per cent to £3.4 billion in the first six months of 2007, (compared to £3.0 billion in 2006), while international new business grew by 16 per cent to £1.2 billion.
The firm has also established some 200 alliances with intermediary providers, in a bid to establish itself successfully in the German market.
And a proposed merger with fellow life insurance company Resolution was announced at the end of July, under the terms of which the Friends Financial group would be created, serving some 9.5 million customers.
Rumours of counter bids from Pearl, Zurich, Standard Life and Old Mutual, fellow providers of life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection, have been widely discounted.
26 June 2007 12:19:47
The ways in which UK consumers buy life insurance are set for an overhaul this week, following the publication of a new review from the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
The FSA will publish its retail distribution review on June 27th, following a year of research into the workings of the life, investment and pensions market.
The review is expected to recommend an alteration of the current system of commission payment, so that the payment of sales advisers can be implemented in a way that meets market efficiency targets without harming customer interests.
Alex Roy, assistant director of retail distribution at the Association of British Insurers, told Reuters that there was certainly room for improvement.
"It's not that the market is broken, but there are some areas that are not working as they should and are in need of repair," he said.
"I don't think we need to be afraid of selling in this industry, but if you are getting independent advice and you want to have confidence that advice is independent, commissions can hide the costs, making it less clear and trustworthy."
10 July 2007 16:06:46
Protection specialist Bright Grey has launched a family campaign to offset the worrying life cover gap in the UK.
The company found that one in three families have no life insurance, critical illness cover, or income protection insurance, leaving their families in a precarious financial position.
Kevin Stevens, head of sales for Bright Grey, said that the campaign was intended to raise awareness of the importance of acquiring comprehensive insurance.
"We all know that many people are under-insured and hearing that one in three families have no cover in place maybe shouldn't surprise us," he said.
"We know the issues, but do consumers? We believe that many of those parents who don't have cover don't even know they're leaving their families at risk - and that's where advisers can really help."
He added that mortgage protection insurance was often overlooked: "Families need to protect their home, not just their mortgage. What's the point of paying off the mortgage if they can't afford to pay for the basics like food, clothes, bills and keeping the car on the road?
"The worry is that without enough cover they're in real danger of losing their home even if the mortgage is paid off, as they won't be able to afford to live in it."
