Income protection versus critical illness — choosing the right cover first

Mortgage advisers often mention life cover. Far fewer conversations explain how your household would replace salary if illness kept you off work for months. Two products fill different gaps — and buying the wrong one first can leave the more likely risk uninsured.

What income protection actually pays

Income protection replaces a portion of your earnings after a deferred period — often four, eight, or thirteen weeks — while you remain unable to work due to illness or injury. Benefits typically continue until you return, until the policy end date, or until a maximum term. It is designed for living costs, not a single lump-sum event.

What critical illness pays

Critical illness pays a lump sum if you are diagnosed with a condition listed in the policy. It can clear a mortgage or fund adaptations, but it does not respond to many common causes of long absence, such as musculoskeletal problems or mental health conditions that fall outside the definitions.

A sensible order for many households

If employer sick pay is short and you have a mortgage, income protection usually addresses the more frequent risk. Critical illness can sit alongside it once core living costs are covered, especially if you want a lump sum for mortgage reduction. Life cover remains essential wherever dependants or joint debts exist.

A protection needs assessment maps these in order against your actual liabilities rather than a generic package.