Worried about losing income through illness? ‘Percy’ can help

A NEW online tool has been launched, alerting people to the ‘stress’ their household finances could come under if they are unable to work as a result of long-term illness. Some one million people a year are signed off work as a result of a serious illness or injury.

Dubbed ‘Percy’ and devised by the Association of British Insurers, the tool’s aim is to get people thinking about whether they have adequate financial protection in place to survive the loss of a big chunk of regular household income – and to take corrective action if necessary. This protection could come in the form of ‘emergency’ savings tucked away in a bank or building society, or insurance designed to pay out in the event of serious illness.

Anyone using Percy is asked to input key personal details, which the association insists will not be stored or used for any ulterior purpose. These include age, property and household details and earnings. The tool will then calculate the expected income loss in the event of long-term illness as well as provide information on any right to benefits.

The association hopes the tool will help households prepare for any future ‘unexpected income shocks’. It has also been welcomed by the Single Financial Guidance Body, the new Government-funded organisation offering information on money issues.

Johnny Timpson, financial protection specialist at Scottish Widows, hopes the calculator will ‘help improve the ability of households to deal with unexpected income loss’. The calculator can be found at abi.org.uk/percy.

For more information on benefits available to those suffering long-term illness, visit the website of charity Turn2us at turn2us.org.uk.