Century Designs

Cutting down on your insurance often seems ideal when trying to reduce outgoings, however many types of cover are intended to protect you in times of need.

A review, carried out on behalf of The Telegaraph, has shown that many of us intend to cancel insurance to save money. 27 per cent of the consumers surveyed, planned to reduce their medical cover and 17% were considering reduceing pet insurance.

The CEO of AIS, says that it is worrying when consumers reduce the cover of the very policies that protect them.
Tony Solomon, concurs with this opinion, saying people should think twice before cancelling, because loss of cover may have a damaging affect on their family and themselves in the years to come. life assurance and critical illness insurance are both too important to sacrifice. If the worst happened and you died, or fall terminally ill, then cancelling your insurance could leave your family with bankrupt, he says.

You are advised to talk to your insurer if you are having difficulty paying your monthly premiums, as they may be able to arrange a tempoary reduction in the amount of cover.

The British Insurance Brokers Association, says that people do not appreciate the overall value of their possessions and the cost of replacing them, if they are stolen. He advises everyone to take out contents insurance, but to look at reducing your cover level, as they may not need all your possessions covered. For example, contents insurance costs about 149 pounds a year on average, a reduction of 25% maybe possible by cancelling extra options on the policy.

Pet cover may appear to be unnecessary, but without cover you may struggle to be able to afford the vet bills. So which policies are you safe to cancel? Referring to medical insurance, Solomon says that many people have medical insurance with their employment. However, protection of your family is important. Therefore, it would be advisable to choose Critical illness, which pays out a lump sum, rather than mortgage cover or health cover.