Kirberts finance advice and news

Simon Burgess

Becoming unemployed is not something we even like to give any thought to the possibility of happening. However redundancies do happen and you do have to be prepared for the possibility of it happening to you. If you do lose your job and income then things could be extremely tight until you found work again, and with jobs being hard to find, it could be many months before you find something suitable. Mortgage unemployment insurance is one way of safeguarding against this possibility.

The cost of the mortgage unemployment insurance policy would fluctuate between providers; you could also choose to take out protection for unemployment, accident and sickness together for a little more each month. Some providers offer age based cover which takes your age when applying into account, and this is the cheapest way for younger home buyers to protect the huge mortgage they take on. It would also depend on how much you wished to insure against, which can be up to a certain amount each month.

Your mortgage payment protection policy would allow you the peace of mind that you would not get into arrears. If you do get into arrears and cannot show the lender how you are able to catch up, then they will have no choice but to seek repossession of your home. Mortgage problems can begin from the first missed payment which will show up on your credit file and go against you and the problem can very quickly escalate to you being taken to court.

However there is no need to worry about any of this if you have protected the repayments of your mortgage. You would have to check when the policy would begin and end as these differ considerably. Some mortgage providers would payout an income after you had been unemployed for a period of 30 days continually. Others could ask for at least a 90 day waiting period before they would payout. You could get a policy that would run and provide an income for 12 months and some providers may offer a policy that extends for up to 24 months. The details can be found in the terms of the policy and need to be checked along with the exclusions.

You do have to consider the exclusions as these are what help you to decide if you would be eligible to claim on the mortgage unemployment insurance policy you are thinking of taking out. Problems in the past did arise as a result of consumers not being aware of exclusions and being sold policies they could not claim against. This was brought to the Office of Fair Trading`s attention and resulted in the sector being investigated by both the Office Of Fair Trading and the Financial Services Authority, along with an in-depth review by the Competition Commission. The majority of fines that were handed out were to high street lenders who tagged payment protection insurance onto loans and mortgages at the time of selling the loan. One of which was a mortgage lender who had failed to have the best interests of the consumer at heart. Mis-selling has ranged from selling protection to those of retirement age and to those not in a full time position.

Simon Burgess is Managing Director of the award-winning British Insurance, a specialist provider of mortgage unemployment insurance.

Simon Burgess

Checking out mortgage insurance protection cover is imperative before you rush into taking it out. There are many factors you have to be aware of if you are to ensure suitability for your circumstances. You also need to get the cheapest premiums, while at the same time buying a quality product. With this in mind you need to turn your thoughts to independent providers of payment protection, as these offer you the cheapest premiums and plenty of information.

Information about the mortgage insurance protection cover you are considering is essential, as this is where the exclusions can be found. Once you have checked them against your lifestyle you can then rely on the cover. A policy is taken out for a fixed premium based on the amount you want to insure of your mortgage and the level of cover needed. Some providers offering age based mortgage protection will take your age into account and this is where first time buyers with huge mortgages and little spare cash can benefit.

You are able to choose the amount of protection most suitable. A policy can be taken for accident, sickness and unemployment together. However you could also just choose to protect against incapacity only or unemployment only, whichever suits your circumstances better. The amount you choose to protect will be the amount that is paid out to you, tax-free, if you need to put in a claim. All standalone specialist providers will set a limit on the amount that you are able to take insurance for each month, so check this in the terms before taking it out.

You would have to stand to so many day of unemployment or incapacity, but some providers will backdate to the first day you become unemployed or were incapacitated. Providers will usually state anywhere between days 30 and 90 and then the policy would continue paying out for either 12 months or 24 months. This is usually enough time for you to have made a full recovery and be able to go back to work, or for you to have found work again.

Mortgage insurance protection cover could give you the money needed for you to keep out of arrears with your mortgage repayments. It is a far better solution than considering falling back on savings or believing that the State would step in and provide you with your mortgage repayment. You would have to be eligible to make a claim for State benefit and this means meeting many requirements. You cannot have over a certain amount of money in the bank and you also cannot have anyone living with you who are earning a full time income. Even if you were entitled to receive State benefit, the money it provided would only go towards the interest payment on your mortgage. You could also have to wait for several months before you would see any benefit. While mortgage payment protection does have some conditions that have to be met, once you have checked it is suitable you would have protection you could rely on.

Simon Burgess is Managing Director of the award-winning British Insurance, a specialist provider of mortgage insurance protection cover.

SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Clear Channel Communications Inc shareholders on Thursday approved a $17.9 billion takeover by private equity funds Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital, ending a 20-month effort to take the radio and billboard operator private.

SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Clear Channel Communications Inc shareholders on Thursday approved a $17.9 billion takeover by private equity funds Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital, ending a 20-month effort to take the radio and billboard operator private.

SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Clear Channel Communications Inc shareholders on Thursday approved a $17.9 billion takeover by private equity funds Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital, ending a 20-month effort to take the radio and billboard operator private.

SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Clear Channel Communications Inc shareholders on Thursday approved a $17.9 billion takeover by private equity funds Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital, ending a 20-month effort to take the radio and billboard operator private.

WASHINGTON - Jobless claims jumped and the pace of existing home sales tumbled to a 10-year low as slowing growth hit hiring and a glut of unsold houses weighed on real estate, data released on Thursday showed.

NEW YORK - New York State sued UBS on Thursday, accusing the Swiss bank of committing a “multi-billion dollar fraud” by steering broker clients into auction-rate securities that became impossible to sell once the credit market tightened.