HEATHER

Heather enjoyed an extremely hectic and busy life. Managing a home for adolescent children, much of her working life was spent organising a range of activities such as ice skating or climbing, and the odd trip to the seaside. In her spare time, she enjoyed walking near her home in the Yorkshire Dales.

Despite always being on the go, Heather realised that she needed to protect her long term ability to pay her monthly mortgage repayments if an illness or accident prevented her from working. Her employer offered only limited sick pay, so her Independent Financial Adviser recommended Unum’s Essential Ability Cover which could offer a replacement income if an illness or accident prevented her from completing a number of basic daily tasks, known as functional abilities tests.

The Case

In July 2006 Heather suffered a bad fall at work, dislocating the toes in her left foot, fracturing a bone in her heel and leaving her muscles and tendons swollen and painful. Heather’s foot was in plaster for 5 months and had to be continuously kept in an elevated position.

She suffered acute discomfort, and, unable to work, Heather stopped receiving her salary. She started to worry about how she would be able to meet her monthly mortgage repayments as well as recover from the injury.

Heather’s Perspective

 ‘When you suffer an injury the worry about your future, finances… emotional stress as well as dealing with the physical injury is considerable.’

After three months, Heather’s Essential Ability Cover began to pay a regular benefit which she could use to meet the cost of her mortgage, allowing her to take time off work without the financial stress.

As Heather’s condition improved she was able to return to work with support from her employer who provided an automatic car for her commute. But unlike a traditional income protection plan which pays a benefit if you’re unable to work, her Essential Abilities Cover continued to pay a benefit after she had returned to work, reflecting the severity of her injuries and her continued inability to perform some of the tests mentioned earlier. This gave her a valuable additional income to pay for much needed physiotherapy.

Looking ahead

Heather has now fully recovered and is once again able to enjoy hiking in the dales. Her Essential Ability Cover plan remains in force and ready to protect Heather in the future should illness or injury strike again.

With kind permission of Unum.

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