Mortgage cover could help you to keep the roof over your head

Providing that you understand mortgage cover, a policy could help you to keep the roof over your head if you should find yourself unemployed through being made redundant, off work suffering an accident, or through prolonged sickness.

Mortgage cover - or accident, sickness and unemployment insurance (ASU) or mortgage payment protection insurance (MPPI) - as it is also called is one of a family of protection policies that can pay out a tax free sum of money which provides you with an income to ensure that you could continue to pay your mortgage.

Sadly the state gives very little help at times such as this even if you qualify for help, meaning that if you don’t want to risk having your home repossessed because you cannot afford your mortgage repayments, then mortgage cover should be considered.

Subject to you meeting the requirements set out in a policy, mortgage cover will provide you with a monthly income for up to 12 months - and in some cases for up to 24 months depending on the provider. It is imperative that when considering taking out a policy you ensure that you would be able to claim as there are exclusions within all policies. If you only work part time; are self-employed; or are retired, then a policy wouldn’t be in your best interests.

It is important that you shop around for your mortgage cover - the premiums for the cover vary considerably depending on where you look for the insurance. A standalone provider will give you a much lower quote for your premiums than a high street lender will along with providing a product of much better quality. High street lenders often give very little information regarding the policy’s key facts and exclusions which led to an investigation into the sector after a super complaint by the Citizens Advice.

In early 2005 the complaint was made to the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and as a result of an investigation by the Financial Services Authority, several companies were handed fines for mis-selling of the payment protection cover. When it comes to mortgage cover then the high street lender doesn’t always give the information needed for the consumer to make a decision. In some cases the cover is pushed onto the consumer alongside the mortgage with the lender making the homeowner believe they have to take the cover.

Mortgage cover can be a valuable safety net but it doesn’t have to be bought alongside the mortgage. It can be bought independently from a standalone provider of your choice and this is the cheapest way to purchase the cover along with ensuring you buy a quality product. An ethical provider will always outline the exclusions within their products and will provide you with the information you need to make an informed decision regarding the policies suitability to your needs. By going with a standalone provider and getting several quotes you are able to make huge savings while getting the peace of mind that mortgage cover can bring.