In this exclusive for New Insurance and Protection’s ‘In Focus’ series, Melissa Burrows, Financial Planner at KDW Financial Planning, highlights why protection planning remains central to building long-term financial security. Melissa explains how advisers can reframe protection as an empowering tool rather than a reactive measure, helping clients safeguard their income, lifestyle, and peace of mind. Her insights come as the Income Protection Task Force welcomes its new cohort of 7Advisers, reinforcing the drive to grow protection awareness and support financial resilience across the sector.
As a Financial Planner, I help clients build long-term financial security. And while investment strategies, tax planning and retirement modelling often steal the spotlight, protection planning continues to be the bedrock of financial resilience. Without solid financial protection in place, even the most prudently constructed financial plan can unravel overnight.
Costs of living are high, and spare cash is a luxury. For many, the elusive ‘emergency fund’ is either nonexistent or has been exhausted by the rising costs of daily life. It’s never been more important to help clients strengthen their foundations, yet many feel that they can’t afford insurance cover. However, there are protection policies to suit most budgets. The real issue is understanding what options are available, and perhaps most importantly, the risks of not having cover.
Clients rarely wake up thinking about insurance, but they do think about their families, careers, and the lifestyle they enjoy. Protection can feel abstract to clients, so our communication style really matters. Giving advice should help clients feel confident, not anxious. Reframing the conversation is key. Instead of leading with “what happens if you don’t have this cover?”, we should be asking “what does having this cover in place enable you to do?”. Using simple and relatable scenarios, favouring storytelling as opposed to scare tactics, can be very effective. When we approach protection as the cornerstone rather than the afterthought, the entire advice process becomes stronger.
One area I believe Advisers can have a huge impact on is income protection. Income is the most valuable asset for many clients, but the need to protect it is often overlooked. We’ll insure our pets, our phones and our cars without hesitation, but insuring our income is rarely a consideration. Optimism bias really works against us here. We tend to think “it won’t happen to me”, yet statistics show that we are far more likely to be diagnosed with a serious illness than we are to die during our working lives. On top of this, many clients underestimate the severity of the financial implications long-term illness or injury can have.
The simple question “how long would you be able to keep the bills paid if you were too ill to work?” is a powerful one. Even if clients receive employer sick pay, the reality is that there will be a shelf-life to this benefit, which may cease before a client has fully recovered. A personal IP policy that dovetails into existing cover can keep clients financially stable. Alternatively, in the absence of company sick pay, particularly relevant for the increasing number who are self-employed, exploring how that client would feel relying on statutory sick pay to meet their financial commitments is crucial. When clients truly understand that income protection supports the life they’ve worked hard to build, the perceived value increases significantly.
Life and critical illness cover continue to be essential pillars of protection planning, yet many clients focus solely on the headline payout. Our role is to broaden that perspective. These policies provide so much more than a lump sum of cash. Our focus should be on what that lump sum enables our clients to do. When a policy pays out on diagnosis of a serious illness, it provides immediate financial breathing room. Additional costs often come hand in hand with the diagnosis of a serious illness. The cost of parking at hospitals these days is enough to make a real dent in your wallet if you need to receive treatment on a regular basis.
Arguably of equal importance is the emotional reassurance these policies offer, removing financial anxiety at times when families are already vulnerable. If you’re dealing with a serious health concern, the last thing you need is the additional stress of financial uncertainty. Protection enables clients to focus on recovery, removing stress that can significantly hinder recovery time.
Regular reviews are an important part of what we do. Financial planning inevitably involves moving parts. Even the best plan needs revisiting. Clients get married, divorced, have children, move homes, or change careers. All of these can mean that the cover, which once fit well, may now be inadequate. A clear review framework not only strengthens our client relationships but also reinforces the value of receiving ongoing advice.
The key is to bring protection conversations to life. Protection planning isn’t about selling policies – it’s building the solid foundations for clients to plan with confidence. When we take the time to really understand our clients, explain risks clearly and craft tailored protection strategies, we deliver advice that is truly life-changing. As Financial Planners, we have an opportunity, and a responsibility, to guide clients through uncertainty and help them stay financially secure, no matter what life brings.
