We bought our first house and took on a mortgage over 15 years ago. Wow! Time sure flies. From that day, we both took out critical illness and life insurance.

It was something that was advised and even though we were up to our neck in debt, we continued to make the payments. Why? Because it was one less thing to worry about. Let’s face it, life in general can be a bit of a challenge. When you’re only 23 years of age, taking on a mortgage was a really big thing. House prices back then were on the rise too. The first house we wanted went to sealed bids and we lost out. We were stood in the estate agents and houses were literally being sold on a phone call and without viewings.

Throughout our 20’s we were just about keeping our head above water. Looking back now, I don’t know how we did it. A large mortgage, a large overdraft and a large credit card would terrify me now. Even though, we both had good, well paid jobs. Having life insurance and critical illness cover at the time did take some of that stress away though. Fast forward 15 years and things have changed massively but we still take out the cover.

My Wife works part-time, I run my own business. Our mortgage has reduced significantly and we have a small credit card and zero overdraft. So why do we still have critical illness cover and life insurance?

I recently had the pleasure of talking to the Post Office about my thoughts. You can watch it along with Tom and Jen’s here. I’m not going to lie, it was a tough gig. There were times were I felt really emotional. Talking about what would happen if I died and I left my family behind is a very difficult thing to talk about. I enjoyed the interview though and I think it’s something I’d like to do more of.

All images captured by Deano Moore Photography.

Thanks to David Lloyd Clubs, Amy and I promote an active and well-balanced lifestyle. Looking after yourself not only makes you feel great, it should be in theory – adding years on to your life. But what happens if you are randomly struck down with an illness that means you can no longer work? It doesn’t matter how fit and healthy you are, this could happen to any of us. Just before Christmas I was really fit and healthy. I was really excited to go into Christmas and the New Year. Then I was struck down with flu. I know flu isn’t a critical illness but it wiped me out for 3-4 days. I’d lost hunger, sleep, size and strength. It took me a good couple of weeks to get over it. The point I’m making here is that I never thought in a million years that was going to happen to me.

If I rewind the clock to 2013, I attempted to run 12 parkruns in one day for charity. That’s 60km, or 37 miles. I completed 11, collapsed and was rushed to hospital. I was absolutely out of it. I’ve never hit the wall before and I though I was invincible until that day. It took me ages to get over it. Some people have said it was a crazy thing to even attempt and it’s taken me five years to finally agree with then. Seriously, what would’ve happened if that day had resulted in me dying?

When tragedy strikes, there’s a common speech. “You see and hear about these things happening all the time but I never thought it would happen to us.” With so much stuff going on in your life, having suitable cover means one less thing to think about. I’m not going to lie though, it has crossed my mind that we pay for cover each month and we haven’t needed to use it. We could probably have gone on two family holidays with that money. But I couldn’t even tell you how much we pay a month. I know it’s not loads. It’s not enough for me to think, “We should cancel this and save that money up.”

According to new research from Post Office Insurance, the average UK family could only sustain their lifestyle for less than two months (46 days), if they were to suddenly lose their main income. Do you have critical illness or life insurance? If so, tell me why?

If not, tell me why not? Lets talk. It seems like a risky game to me. On one hand, you’re saving a few quid a month but what if something happened to you? What would you do? If you’re interested, here’s a link to the Post Office’s Life Insurance Calculator.

If my number’s up, I want to make sure my family is protected and they can continue with the lifestyle we enjoy now.

With respect,

*Disclaimer: This was a collaborative post with the Post Office. All words and opinions are my own.