'I'm a money expert and £1-a-day rule can be life-changing'

Families are being told that £1 a day could make a huge difference if life doesn't go to plan. “Most people are one diagnosis away from financial chaos, yet they still think insurance is something that can be sorted out later.” That’s the warning from mortgage and protection specialist, Katy Eatenton, who says too many families are dangerously under-protected because they believe cover is either unnecessary or unaffordable. “Every week I hear the same things,” Katy, who runs Eatenton Finance , based in Weybridge, explained. “They say ‘‘I’m healthy’, ‘it won’t happen to me’, ‘my family would help me’ and I’ve even had people tell me they’d just start a GoFundMe page if something happened.” According to Katy, the biggest misconception surrounding life insurance and critical illness cover is cost. She said: “People hear the word insurance and immediately think of huge monthly payments, but the reality is often very different. For many people, putting proper protection in place can cost as little as £1 a day. If you think of it as just £1 a day, that can make it more palatable.” Katy said many younger adults were shocked to discover that life insurance could sometimes even start from as little as £5 to £10 per month, depending on age and health: “When you break it down, it’s often less than people spend on coffees, takeaways or subscriptions they barely use. Yet that same policy could be the difference between a family coping financially or completely falling apart after illness or death.” Katy, who specialises in helping families and business owners protect their financial future, said she believed the conversation around insurance needed to change. She added: “We insure our cars, our phones and even our pets without hesitation and that generally costs way more than £30 a month, but so many people still leave their income, mortgage and children completely exposed. “Some insurers also have fantastic bolt-ons where you can spend an extra £10 or so a month and get critical illness cover for both yourself and your children, up to £2m." She said she was also keen to highlight the value of critical illness cover, particularly for families with children. She added: “Some policies now include children’s critical illness cover as standard or for a relatively small additional cost. If a child or parent becomes seriously ill, having access to financial support, private treatment options, in some cases overseas, as well as time away from work can be life-changing.” For Katy, protection is not about fear-mongering; it is about planning. She said: “The families who cope best during difficult times are rarely the luckiest. They are usually the ones who prepared properly beforehand. Nothing should ever be left to chance when people you love depend on you.”