We don’t know what’s going to happen in the future, but personal accident insurance can help to protect you from the unexpected.
It’s a type of policy that pays out if you get injured or die as a result of an accident.
You can use the lump sum payment to replace your lost income and help to keep up with monthly payments, such as rent/mortgage payments, household bills, credit card bills and more.
What is personal accident insurance?
- Personal accident insurance (also known as personal injury insurance) pays out a lump sum if you become permanently injured or disabled or die due to an accident.
- The payout can help to replace lost income as a result of the accident.
- Exactly what’s covered can vary depending on the type of policy you buy and between different insurers, so it’s wise to compare multiple quotes and fully read the policy terms and conditions.
- This type of cover could be most beneficial for those in higher-risk jobs, such as those in construction, self-employed workers and those who are more likely to be exposed to violence at work.
- Personal accident insurance is different from 'personal accident cover', which can be included with a car insurance policy.
What types of personal accident cover are there?
The most common types of personal accident cover include:
- Accidental permanent injury insurance - A policy that will pay out if you become permanently injured or disabled as a result of an accident. For example, loss of hearing, burns, brain damage, loss of limbs, and loss of sight
- Accidental death insurance - Pays out a lump sum if you die as a result of an accident.
What doesn’t personal accident insurance cover?
It’s common for personal accident insurance to not cover:
- Illness
- Accidents that occur due to substance misuse
- Injuries that are self-inflicted
- Suicide
- Natural causes of death
What’s covered by a personal accident policy can vary between insurers, so it’s important to shop around.
You may also find that injuries or accidents that happen as a result of being a professional sports person or due to taking part in extreme hobbies might not be covered.
It’s wise to fully read the terms and conditions before you commit to a policy so you understand exactly what’s covered and what’s not.
What’s the difference between personal accident insurance and life insurance?
The difference is that personal accident insurance pays out due to injury or death due to an accident, whereas life insurance pays out if you die regardless of whether it was due to an accident or not.
Most causes of death are covered by life insurance, unless there is an exclusion added to your policy.
Below we have summarised the two policies:
| Personal accident insurance | Pays out if you’re injured or die as a result of an accident during the policy term |
|---|---|
|
Pays out if you’re injured or die as a result of an accident during the policy term
|
Pays out if you die during the policy term
|
|
It can either pay out to you if you sustain an injury, or it can pay out to your loved ones if you die
|
Pays out to your loved ones
|
|
Only pays out due to accident. |
Usually covers death by any cause, both natural and accidental - unless excluded from your cover
|
| You won’t get a payout for illness or death due to natural causes | Can include additional cover such as terminal illness cover, which pays out if you become terminally ill |
Do I need personal accident insurance if I have life insurance?
Yes, personal accident insurance could be useful even if you have life insurance in place.
This is because each policy will cover you for different circumstances.
For example, you could have a permanent injury insurance policy to protect you during your working life alongside a level term life insurance policy to cover your mortgage and family living costs after your death.
Does personal accident insurance include illness?
No, personal accident cover usually only covers you for injuries or death caused by accidents.
If you’re looking for a policy that covers both illness and injury, you could consider critical illness cover or income protection.
- Critical illness cover - Critical illness cover protects you if you’re diagnosed with a serious illness during the policy term. It’s often added to a life insurance policy, meaning the policy can pay out in the event of illness or death.
- Income protection – Income protection pays out a percentage of your income if you become too ill or injured to work. It pays out in monthly instalments to help you cover your outgoings.
Is personal injury insurance worth it?
If you worry about how you would afford your financial commitments if you were to have an accident and couldn’t work, personal accident insurance could be beneficial.
Between 2023 and 2024, 604,000 UK workers sustained non-fatal injuries, according to self-reports from the Labour Force Survey.
With this in mind, it could be useful to have some form of protection in place.
It could be most worthwhile for self-employed workers who don’t benefit from employee benefits, like sick pay, or may find it hard to secure other forms of cover due to being self-employed or due to having a ‘high-risk’ occupation.
Personal accident cover isn’t something that’s available through Confused.com, but we can help you compare quotes for other types of protection, such as life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection.
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