When taken out correctly mortgage cover can be a real lifeline if the worst happens and you find yourself unable to work. However, if taken out without considering the terms and conditions and in particular the exclusions, then a policy could be nothing but a waste of money. It is essential that before you sign on the dotted line and commit to a policy, you make sure that the exclusions would not stop you from making a claim. If you are self-employed, retired, only work on a part-time basis or suffer from an ongoing illness you need to look very carefully at the conditions. A pre-existing medical condition is excluded but if you have not suffered from it within the past two years a policy could work in your favour. If you are self-employed and have to stop trading through no fault of your own then a policy could also protect you. Providers can add in other exclusions, so comparing the policies? small print along with the quotes for premiums is essential.

Protecting your mortgage repayments by some means is essential, considering mortgages are usually large loans taken over many years. At any time during the period of your mortgage you could find yourself unable to work due to getting ill, having an accident or through unemployment. If the worst happened and you were unable to work you would have to find the money to continue making your repayments, otherwise you could risk losing your home to repossession. Any savings you had could soon disappear and depending on the state for help could be futile. While help is available from the state you must fit strict criteria to get any support. Conditions which could stop you from receiving help include having savings of over ?8,000 and having a partner in full-time employment. If you do qualify and you took your mortgage after October 1995 then you would not get help until after nine months had passed. Even then, the financial support you would receive would only go towards the interest on your mortgage.

When you have mortgage protection, however, you don't need to panic about your repayments if you find yourself unable to work. A policy would begin to pay out between the 30th and 90th day of you not working. It would then provide you with a tax-free income for one to two years, depending on the provider. All the conditions of the policy, including the time frames, are set out in the key facts of the policy and will be provided by a specialist provider before you take out the cover. The premiums associated with mortgage insurance will vary depending on which provider you go with. For example, mortgage protection is often offered alongside borrowing, but in the majority of cases this can cost up to 40% more than had you got a quote from a standalone provider.

Mortgage cover should be considered carefully and taking the advice that only a specialist will offer is imperative if you expect the policy to work in the way it was intended. The mis-selling that has been associated with payment protection products has occurred through a lack of understanding. In March this is expected to change and cover will become more transparent with the introduction of comparison tables. These will explain the exclusions and make the consumer aware of their existence, and will also show how much in total a policy would cost. They will also help consumers to choose which type of cover might be best suited to their circumstances.