Don't rely on your NHS Sick Pay to protect everything you've worked hard for.
Why do I need to protect my income?
How much NHS Sick Pay can I get?
How can I protect my income?
What should I look out for?
Why do I need to protect my income now?
What should I do now?
Why do I need to protect my income?
As a Foundation Dentist, you may be enjoying the security of a regular salary from the NHS. However, even though the NHS provides excellent benefits to their members, your salary won't continue indefinitely if you can't work due to a serious illness or accident.
Your debts won't go away just because you are sick, so whilst your student loans can be deferred, you'll still need to pay for the following:
- Overdraft, credit cards and personal loan repayments
- Rent or mortgage plus household bills such as electric and water
- Mobile phone, satellite TV and broadband bills
- Food and travel costs
How would you do this if you were off sick for a significant length of time?
How much NHS Sick Pay can I get?
NHS Sick Pay for Foundation Dentists is limited - you won't receive any sick pay at all during your first four months and then you could only be entitled to a maximum of one month's full pay.
Once you take up a Performer or DF2 position, you are likely to lose your entitlement to NHS sick pay for the next twelve months.
You need to complete two years on the GDC register before you are eligible again for Performer sick pay from the NHS - you'll then receive full pay for six months, subject to the PCT's discretion.
NHS Sick Pay won't permanently replace your income, so any absence from work that lasts for longer than six months will affect you financially.
If you are planning to work as a Salaried Officer, NHS Sick Pay works differently, find out more
here.
How can I protect my income?
It's vital to protect your income with an income protection policy. This will pay you a tax-free income that is usually around 50% of your 'pre-incapacity' earnings until you return to work, die or reach the selected end date.
Permanent income protection allows you to claim as many times as is required and the amount you receive can rise with inflation, depending on the type of policy.
What should I look out for?
It's very important for dentists to consider 'own occupation' income protection cover - this will pay out if you can't work as a dentist.
Cover for the following may also be important to you:
- Complications of pregnancy
- Career break or sabbatical options
- Worldwide cover
- Dangerous sports (ie rock climbing, scuba diving or horse riding)
It's unlikely that the insurer will pay out whilst you are receiving full sick pay, so NHS Perfomers should avoid paying extra for policies that promise to pay out before your NHS Sick Pay ends.
Why do I need to protect my income now?
Foundation Dentists earn more than most graduates and you can quickly get used to your level of income. If you were off work for an extended period of time, your level of income when your NHS Sick Pay ended might come as a bit of a shock.
Your cover needs to be in place as soon as possible to ensure that you are protected before something goes wrong. Once you have been ill, you could find that premiums will be more expensive or will exclude certain conditions, so it's important to take out cover whilst you are young and hopefully healthy.
What should I do now?
If you took out an income protection policy as a student, you should review this now to make sure that the level of benefits you are entitled to keeps pace with your earnings.
Your local Wesleyan Medical Sickness Financial Consultant will be pleased to review your situation and can discuss the tailored income protection we can provide. This includes the Wesleyan Dental Income Protector, an income protection policy specifically tailored to the needs of dentists in the years immediately before and after qualification.
Contact us today if you would like to arrange an appointment.