Protection insurance in Leeds
Life cover, mortgage protection and income protection
If you have a mortgage in Leeds, a young family in York, or you are self-employed in Wakefield and worried about what would happen to your income if you could not work, protection is the part of your finances that quietly holds everything together. It is the cover that pays out when life does not go to plan.
At Feel Good Financial, we help you make sense of life insurance, mortgage protection, critical illness cover and income protection, then match you to a policy that fits your budget and your circumstances. No jargon, no pressure, just a clear view of what each type of cover does and which one you actually need.
We are based on Roundhay Road in Leeds, and we advise families and business owners across Yorkshire and the rest of the UK.
What protection insurance is, in plain English
Protection insurance is a group of policies that pay out money if you die, become seriously ill, or cannot work because of illness or injury. The main types are life insurance, critical illness cover, income protection and family income benefit. Each one covers a different risk, and many people hold more than one at the same time.
The payouts are real, and they are large. In 2024, UK insurers paid out a record £8 billion in protection claims, the equivalent of around £21.9 million every single day to people dealing with bereavement, illness or injury. Nearly 97% of new claims were paid that year (ABI, 2025). So the question for most people is not whether protection pays out. It is which type of cover fits your life?
| Type of cover | What it helps with |
|---|---|
| Life insurance | Pays out if you die during the policy term, so your family can clear the mortgage, replace lost income or cover everyday bills. |
| Critical illness cover | Pays a tax-free lump sum if you are diagnosed with a serious illness listed in your policy, such as cancer, a heart attack or a stroke. |
| Income protection | Pays a regular monthly income if you cannot work because of illness or injury, until you recover, retire, or the policy ends. |
| Family income benefit | A form of life insurance that pays your family a regular tax-free income, rather than one lump sum, if you die during the term. |
Protection Review
Our specialist team can offer advice on the most suitable protection your and your priorities.
With access to over 90+ protection providers, we can be sure we’ll find you the best rates on the market.
Our Protection Services.
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Life insurance provides a financial safety net for your loved ones when you’re no longer around. Whether you need term life cover, whole-of-life insurance, or mortgage protection, we’ll help you find the right policy for your family’s needs.
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If diagnosed with a serious illness, critical illness cover can provide a lump sum payment to help with medical expenses, recovery costs, or simply to maintain your lifestyle. We’ll ensure you have the protection you need when life takes an unexpected turn.
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What happens if you’re unable to work due to illness or injury? Income protection can replace a portion of your income, keeping you financially stable until you’re back on your feet. Let us find a plan that supports your lifestyle and commitments.
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This type of cover provides regular payments to your family in the event of your death, helping to replace lost income and maintain stability. We’ll help you choose a policy that offers the right level of support for your loved ones.
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Your home is one of your most valuable assets—protect it with comprehensive buildings and contents insurance. From natural disasters to everyday accidents, we’ll help you find a policy that offers peace of mind and the right level of coverage for your property and possessions.
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Planning for the future isn’t complete without a will. We work with trusted partners to provide will-writing services, ensuring your wishes are carried out and your assets are protected. Let us guide you to the right professionals for expert advice.
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If you’re a business owner, protecting your company is essential. We can connect you with specialists in business protection insurance, including key person cover, shareholder protection, and relevant life plans. These services safeguard your business’s financial health against unforeseen events.
How we work for you.
Understanding Your Needs:
We take the time to understand and appreciate your personal financial situation, goals, and priorities.
Comparing the Market:
As brokers, we search the market for the most suitable and cost-effective policies from trusted providers.
Tailored Recommendations:
We present options that align with your needs and explain them in plain English.
Ongoing Support:
From the initial consultation to managing your policy, we’re here for you every step of the way.
Life insurance in Leeds
Life insurance pays out a lump sum or a regular income if you die during the length of the policy. For most people in Leeds, the reason for taking it out is simple. You do not want your family left with a mortgage they cannot pay or bills they cannot cover if you are no longer there to earn.
There are a few main types of life insurance, and the right one depends on what you are protecting and for how long.
| Type | How the payout works | Often used for |
|---|---|---|
| Level term life insurance | The payout stays the same for the whole term. | Replacing income and protecting a family. |
| Decreasing term life insurance | The payout reduces over time, roughly following the repayment of the mortgage balance. | Covering a repayment mortgage (mortgage life insurance). |
| Whole life insurance | Covers you for your whole life and pays out whenever you die. | Funeral costs or leaving an inheritance. |
| Joint life insurance | Covers two people and usually pays out once, on the first death. | Couples with a shared mortgage or children. |
How much is Life Insurance?
There is no single price, because life insurance is built around you. The cost depends on your age, your health, whether you smoke, the amount of cover you want and how long you want it to last. A healthy non-smoker in their early thirties taking out level term cover will usually pay far less than someone taking out the same cover in their fifties. The most reliable way to find out what you would pay is to get a quote based on your own details, which is something we can do with you.
Mortgage protection in Leeds: cover that clears your home loan
If you are buying a home in Leeds or remortgaging somewhere else in Yorkshire, your adviser will usually ask whether you have thought about protecting the mortgage. This is what most people mean by mortgage protection, or mortgage protection insurance.
Mortgage life insurance is the most common form. It is usually a decreasing term life insurance policy set up to follow your outstanding mortgage balance, so if you die before the mortgage is repaid, the policy can pay off what is left. That way, your partner or family can stay in the home without worrying about the monthly payments.
Do you need mortgage protection insurance? It is not a legal requirement, and it is not the same as buildings insurance, which your lender will insist on. But if anyone relies on your income to keep a roof over their head, mortgage protection is one of the first things worth putting in place. Think of a couple in Leeds with a £220,000 repayment mortgage and one main earner. If that earner died, decreasing term mortgage life insurance could clear the balance, so the loss of a person does not also become the loss of the home.
Critical illness cover
Critical illness cover pays out a tax-free lump sum if you are diagnosed with one of the specific serious conditions listed in your policy. Common examples are cancer, a heart attack and a stroke, though every policy has its own definitions, which are worth checking carefully before you buy.
This matters more than people expect. Cancer was the most common reason for a critical illness claim in 2024, accounting for 62% of all critical illness claims paid, and the average critical illness payout reached £67,600 (ABI, 2025). That money is yours to use however you need, whether that is paying off some of the mortgage, adapting your home, or simply taking the pressure off while you recover.
You can often add critical illness cover to a life insurance policy rather than buying it separately, which is why people search for life insurance and critical illness cover together. We can talk you through whether a combined policy or two standalone policies make more sense for you.
Income protection
Income protection replaces part of your income if you cannot work because of illness or injury. It pays a regular monthly amount, usually a percentage of your salary, until you recover, go back to work, retire, or the policy ends.
What does income protection cover? It is built for the situation where you are alive but unable to earn, which is more common than most people think. Musculoskeletal problems like back and neck pain were the leading reason for income protection claims in 2024, at 34% of all claims paid (ABI, 2025). It does not cover redundancy or simply choosing to leave a job, so it sits alongside, rather than replaces, an emergency savings pot.
Income protection for the self-employed
If you are self-employed in Leeds, there is no employer sick pay to fall back on. No work often means no income, almost straight away. That is why income protection for the self-employed can matter even more than it does for an employee. A self-employed plumber in Bradford who hurt their shoulder and could not work for six months would have a monthly income coming in from the policy, instead of watching the savings disappear.
Life and income protection insurance: how they work together
People often ask whether they need life insurance or income protection. For a lot of families, the honest answer is both, because they protect against two different things. Life insurance protects your family if you die. Income protection protects your household if you are alive but cannot earn.
Picture a couple in York with two children and a repayment mortgage. With life and income protection insurance in place, two very different bad days are covered. If one of them died, the life cover could clear the mortgage. If one of them could not work for a year with a serious back injury, income protection would keep money coming in so the family could carry on paying the bills. Neither policy does the other's job, which is why they often sit together.
Family income benefit
Family income benefit is a type of life insurance that pays your family a regular, tax-free income instead of a single lump sum if you die during the policy term. For some families, this feels easier to manage than a large one-off payment, because it mirrors the monthly wage that has been lost. If you would rather your family received, say, a set amount each month for the years until your children finish education, this is the cover worth asking us about.
Which type of protection do you need?
There is no one right answer, because it depends on who relies on you, what you owe and what you would struggle to pay for if your income stopped. The table below is a quick way to see what each type of cover does. The clearest next step is a short conversation, where we look at your situation and tell you honestly what is worth having and what is not.
| Cover | What it pays | When it pays | Often suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life insurance | A lump sum or regular income. | If you die during the term. | Anyone with a mortgage or dependents. |
| Critical illness cover | A tax-free lump sum. | On diagnosis of a listed illness. | People who want a buffer if seriously ill. |
| Income protection | A regular monthly income. | If illness or injury stops you from working. | Earners and the self-employed. |
| Family income benefit | A regular tax-free income. | If you die during the term. | Families who prefer a monthly payout. |
What UK insurers paid out in 2024
| Protection type | Paid to customers | Average claim |
|---|---|---|
| All individual protection claims | £5.32bn | £18,700 |
| Critical illness cover | £1.3bn | £67,600 |
| Income protection (individual) | £204m | £10,000 |
Source: Association of British Insurers and GRiD, 2024 claims data (published 2025). 96.9% of new individual claims were paid.
Why families across Yorkshire choose Feel Good Financial.
Feel Good Financial has been advising on mortgages and protection since 2012. Protection is not a bolt-on for us; it is one of the things we care about most because it is where good advice quietly changes what happens to a family on their worst day.
- • We compare cover from a wide range of leading UK insurers, so the recommendation is based on what fits you, not on one provider's products.
- • We explain everything in plain English, including the bits of the policy that actually matter, like definitions and exclusions.
- • We are local. You can talk to a real protection adviser in Leeds who understands the Yorkshire market.
- • We stay in touch. As your life changes, with a new home, a new baby or a new business, your cover can be reviewed so it keeps doing its job.
- • Through the Feel Good Hub, employers can give their teams access to protection advice and other financial support as a workplace benefit.
Speak to a protection adviser in Leeds.
Protection is one of those things that is easy to keep putting off, right up until the moment it matters. A short conversation now means you know exactly where you stand.
We will look at your situation, explain your options clearly, and only recommend the cover that earns its place.
Contact us today for expert advice and a no-obligation consultation.
FAQs about protection
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If someone would struggle financially if you died, the answer is usually yes. That includes anyone with a mortgage, a partner who relies on their income, or children at home. If you have no debts and no dependants, the case is weaker. We can help you work out which applies to you.
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Income protection pays a regular monthly income while you cannot work because of illness or injury, and it can pay out more than once over the years. Critical illness cover pays a single lump sum if you are diagnosed with a specific serious condition listed in the policy. Many people hold both, because one covers the everyday gap and the other covers the big shock.
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Yes. Life insurance for the self-employed works in the same way as it does for employees. What changes is that you have no workplace cover behind you, so income protection and life insurance often matter more, not less. There are also options like relevant life insurance for company directors, which we can explain.
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No, mortgage protection insurance is not a legal requirement, and it is different from the buildings insurance your lender will ask for. It is strongly worth considering if anyone depends on your income to pay the mortgage, because mortgage life insurance can clear the balance if you die during the term.
Important Information:
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage. Think carefully before securing other debts against your home. Changes in interest rates may affect your monthly repayments. Ensure you understand the terms and risks before proceeding, There may be a fee for mortgage advice. The actual amount you pay will depend on your circumstances. The fee is up to 1% but a typical fee is £695 for a purchase application and £300 for a remortgage.