Traditionally, it meant putting money aside for the moment you’d need it most. A couple of thousand pounds in an emergency fund for when the boiler packs in, two nails decide to lodge themselves in your tyres, or the dog inhales one of your socks and leaves you with an unexpected vet bill.
Savings like these are vital for keeping life on track when its little hiccups get in the way. They’re great for short-term, relatively low-cost problems.
What they aren’t necessarily designed to do is replace your income.
According to the Financial Conduct Authority, 10% of UK adults had no cash savings at all in 2024, and a further 21% had less than £1,000 to fall back on.*
Research from Scottish Widows found that fewer than one in ten UK adults (8%) had cover in place if their income stopped suddenly, yet 42% worried their household wouldn’t cope if they were unable to work. **
So how long would your savings last if your income stopped tomorrow?
If you lost your income because of an illness or injury, your mortgage or rent wouldn’t stop. Neither would the household bills, the food shop or any of your other commitments.
You might dip into your savings and tell yourself it’s only temporary. But what happens if you can’t return to work for six months, a year, or even longer? Suddenly, the money you spent years building could be gone.
Savings give you access to money you’ve already put aside. Income protection is designed to pay you a regular income if you can’t work because of illness or injury. Rather than relying entirely on your own savings, you have another layer of financial protection to help keep things going.
Of course, savings still matter. Insurance isn’t a replacement for having money put aside, and not everyone will need, or be able to afford, every type of cover. But relying on savings alone can leave you exposed to a financial shock that lasts far longer than you expected.
By all means, keep saving for that rainy day. Just remember there’s a difference between preparing for an unexpected bill and preparing for the possibility of losing your income altogether.
Savings might get you through a rainy day. But what happens when it starts raining for months?
* Financial Conduct Authority, Financial Lives Survey 2024 key findings.
** Source: Scottish Widows, October 2024. The 8% figure is from Censuswide (4,043 UK adults, April 2024) and the 42% figure from YouGov (2,059 UK adults, February 2024).
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