Heavy glass and sharp edges
Modern double and triple glazed units are heavy and awkward, and fitting them means lifting, twisting and holding weight at arm's length. Back and shoulder injuries are common, and one dropped pane can cause serious cuts. Upstairs windows and conservatory roofs mean ladders, towers or scaffolds.
Commercial glaziers working on shopfronts and curtain walling face larger panels, lifting equipment and work at greater heights. Even domestic fitters can find that years of carrying frames wear down knees and lower backs.
Paid by the frame
Many window fitters are self-employed and paid per installation by window companies, or run their own small firms. Earnings can be good when the order book is full, but they stop entirely if you cannot lift. Fitters often work in pairs, so one person's injury can leave a partner short of work too.
Employed glaziers at larger companies may get sick pay for a limited period. Check your terms before choosing how long your income protection should wait.
- Piece work: no fitting means no money
- Working in a pair: think about how your partner would cope
- Own business: showroom, van and stock costs carry on
- Employed: match the waiting period to your sick pay
How insurers class glazing
Insurers place occupations into risk classes. Domestic glazing is generally treated as manual work, while commercial glazing at height may be rated more heavily. The class affects price and the definition used at claim, which ranges from own occupation to suited occupation or a list of work tasks.
If you spend time surveying, measuring up or running the office, include it. Those duties may help, and some insurers give credit for them.
Employed glaziers should also check whether their firm offers group income protection or death in service. Those benefits change the amount and waiting period that make sense on a personal policy, and we can factor them in.
Life cover for window fitters
Should you die while the policy runs, life insurance pays your family a lump sum. It can clear a mortgage and give them time to adjust. Glazing usually has little effect on life cover terms, so your age, health and whether you smoke will shape the price.
If you run a glazing firm with a business partner, partnership or shareholder protection can help the survivor keep the business going.
How Hi Tomorrow helps glaziers
We find out whether you fit domestic or commercial glazing, how high you work and how you are paid, then compare insurers on our panel for terms that suit the job. We explain the definitions and payment periods clearly.
Glaziers who fit in pairs often ask whether they can share a policy. Income protection is personal, so each fitter needs cover based on their own earnings, though we are happy to look at both of you together. We help with the paperwork when you apply and support you if you ever claim.