The body is your main tool
Manual therapy loads your thumbs, wrists and shoulders hundreds of times a week. Helping patients stand, walk and transfer in hospital loads your back. Many physios develop the very problems they treat, and a persistent thumb or wrist condition can make hands-on work painful.
Insurers sort jobs into risk classes and apply a definition when you claim. Own occupation means the insurer asks if you can work as a physiotherapist. With a broader definition, an insurer could argue you could teach or work in another role instead.
NHS, private clinic or sports club
NHS physiotherapists have full pay then half pay when off sick, with periods based on length of service. Private clinic staff depend on their employer, and many self-employed physios rent a room and get paid only for the sessions they deliver.
Sports physios travel with teams, work weekends and may be on short contracts. If your income comes from several places, list them all so the cover reflects what you earn.
If you own a clinic, the rent and staff costs continue while you recover. Personal income protection replaces your own income, while key person cover can help the business itself. If you have a business partner, partnership or shareholder protection lets the survivor buy your share if you die.
- NHS physios: deferred period to match the end of half pay
- Self-employed physios: short deferred period to protect cash flow
- Clinic owners: think about business costs as well
- Sports physios: check contract length and any team cover
Life insurance for physios
NHS physios in the NHS Pension Scheme have death in service while they remain members. Private and self-employed physios usually have nothing similar. A level or decreasing life policy can clear a mortgage, and family income benefit can replace your earnings until your children are older.
Taking cover out early, while you are younger and in good health, locks in a price for the length of the policy if you choose guaranteed premiums.
Taking cover out before injuries build up
Many physios pick up minor strains early in their career. Each one becomes part of your medical history, and insurers can add exclusions for parts of the body you have had treatment on. Applying while your record is clear usually gives you broader cover.
Once a policy is in force, later health changes do not alter its terms, provided you answered the questions honestly at the start. That is a good reason not to put the decision off until after your first bout of thumb or back trouble.
How Hi Tomorrow helps physiotherapists
We check how you earn, what support you have when sick and whether a clinic depends on you. We compare insurers on our panel for physiotherapy and own occupation terms, and help with questions about any past joint or back treatment.