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Finder’s income protection insurance methodology
How we calculated our 2024 income protection awards.
What are the Finder income protection awards?
Finder's income protection awards is a ratings methodology that compares both price and features across 11 income protection policies. We got 170+ income protection quotes based on multiple profiles to determine the winners in 2024.
We use the final scores from our insurance awards to inform the top picks on our best income protection insurance page.
Finder's income protection awards criteria
The criteria for Finder's income protection awards was determined by our insights team and insurance experts.
Income protection eligibility criteria
- It must be a direct income protection insurance policy (e.g. no broker is needed)
- The provider must have offered the policy for 12 months or longer
- Quotes must be available online or over the phone
Finder's income protection awards methodology
1. How we calculated our price score for income protection
To determine our income protection insurance award winners, we got prices across a total of 32 customer profiles varying in age, gender, occupation and smoking status:
| Age | Gender | Smoker | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35 | Female | No | Blue collar worker |
| 45 | Female | No | White collar worker |
| 35 | Female | No | Blue collar worker |
| 45 | Female | No | White collar worker |
| 35 | Female | Yes | Blue collar worker |
| 45 | Female | Yes | White collar worker |
| 35 | Female | Yes | Blue collar worker |
| 45 | Female | Yes | White collar worker |
| 35 | Male | No | Blue collar worker |
| 45 | Male | No | White collar worker |
| 35 | Male | No | Blue collar worker |
| 45 | Male | No | White collar worker |
| 35 | Male | Yes | Blue collar worker |
| 45 | Male | Yes | White collar worker |
| 35 | Male | Yes | Blue collar worker |
| 45 | Male | Yes | White collar worker |
2. How we calculated our features score for income protection
The features score takes into account 8 different features commonly covered by an income protection policy. Features were scored and weighted as follows:
| Features | Weighting |
|---|---|
| Death cover option | 4% |
| Highest benefit period | 7% |
| Max. entry age | 5% |
| Max. monthly benefit | 7% |
| Max. % of income covered | 7% |
| Minimum waiting period | 7% |
| Waiting period | 7% |
| Benefit period options | 7% |
| Non-smoker price | 15% |
| Smoker price | 10% |
| White collar price | 12% |
| Blue collar price | 12% |
3. How we calculated our final scores for income protection
Why you can trust Finder's income protection insurance experts
You pay nothing. Finder is free to use. And you pay the same as going direct. No markups, no hidden fees.
You save time. We spend 100s of hours researching income protection insurance so you can sort the gold from the junk faster.
You can trust us. We say it like it is. We aren't owned by an insurer and our opinions are our own.
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