There is no-one better to protect than your own family.
It was five years ago on 23rd January, 10:12am to be precise, that my world changed in an instant.The last thing I said to my wife Sharon that morning was “…where do you want to go for a new kitchen?”
She didn’t answer as she had slumped into unconsciousness, was struggling to breathe and entirely unresponsive. A very quick call to 999 and the ambulance was there within 8 minutes. They worked on Sharon for almost half an hour before getting her into the ambulance, I was helpless…
Sharon was taken to A&E and was diagnosed with a Subarachnoid Brain Haemorrhage, a stroke in its simplest terms, but life changing in any case. Later that day, Sharon underwent surgery to insert coils of platinum wire in the aneurysm in her brain to prevent a recurrence. This treatment has enabled Sharon to make an incredible recovery over the last few years.
We took out our cover, Life, CIC and IP at a mere 28 years old when we bought our first house together in July 2000. We retained these policies over the years and when they were needed, they absolutely did the job they were designed to do. Both the CIC and the IP paid out while Sharon recovered over the following year in preparation for her return to work. This pay-out meant that any financial pressures, stresses and strains that would have undoubtedly made life even more difficult, were absolutely minimised. This made the recovery process for us both a much easier and less pressured experience.
It is worth noting that when we moved house in 2007, Sharon’s health conditions at the time meant that additional cover wasn’t possible. Had we put it off until we were older, we wouldn’t have had the cover in place when we needed it most.
The key message here is to follow your own advice! Make sure you and your family are protected first and do this when you are as young, fit and healthy as you’ll ever be. How can you sell something if you don’t believe in it yourself?
This is also notable as two years to the day after the stroke, Sharon had a kidney transplant (from me) and is doing remarkably well!
I have had so many claims on policies for clients over my 20+ years in this industry. I still have that moment of panic when the phone rings and a client says “Chris, can you help me?” Knowing we’ve always done everything we can to make sure clients are protected and understand risks is why it’s more likely than not that we can answer “Yes” to the question.
