Some form of income protection insurance is a virtual necessity for the self-employed and people working for small business, one industry insider has claimed.

Graeme Trudgill, technical services manager at the British Insurance Brokers' Association, says that insurance is often a "low priority" for such individuals - even though they should really think of it as "vital".

"They're the most important people of all to get income protection insurance," he said, commenting in relation to SME workers and the self-employed .

"Obviously if they have an injury or are unable to work, they won't have any income – so how will they be able to pay the bills?

"A number of people have insurance quite low down as a priority, they want the bare minimum that they can.

"[Many] probably have liability insurance and insure their tools and things like that, but insuring themselves [as well] is actually extremely important because that's going to give them the money to keep the wolves from the door," he added.

Mr Trudgill concluded by stating that talking to a broker was a good idea when trying to get income protection insurance - as such professionals are often able to locate the best deals.

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) has set up a team of broker development and key account managers to strengthen ties with clients in the UK.The broker development team comprises Matt Br...

The insurance industry can respond effectively to the next major claim incident if all the elements work closely together.That is the message from Malcolm Edwards, president of the Chartered Institute...

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) must not stand in the way of better regulation, insurers have warned.Responding to the review of the FOS by Lord Hunt, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) s...