Income Protection For Handymen
A handyman's week might include a leaking tap, a door that will not close, flat-pack assembly, a bit of decorating and clearing a gutter.
That variety is the business model: small jobs that are too minor for a specialist, done quickly, usually for domestic customers who call the same person each time.
It also means the exposures of several trades at once, and an unusual complication in how a policy would be applied.
The short answer
A handyman does small jobs across several trades, which makes the physical risks broad and creates a question most trades do not face: if your occupation is a bit of everything, what is the policy measuring when it asks whether you can do your own job? That is worth settling before buying rather than at claim. Income protection replaces part of your earnings if illness or injury stops you working.
What actually stops you working
- Falls from ladders and steps, which is the single biggest risk because so much of the work is at height
- Back and shoulder injuries from lifting, carrying and working in awkward positions all day
- Hand and wrist injuries from power tools used across many different tasks
- Hand-arm vibration from drills, sanders and saws
- Cuts and puncture wounds, from blades, screws and unknown materials in older properties
- Knee damage from kneeling for flooring, plumbing and joinery work
- Respiratory and skin exposure to dust, paint, solvents and whatever is in an older property
Sick pay, if you get any
Almost all handymen are self-employed sole traders working direct to domestic customers, so there is no sick pay. The income is jobs-per-day and the customer base is local and loyal until somebody else does the work, so an absence stops the money immediately and puts the round at risk.
Why the definition of incapacity decides it
Own occupation matters here and is more complicated than usual. Because the occupation spans trades, there is more room for argument about whether somebody who cannot do one part of it can still do their job, which is exactly why the wording is worth reading before buying.
What Is Your Occupation, Exactly
This is the part of buying cover that matters more for a handyman than for almost anybody else, and it is about the policy rather than the work.
An own occupation definition asks whether illness or injury stops you doing your own job. For a tiler, that is reasonably clear. For somebody whose job is plumbing, decorating, joinery, assembly and gutter clearing in whatever proportion the week brings, there is more room for interpretation: an injury that rules out ladder work still leaves plenty of the rest.
So the useful thing is to describe the work precisely at application, listing what you actually do in a normal month rather than writing "handyman" and leaving it. A policy applied to a described occupation is far more predictable than one applied to a job title, and if any of the work is a large share of the income it is worth saying so. We would go through the wording with you rather than leave it to be discovered.
Working At Height Is Most Of The Risk
Across all the varied tasks, one exposure dominates the serious injuries.
Gutters, light fittings, curtain poles, loft hatches, fascias and exterior painting all mean a ladder, usually alone, often on uneven ground at a domestic property, frequently without anybody footing it. That is the mechanism behind most of the long absences in this trade rather than the tools.
It is worth declaring honestly rather than describing the work as general maintenance. An insurer pricing ladder work done alone is pricing the real job, and a policy bought on a vaguer description is the one that gets examined closely later.
If you stop
Domestic customers with a job waiting will find somebody else within a week or two, because the work is small and urgent rather than planned. The round is built on being reliable and available, so an absence costs the relationship more than the individual jobs.
What A Household Is Left With In This Trade
Sole traders have no death in service, so the household has only what has been arranged.
The business is a van, tools and a phone number with a list of regular customers, and that list depends entirely on the person answering the phone.
The sum worth covering is the mortgage, van and tool finance, and the years of income a household would need. It is worth doing the arithmetic rather than assuming the figure is small because the jobs are.
A Lump Sum When The Body Cannot Do The Variety
The ending is usually cumulative: a back, a shoulder or knees that cannot sustain a day of climbing, kneeling and lifting.
That leaves somebody employable in lighter work on less money, which is where income protection runs out once suitable alternative work is judged available.
A lump sum funds the change. The experience goes into estimating, property management, building inspection or running a business where employed people do the physical work.
If It Is Just You And A Van
A one-person maintenance business has no reduced-output version: every job needs you to be at the property.
Van finance, insurance, tool replacement and advertising continue through an absence, while the customer list quietly moves to whoever was available.
Cover can be sized to include those continuing costs as well as personal income, which is worth considering when the business genuinely cannot operate without you at all.
Common questions
What should I put as my occupation?+
Describe the work rather than the job title: list the trades you actually cover in a normal month, and say if one of them is a large share of the income. A policy applied to a described occupation is far more predictable than one applied to the word handyman.
Does an own occupation policy work for a handyman?+
It is the right type to look for, and the wording matters more than usual. Because the occupation spans trades, there is more room for argument about whether somebody who cannot do one part can still do their job, which is why it is worth reading before buying.
What is the biggest risk in this trade?+
Working at height. Gutters, light fittings, loft hatches and fascias all mean a ladder, usually alone and often on uneven ground without anybody footing it. That is behind most of the long absences rather than the tools.
What deferred period should I choose?+
Usually a short one. There is no sick pay, the income is jobs-per-day, and domestic customers with a small urgent job find somebody else within a week or two.
Do I need to mention gas or electrical work?+
Yes, along with any certification you hold. Those are specific competencies with their own regimes, and describing them accurately affects both the pricing and how the policy would be applied.
Cover that often goes with this
The gaps we most often find sitting next to this one.
- How income protection worksDeferred periods, claims and the policy mechanics.
- Income protection for buildersThe same breadth, at a larger scale.
- Income protection for painters and decoratorsOne of the trades inside the job.
- Self-employed income protectionCover when there is no sick pay and the round is the asset.
If you run the business as well: there is cover a company can hold and pay for rather than you funding it from taxed income, and cover that buys out an owner's share if one of you dies. Which applies depends on how you are set up, and it is worth five minutes.