Working parents bankroll average £1.5K in case their children are sick or injured

With half (50%) of working parents needing to take time off work or out of their business due to their child(ren) having had an accident, rising to 77% to cover sudden illness – new research from protection and employee benefits provider, MetLife Uk highlights how vital it is for working parents to have a financial safety net in place for childcare emergencies.

One in six (16%) of those with injured children had to take unpaid leave, increasing to one in four (23%) for those with poorly children. Both of which directly impacts their take-home pay and ability to earn for potentially long periods of time. Almost half (48%) are making positive preventative steps to help during these stressful periods by having a savings pot set aside in case they need to take unpaid time off work or away from their business.

On average, working parents have £1,540 set aside, rising to £1,787 among the self-employed and £1,734 for those on zero-hour contracts. In the last twelve months, 40% of working parents have taken a week off work to care for themselves or their child(ren) due to an accident or illness. 13% have taken 2-3 weeks and 7% have had to take off a full month.

However, with the cost-of-living pressure increasingly making it tougher for households to squirrel away pots of money for everyday emergencies, there is now another way to enhance a family’s financial security for the future if their child(ren) was unwell or recovering from an accident.

MetLife’s ChildShield product, which is the first of its kind to cover children outside of an adult policy, aims to support working parents from experiencing income gaps or job concerns should their child(ren) have an accident or become seriously ill. From just £6 per month, policies pay out cash when working parents need to take time off work to care for their child(ren), covering families in a way that isn’t a burden on their monthly income.

Rich Horner, Head of Individual Protection at MetLife UK commented: “While some households may be able to bankroll an “emergency pot” to lean on in case of a family accident or emergency – that’s not universal. Working parents are already under immense financial strain, so for those with little option but to take unpaid or reduced pay time off work to care for their child when they’re poorly or have had an accident, there can be an immediate and acute financial burden if proper support isn’t in place. And even those who may have the average pot of around £1500, this is unlikely to last very long should the child need extended care. ChildShield offers simple and effective financial protection for parents across the UK, so they can concentrate on their family’s needs without added financial stress – and it also means that those who have worked hard to amass some savings get to keep them for the things they’d rather spend them on such as holidays or treats for the family.”