More than two-thirds – 67% – of parents said they are worried about their children being diagnosed with a critical illness, an insurance provider found.
According to an analysis from the LV= Reaching Resilience report, 68% also have concerns about the mental health of their child, a 2% rise on 2023.
Further, 62% of parents polled had fears about how they or their family would be financially impacted if they were unable to work because of a major illness or injury.
LV= said a long period of not working due to critical illness could affect monthly outgoings such as rent or mortgage payments.
Nearly a third – 31% – of working parents said they were not confident they could manage their finances if they were diagnosed with a critical illness. Working parents were also more likely to report that a major health problem or injury would have a “large impact” on their family’s financial security, compared to those without children, at a split of 34% to 26%.
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Single-parent households less financially secure
LV= also assessed the financial resilience of single-parent households, and found two-thirds were worried about the impact on their loved ones if they became seriously ill or died.
Further, 43% of single parents said they did not feel financially resilient, compared to 26% of two-parent households.
While income protection can cover financial gaps, just 8% of UK parents said they would use self-funded insurance to pay for their outgoings if they were unable to work for two or more months due to illness or injury.
Gary Beyer, protection proposition director at LV=, said: “Our latest findings reveal that many parents are feeling increasingly worried about their children’s physical and mental wellbeing – as well as the impact on their families and finances should they themselves be unable to work.
“With two in three parents citing the prospect of their child being diagnosed with a serious illness as a major concern, protection products such as critical illness cover (CIC) and income protection (IP) can provide parents with peace of mind.”
He added: “Income protection with family-focused benefits also offers invaluable reassurance to policyholders and their families. At LV=, we include parent and child cover as a benefit in our income protection offering. This type of policy can provide financial relief for families when a child is diagnosed with a specific illness, allowing them to take time off work to care for the child.
“Our protection portfolio offers a significant opportunity for advisers to engage with parents, addressing their concerns and helping them achieve financial security.”
