The main purpose of financial protection is to make sure you or your family won't have financial problems if a misfortune like an accident, death or illness happens in your family. All protection policies are designed to replace lost income and provide a money benefit when it is needed most.

Think of all the things that would still need to be paid for - the mortgage, the bills, day-to-day living expenses, children education expenses and so on. These won't go away if you or your partner cannot work or you die.

Due to this increased life expectancy you can look forward to spending up to a third of your life in retirement but you may not relish the idea of living on the State Pension. Pension Plans are simply a savings plans (with tax benefits) to help make your retirement years more comfortable - you invest your money into a pension, the pension grows and you use the money you have built up to keep you going when you retire.

The profile of our population is getting older, meaning less money will be available in the future, as more people will be retiring and less people working. This is why the government is actively encouraging everyone to save for their retirement by offering attractive tax benefits. Pension Plans can provide immediate tax benefits that may lower your current taxable income, and enable you to build assets free from immediate taxation. Contributions made to a retirement plan may be tax deductible - thus lowering your current taxable income. In addition, earnings can accumulate income tax deferred until they're withdrawn.