We have been trying for several months now. Or, rather, my broker has been trying. And they're amazing at their job; it seems, finally, they have been able to find decent cover.
But it was a big, fat no from LV. It was a 'maybe try again in April' from The Exeter. It was possible from others, but without certain things such as the 12-month deferred period - or without exorbitant premiums.
Small wonder some consumers feel they have to hide things from the provider in order to get cover in the first place.
No wonder why they just give up and do not get cover at all.
If this can happen to someone like me, who actually knows about insurance and stuff, then what hope does the ordinary punter have?
Perhaps providers can just stop sending me surveys about how lamentable it is that there is an income protection gap in the UK. Perhaps they should also stop berating advisers for not promoting protection enough.
Instead, maybe start rethinking about your underwriting processes. As Oliver Werneyer, chief executive of Imburse has said, insurance underwriting needs to be better personalised.
The technology exists. The Big Data exists. It's just the corporate willpower that seems to be lacking to implement these in a way that actually benefits consumers.
He says: "People’s needs are quite diverse and, in most situations, cannot be distilled down into one or two insurance products from a specific line of insurance business.
"It needs to be more than just one product. The average consumer does not think in product lines or cover types; they think about themselves and their needs."
But while these providers, in my case, take their time to assess whether I pose the risk of all my bones and joints suddenly imploding or bulging hernias spontaneously breaking out all over my body, I remain uninsured.
As a result, my infant son remains unprotected should I end up getting paralysed by a bus on my way home from dropping off Christmas gifts.
So yeah, when you ask me what I wish for in 2022, I simply hope that I do not get seriously sick.
Simoney Kyriakou is senior editor of FTAdviser
