By Julie Salt Published: 12:31PM BST 08 Jun 2009  The instant I saw blood streaming from the gashes in my hand, I knew it was serious. While extracting a spider from my house, I had slipped, shattering a glass beneath my palm and severing the tendon in my finger.  I had recently started seeking work, but an immobilised hand has resulted in one-fingered typing and no driving for two months. I am temporarily incapacitated but if my husband – whose company sickness benefits recently disappeared with redundancy – were similarly unable to work, we would struggle.  I therefore suggested buying critical illness insurance to protect us. My husband, however, was less keen, citing cost.  Our dilemma: for anyone forced into self-employment by recession – at a time when funds are limited – is such a policy a necessity or a luxury? An hour on the phone with an independent financial adviser called LifeSearch offered us various options. "Come into my parlour," said the spider to the fly…  A "family income benefit" would pay out only if my husband died within 15 years. For around £255 a year, Aegon Scottish Equitable offered £18,000 a year from death until the end date of the policy. Food for thought…  Liverpool Victoria's income protection policy provided cover for sickness or accident and cost £712 a year for a guaranteed £1,500 a month tax free. You set a "deferment period" – the shorter the term, the dearer the policy. This one entailed three months off work before payment. We have never been sick that long, but disasters do happen. So should we gamble?  Finally, life or earlier critical illness cover paid out for death or sickness, including cancer, heart attacks, strokes or paralysis. For around £630 a year over 18 years, Axa would pay us one lump sum of £50,000. Hmm…  For ongoing security, the adviser suggested combining the latter two policies, reminding us that we have "dependent children for up to 15 more years". Now feeling decidedly insecure, it dawned on me with horror that this would cost us £1,342 a year – for eventualities that might never happen. Was my husband right?  Inevitably, every policy carries strict conditions and even if you read the small print beforehand there is often something that can catch you out – not unlike a spider's web. It masquerades as a protective mechanism and it is – for a spider. Yet we, like the fly, can get tripped up at our most vulnerable.  So should we let the spider spin us into his web, or sling him out and damn the consequences?
Our recession diarist wants to protect her family from loss of income &ndash; but    the cost may be too great.