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Protection advisers should be far bigger advocates for the products they sell to consumers by buying it themselves, according to Rose St Louis, protection director of Scottish Widows.
In the second part of a discussion with Health & Protection editor Owain Thomas in association with Scottish Widows, St Louis highlighted the limited take up of income protection (IP) by advisers and urged them to do better.
Quoting from a report by the Income Protection Task Force which looked at the top occupations in buying IP, protection advisers – who would be grouped with financial advisers – fell way outside the top 150 professions.
“The top three occupations were doctors, GPs and teachers – so you kind of expect that – but what I found interesting is where we as industry professionals rank,“ St Louis said.
“Financial advisers come at 174th down on the list.”
She said it would be really good to see that position improve by next year, where financial advisers “are being more of an advocate for their product – as opposed to just sharing the need for their clients, but actually can lead with saying ‘and this is what I’ve done myself’.“
Upward trend
Meanwhile the upward trend in the growth of the income protection market is largely because of increased levels of awareness among both advisers and consumers St Louis said.
The market absolutely has been growing year-on-year, which personally, I’m really pleased to see and clearly delighted to be part of.”
St Louis added: “I think that’s because there’s more awareness.”
She said: “Advisers are doing a great job in getting that message out speaking to their clients around the importance of protection, and we’re seeing more and more adoption.”
She noted that consumers are more aware around mental health, wellbeing, and looking after themselves in a more preventative way.
Substantial gap
But St Louis also emphasised that there was a substantial gap between those who needed income protection and those who had it, presenting a significant opportunity for advisers.
Based on recent Scottish Widows research, she said: “I think the opportunity is massive.”
She said: “Advisers should really lean into those conversations, because the need and the demand is out there.”
In the first part of her interview, St Louis looked at how income protection is vital for proper financial planning.
