Confidence is subdued but growing among advisers about protection sales growth this year, according to research from IPipeline.
Data from Gen Re data in May showed some 50,000 fewer protection policies were sold in Q1 2024 than in the corresponding quarter of 2023.
And advisers told Health & Protection that the mortgage market was not the only reason for a decline in protection sales.
However, IPipeline research reveals 47% of advisers in the UK who responded to their survey said they “strongly agree” that 2024 is shaping up to be a positive year in terms of protection sales growth.
This compares to 39% last year.
Specifically, advisers reported they were most positive this growth is coming from income protection (43%), followed by critical illness (23%), and term assurance (21%).
The research, conducted through IPipeline’s SolutionBuilder portal in May, coincided with Swiss Re’s Term & Health Watch 2024, which was released on 21 May.
That survey showed that although sales of new long-term individual protection policies in 2023 decreased by nearly 6%, new income protection policies increased by 10% to 198,566 policies.
Stephanie Hydon, director, client distribution of IPipeline said: “There does seem to be a growing sense that protection advice is changing for the better and that quality is starting to trump quantity.
“The move to recommending a better-quality mix of protection solutions could be why we are seeing the growth of income protection.
“Our own data also evidences the continued popularity of multi-benefit plans, which accounted for 46% of new policy value applied for through our adviser portals last year, up from 42% in 2022.
“Advisers continue to strive to ensure every customer is properly protected across multiple areas and increased efficiency in providing advice gives them back the most important thing, time – time to properly engage customers and find the very best option for them, which is time well spent as the data suggests.”
Andy Walton, protection proposition director at Mortgage Advice Bureau, added: “In 2023, Mortgage Advice Bureau issued over 31,000 income protection policies which accounted for more than 15% of the UK market.
“Customer engagement in income protection remains high with over 10,000 policies written in Q1 2024 alone.
“Income protection sales have not come at the detriment of other crucial areas. We have seen a continued increase in multi benefit (protection portfolio) sales with the vast majority of customers appreciating bespoke advice and the ability to diversify their risks.
“Our partnership with IPipeline has definitely helped our holistic approach to giving advice in this crucial area for customers.”