Guardian’s first income protection product has now gone now live on Iress, IPipeline and LifeQuote sourcing systems.
From 3 April, advisers using these sourcing platforms have access to a full menu of Guardian products including income protection, life protection, critical illness protection, combined life and critical illness protection and optional children’s critical illness protection.
Advisers can also quote and apply on the insurer’s Protection Builder 2.0 system.
Details of the launch were announced last week.
Jacqui Gillies, marketing and proposition director, Guardian, (pictured) said: “We are delighted to announce we are now live on Iress, IPipeline and LifeQuote and advisers can start recommending our income protection as a stand-alone product or part of a full menu with Guardian.
“We’ve been really pleased with the market’s reaction to the product so far and anticipate a significant opportunity in this space as our valued advice partners help more clients to improve their financial resilience.”
Setul Mehta, head of partnership services at Openwork and member of the Income Protection Task Force (IPTF), said: “I’m very happy to see Guardian go live in this space and the proposition embodies some nice industry game changers.
“Own job is much clearer for a customer and I suspect some industry peers will be trying to introduce this definition in the future. I also welcome the flexibility of the product, with its choice of two-year and full-term payment periods and a variety of deferred periods.
“It’s important to have a range of affordable, yet quality, options during these times when costs are high and client budgets are under pressure.”
Alan Knowles, co-managing director of Cura Insurance and former chairman of the Protection Distribution Group (PDG), said: “I particularly like that they are including waiver of premium from four weeks, on all plans, meaning people don’t have to pay their premiums when they are out of work.
“The ability to add optional children’s critical illness to adult stand-alone income protection policies is also important for creating greater access to protection, with more families likely to put in place the protection they need for the children.”
Andrew Wibberley, co-chairman of the IPTF, added: “At the IPTF we warmly welcome Guardian as an exciting new entrant to the IP market. 2022 was a strong year for IP, and providing broader availability of cover to advisers and their clients is a good thing.
“Protecting income is essential to any financial plan whether people are primarily protecting their mortgage, rent or retirement plans and we encourage all advisers to utilise income protection to ensure their clients futures are financially secure.”