Most consumers want insurance products that include later life care with a significant majority also worried about leaving caring responsibilities or costs to others.
Research carried out by Opinium for Vitality found more than half (53%) said they would be more likely to choose an insurance product that includes later life care.
Furthermore, nearly two thirds (62%) said they would be uncomfortable relying on relatives for financial or care support in later life.
Notably, previous Vitality research indicated only 6% planned to use a protection policy to fund this.
New prime minister Andy Burnham has repeatedly committed to fixing the UK’s broken social care system since taking office.
But last week, Johnny Timpson last week told Health & Protection income protection products could offer a solution.
Financial squeeze on sandwich generation
The survey of 2,000 UK adults revealed the growing financial squeeze on households balancing the dual costs of supporting children and ageing parents.
Around one in seven (14%) parents were found to be financially stretched between supporting both their children and parents.
Among those with children under 18, a third (33%) said helping their own parents was a significant financial challenge, while half (51%) said they struggled with the cost of supporting their children.
A quarter (26%) of parents with children under 18 said they would lack confidence in securing additional reliable childcare support if illness or injury prevented them from working and they were left unable to care for their child.
Despite the financial consequences that illness or injury could have for families with caring responsibilities, more than half (57%) of parents said taking out income protection was not something they considered when they had children.
Later life support
Though the research also indicated many people were keen to avoid passing similar pressures on to their own families.
Nearly two thirds (62%) said they would be uncomfortable relying on relatives for financial or care support in later life.
However, almost one in five (18%) were unsure how they would cover later-life care costs and a further 23% admitted they have not considered the issue at all.
Important opportunity
Andy Philo, director of strategic partnerships at Vitality, (pictured) said: “Many people are focused on meeting the multiple demands of supporting their families today, which can leave little time or capacity to plan for future financial risks.
“The findings highlight how closely linked today’s financial pressures and tomorrow’s planning decisions have become. While many people are focused on supporting children or ageing parents, fewer have considered how they would cope financially if illness affected their ability to work, or how they might fund their own care needs later in life.
“This creates an important opportunity for advisers to have broader conversations around financial resilience and long-term protection planning, including solutions such as Vitality’s Dementia and FrailCare Cover, which can help clients prepare for future care needs without placing additional pressure on family members.”