The latest Permanent Health Insurance News
Alan Beynon, head of individual sales and distribution at Aegon looks at the permanent health insurance market in relation to the UK’s population as a whole and the performance of the product over the last quarter of a century: “Well, if you look at the IP market over the last 25 years, it’s been a serial under performer. I don’t think last year’s market has helped it to be more special than any other year.”
He continues, “As a provider, we’re obviously aware of a number of work parties that are trying to reinvigorate the market but I would question the success that has been achieved. One of the big issues that we’ve got is the fact the life protection gap is so large – with the protection gap as it is, then if we are not that affective as we should at selling life assurance, why are we going to be more successful at selling IP? I’m aware of all the theoretical arguments that point to the fact that IP should be sold a lot more than it is but I don’t think as an industry we actually make it easy for an adviser to sell it. The drive to deliver unique selling points and points of differentiation make it very difficult to get a common trading platform.”
Beynon thinks that the market will continue as it is and will continue to trot out volumes of sales that will remain on the same levels as they have been in past years:
“I’m expecting it to remain relatively stable; I don’t see any reason why, when you’re operating on a low base, there could be more sales when people are more focused on selling life and critical illness. It’s going to remain reasonably flat and I’ve learned not to get excited about 2-3% increases.”
