Bright Grey launches family campaign
Monday, 9 July 2007
Bright Grey is launching a family campaign to help advisers make sure their clients have enough insurance in place to protect their families if things go wrong with their health or they die. The campaign includes online and print advertising, as well as support material for advisers.
Research carried out for Bright Grey, the protection specialist arm of the Royal London Group, has found that 1 in 3 families in the UK don't have any life, critical illness or income protection cover in place to protect their families in case something happens to them .
Commenting, Bright Grey's Head of Sales, Kevin Stevens, says:
"We all know that many people are under-insured and hearing that 1 in 3 families have no cover in place maybe shouldn't surprise us. The life protection gap stands at £2.3tr, according to Swiss Re, which is hardly news as it's been at this level for the past three years. So we know the issues, but do consumers? We believe that many of those parents who don't have cover don't even know they're leaving their families at risk – and that's where advisers can really help.
"This is why we're launching a family campaign and preparing support literature for advisers to help them outline why their clients need protection and how they can make it more affordable. It's clear that people really need advice to make sure they're protecting their families adequately and they don't find themselves in dire straits if things unexpectedly go wrong."
"Even those who do have insurance often only protect their mortgage. Our research found this applies to about a third of families . But who is this really protecting – the family or the lender? Families need to protect their home, not just their mortgage. What's the point of paying off the mortgage if they can't afford to pay for the basics like food, clothes, bills and keeping the car on the road? The worry is that without enough cover they're in real danger of losing their home even if the mortgage is paid off, as they won't be able to afford to live in it.
"So there's a huge opportunity for advisers to help these families protect their home and their standard of living, and grow their protection sales at the same time. That's why we've launched this campaign to help advisers do that and help close the protection gap."
-ENDS-
For further information please contact:
Bright Grey
Nicki Lundy
Tel: 0131 247 1677
Nicki.Lundy@brightgrey.com
Editors Notes:
Key findings of our research into parents and what they protect
• 1 in 3 families have no life, critical illness, income protection or mortgage protection in place.
• About 1 in 3 families only have enough life insurance to pay off the mortgage if something happens to the main earner.
• 4 out of 5 families have no critical illness cover.
• The vast majority of families (85%) have no life cover for the lower/non-earner – this person often provides a lot of support services within the family that can be costly to replace if something happens to them (looking after the children, cooking, cleaning, school run etc).
Statistics
• The following figures show the risks families face during their working lifetime (before age 65) according to Munich Re (2007).
Death: Male - 1 in 12; Female - 1 in 16
Critical Illness: Male - 1 in 4; Female - 1 in 5
IP (26 weeks): Male - 1 in 6; Female - 1 in 5
About Bright Grey
• Bright Grey launched to the market in 2003, with its Menu Protection Plan. This is aimed at individuals and includes a choice of life, waiver, critical illness and income protection covers. The Menu Protection plan also provides cover of up to £20,000 for each of the client's children when critical illness is included in the plan. Every plan owner and now their families also receive our Helping Hand Service at no extra cost. This is made up of three elements:
1. The specialist support of a personal nurse adviser from RED ARC Assured Ltd, an independent care advisory service. If a plan owner makes a claim or one of their family falls seriously ill, RED ARC will help them to navigate the NHS, arrange a visit from a specialist nurse or arrange a therapy or counselling to help them reach their fullest possible potential again. They also help in cases of bereavement.
2. Discounts and deals from a range of companies focused on your health, which include discounts on health screenings with BMI healthcare, no joining fee and a free week with Fitness First gyms; and 30% off the cost of Forever Living healthcare products.
3. A range of helplines offering quick and easy professional help. These include legal, medical, personal and career helplines.
About Royal London Group
• Royal London Group is a specialist financial services provider. Its businesses focus on sectors of the market which value premium propositions, operating through a number of brands:
o Scottish Life - UK pensions market
o Bright Grey - UK protection market
o Scottish Life International - offshore investment markets
o RLAM - fund management
o RLAS - life and pensions administration.
• Royal London is one of the stronger life and pension companies in the UK, with a current rating of 7/10 from Cazalet Financial Consulting, and has a particularly strong track record for with profits performance. It is also the largest mutual life and pensions company in the UK with Group funds under management of £30.8bn. Group businesses serve over three million customers and employ 2,640 people. (Figures as at 31 December 2006.)