"Healthy habits can help reduce risk in the first place, while protection provides a financial safety net if illness or injury does happen."
- Justin Garbutt - Vitality
New research from Vitality has found that 21% of people believe living a healthy lifestyle means they don’t need protection insurance.
57% of respondents agree they primarily live a healthy lifestyle for immediate benefits such as improving their mood or boosting their energy, while 62% also say they believe the impact of a healthy lifestyle on the risk of long-term illness is underestimated.
In addition, a third say living more years in good health or reducing their risk of serious illness later in life would encourage them to do more to look after their health and wellbeing today.
However, despite this awareness of the longer-term importance of healthy living, the research also shows that people are not always applying the same thinking to their financial resilience.
55% of respondents currently hold none of the protection products listed in the research, while just 13% hold income protection, 13% critical illness cover and 4% serious illness cover.
Vitality says the findings highlight an opportunity for advisers to identify healthy confidence and consider how it is a complementary route to protection, helping clients to recognise that looking after their health and protecting their financial resilience can go hand in hand.
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"Looking after our health is important and taking positive steps to live well can help reduce the risk of illness. But it cannot remove that risk altogether," Justin Garbutt, chief growth officer at Vitality, said.
"That’s why health and financial protection should go hand in hand. Healthy habits can help reduce risk in the first place, while protection provides a financial safety net if illness or injury does happen. Advisers have an important role in helping clients think about both."
