"The last few years have shown people that anyone can be vulnerable to illness and the importance of becoming more financially resilient."
- Tom Conner, strategy development director at Dewberry Insurance
A key driver behind the Annual Premium Equivalent (APE) uplift is a 77% surge in the 'other' category of cover types, with underwritten Whole of Life (WOL) policies seeing a particularly notable increase of 92% year-on-year.
This spike is likely linked to growing demand for inheritance tax planning solutions.
Amongst core product categories, level or decreasing life cover posted the strongest APE growth, rising by 16% compared to Q1 2024. Multi-benefit policies also performed well, up 10%, while both Critical Illness (CI) and Income Protection (IP) registered more modest gains of 4% each.
iPipeline’s half-yearly adviser sentiment survey indicates growing confidence across the profession - in March 2025, advisers rated their outlook for the year ahead at 7.8 out of 10, up from 7.3 in September 2024. Views on regulatory alignment with customer needs also improved, moving from 6.8 to 7.3 over the same period.
Crucially, advisers expressed increased certainty about their long-term role in the sector, with confidence in working as a protection adviser in five years climbing from 6.9 to 7.9.
"There has been a positive mood in the protection market in the first quarter of 2025, and these figures back up that sentiment. It’s encouraging to see all indicators pointing in the right direction, reflecting the growing awareness around the need for financial protection, particularly amongst younger adults," said Paul Yates, product strategy director at iPipeline.
Tom Conner, strategy development director at Dewberry Insurance, added: "Following a strong 2024 for protection sales, it does feel like the momentum in the market is carrying on into this year.
"The last few years have shown people that anyone can be vulnerable to illness and the importance of becoming more financially resilient. It does feel like customers are more open to conversations around protection, and securing the things they have worked so hard to achieve."
