"We wanted to bring a product to market that advisers can recommend with confidence."
- Graham Singleton - National Friendly
National Friendly has announced the launch of Friendly Life Cover, available on a single or joint life basis.
The cover provides a fixed lump sum payment on death, with a choice of level or decreasing benefit to suit clients' individual needs. It will also be available through Iress’ The Exchange.
The product accepts applicants aged 18 to 77, with cover extendable to age 90 and terms of between 5 and 50 years. All premiums are guaranteed at outset, with a minimum premium of £4 per month, while terminal illness benefit is included as standard, accelerating the full sum assured on diagnosis.
In addition to the standard benefits, the policy has options to include waiver of premium, fracture cover and online GP and dental services.
To support its expansion into the life market, National Friendly has also partnered with Company Medical Advisers Ltd, aiming to access a broader range of specialist clinical expertise to support complex underwriting and claims assessments.
"The launch of Friendly Life Cover is an important moment for National Friendly, expanding our protection and health offering alongside our suite of income protection products and our recently launched Friendly Health," Graham Singleton, chief executive of National Friendly, said.
"We wanted to bring a product to market that advisers can recommend with confidence - clear, straightforward, competitively specified and backed by the kind of service that reflects our mutual values.
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"We know that for advisers, the underwriting experience can make or break a client relationship. In a market where service quality varies considerably, we think that kind of accessibility and responsiveness is just as important as the product specification itself.
"Making Friendly Life Cover available through The Exchange was also an important part of our launch strategy, ensuring advisers can access our proposition easily through the platforms they already use every day. Reducing friction in the advice journey matters just as much as product design.
"As we expand into the life market, it was important that we also invested in the specialist expertise and operational support needed to deliver good outcomes for advisers and members alike.
"A number of high-profile providers have recently exited the term assurance protection market providing an excellent opening and opportunity for our term assurance proposition. We believe advisers and clients benefit from strong competition, broad choice and providers that remain committed to delivering high-quality protection solutions for the long term."
Jacqueline Durbin, global head of product - life, pensions & mortgages at Iress, added: "It is great to see National Friendly continuing to innovate and expand their offering in the protection market.
"We have a fantastic relationship with them, and we're thrilled to be the first and only portal to host Friendly Life Cover at launch. By integrating this new product directly into The Exchange, we are ensuring our advisers have seamless, exclusive access to even more choice for their clients."
