"Following both the PPI scandals of the past and the pandemic, insurers have understandably retreated from ASU, withdrawing from new sales of unemployment cover, but these protection products are vital."
- Geoff Hall, Chairman of Berkeley Alexander
SafeGuard Protect offers a choice of three standalone modules: personal accident which pays policyholders a lump sum following a bodily injury, mortgage/rent protection which pays a monthly benefit with four benefit levels depending on the cost of payments, and Income Protection (IP) with four levels of cover depending on gross monthly income.
These modules have their own schedule and policy wording, but customers can access details simultaneously with a combined online quote and buy process. Furthermore, SafeGuard can be tailored to each customer’s needs, with five available cover levels and up to £2k of cover per month across mortgage/rent and IP.
Berkeley Alexander’s SafeGuard Protect launch follows new findings released by LifeSearch revealing that 29% of renters think they’d struggle to pay next month’s rent if they were unable to work due to ill-health or injury. Of those surveyed (1,000), only 14% of renters thought they’d manage to continue paying rent for more than three months whilst less than a third (28%) said their finances could cope with being signed off work for a long period.
22% said they could cope with being diagnosed with a serious illness, whilst only 14% said they’d be able to cope financially if a loved one were to become seriously ill. When asked how they’d mitigate the impact of reduced income, 36% said they’d rely on borrowing money from family members, followed by dipping into their savings (35%) and taking money out of their ‘rainy day’ pot (33%). Just under one in five (18%) said they’d liquidise investments.
Worryingly, more renters would opt for borrowing money from a short-term finance provider (6%) than are able to claim on an insurance or protection policy (4%).
“We’re delighted and proud to be launching a modern, flexible Personal Accident (PA) & Accident, Sickness & Unemployment (ASU) product. We have seen an increasing demand of late from agents seeking protection products that are competitive and compliant, meeting the needs of customers today,” explained Geoff Hall, Chairman of Berkeley Alexander.
He said: “With a continuing uncertain economic outlook, our protection product is hitting the market just at the right time. SafeGuard Protect will give much-needed cover and certainty for many people.
“Following both the PPI scandals of the past and the pandemic, insurers have understandably retreated from ASU, withdrawing from new sales of unemployment cover, but these protection products are vital. It has been a long time in the making, but with a combination of persistence and hard work, we’re delighted that Canopius has chosen to partner with Berkeley Alexander to bring these exciting new products to market,” he added.
David Swan, Head of Specialist Consumer Products at Canopius, said “With our passion for always ensuring people get the right specialist cover & protection, combined with Berkeley Alexander’s heritage in the intermediary market, it was an ideal partnership. We’re confident that SafeGuard Protect will prove to be a very popular and valuable offering for intermediaries and their customers alike.”
