NEST could increase group risk enrolment

NEST (the National Employment Savings Trust) could open the door to expansion of the group life market, according to new research.

However employers remain concerned about funding the new system and Grid has urged the government to play its part.

The group risk trade body surveyed 500 UK businesses about their plans regarding the NEST pensions' auto enrolment project.

It found 49% of firms that do not currently offer group risk benefits to their staff would consider implementing a group life scheme once NEST was introduced.

This, Grid said, "could potentially make major inroads into the country's growing protection gap".

And it highlighted Australia's execution of a pensions' auto-enrolment with life and disability benefits also available, which "has revolutionised the system there".

But, the study also identified that 49% of employers who do not currently provide group risk protection benefits said they would find the compulsory pension contributions hard enough to fund and would not therefore consider introducing life assurance as well.

Katharine Moxham, spokesperson for Grid, was heartened by the results but felt government needed to make the benefits known.

"It's extremely encouraging to see so many employers are prepared to consider implementing group life alongside pensions' auto-enrolment," she said.

"Implementing a group life assurance policy alongside auto-enrolment would involve a relatively small additional cost compared with the pension contributions that employers will have to make. Surely the government has a role to play in encouraging more employers to invest in this benefit?

"Grid is putting forward a simple, ready-made solution in response to the government's consultation on simple products which could provide the boost employers need to put such a scheme in place," she added.