Friends Life unveils IFA protection proposition

Friends Life has completed its full launch with the unveiling of its individual protection proposition for IFAs.

It will no longer be selling products previously offered by Friends Provident, Bupa Health Assurance or Axa.

However, the insurer will still service customers who have already applied for previous products.

The new Protect+ proposition consists of income protection (IP), critical illness (CI), life and business protection products.

Additionally, Best Doctors' second medical opinion service and Bupa HealthLine are available as standard on IP, CI and life policies.

IP plans offer a guaranteed coverage of £15,600 per year while CI includes 14 ABI+ conditions and eight partial payments definitions.

Applications can be made either online or on paper with teleunderwriting and support helplines for advisers.

It has also included the ability to write a policy into trust online and a fracture cover which will pay out to a customer suffering one of 18 different types of fracture.

Steve Payne, managing director of protection at Friends Life, said: "We recognise the importance of building strong relationships with advisers and this is a fundamental part of our new offering to the IFA market.

"By taking the best elements of the three businesses that now make up Friends Life, we have created a powerful new proposition."

Details of the new proposition include:

• Income Protection
- guaranteed benefit of £15,600 a year
- hospitalisation benefit with no exclusions
- therapy and trauma benefits
- waiver of premium to aid the claims process
- doctors' sick pay initiative specifically designed for NHS doctors
- Fracture Cover.

• Critical Illness Cover
- 14 ABI+ conditions, including cancer, heart attack, stroke and multiple sclerosis
- eight partial benefit conditions paid in addition to the main benefit
- child cover, including congenital conditions
- advance payment up to £25,000 for heart surgery paid to the customer
- premium reductions for diabetes and diabetic risks
- Fracture cover
- intensive care benefit for children
- family income benefit option.

• Life Cover
- flexible cover
- optional features to give maximum flexibility to the customer
- Fracture cover
- family income benefit option.

• Business Protection
- Covers: key partners, shareholders and for loan cover
- capacity to offer £10m for life; £5m for CI and £2m for own occupation total permanent disability
- capability to consider higher levels of sum assured.