Partner Insight: Underwriting - Scottish Widows' commitment to clearer outcomes

What if underwriting wasn't a barrier—but a bridge to clearer client outcomes?

In a world where advisers are under pressure to deliver faster, fairer outcomes for clients, underwriting often feels like the last bastion of complexity. But what if we flipped the script? What if underwriting became the very reason advisers chose one provider over another—not because it was invisible, but because it was exceptional?

The UK protection market is evolving rapidly. Automation, data enrichment, and regulatory scrutiny are reshaping how insurers assess risk. But amid this transformation, one truth remains: underwriting is still the moment of truth for clients and advisers alike.

At Scottish Widows, we believe underwriting is no longer just a back-office function. It's a frontline differentiator. And in 2025, it's time to talk about it.

Our underwriting philosophy is built on three pillars:

Clearer outcomes - We aim to give advisers and clients real clarity into our approach.
Access – Advisers can access our underwriting decision tool at a time that suits them and their clients. Unlocking digital underwriting guidance 24/7 from anywhere in the world.
Speed – Over 7 in 10 cases receive point-of-sale decisions, reducing friction and boosting adviser confidence.¹

These aren't just numbers, they're proof points. They show that underwriting, when done right, builds trust and delivers on promises.

Mental Health: Leading where it matters most

Mental health continues to be the most commonly disclosed condition on protection applications, reflecting a trend that has persisted for over a decade. This aligns with broader public health data showing that 1 in 5 adults (20.2%) in England had a common mental health condition such as depression, anxiety, OCD, or phobias²—highlighting both the prevalence of mental health challenges and the critical role protection products play in supporting customers through them.

This insight underscores the importance of ensuring products and services reflect the realities many customers face. In 2024, 13% of RedArc referrals from Scottish Widows customers were for mental health support.³Our underwriting approach has led to a 98% point of sale acceptance rate for applicants with disclosures of depression and anxiety.⁴ And with RedArc support, 83% of those with severe anxiety and depression improved to moderate or less within three months.³

Simplifying the complex

We know advisers are time poor. That's why we're investing in technology and tools that make underwriting simpler without sacrificing quality:

Clearer underwriting and a new adviser dashboard streamline the application process.
Acceptance of customer-supplied evidence reduces the time taken to provide an underwriting decision and provide terms to clients. Our underwriting team will actively encourage applicants to provide evidence wherever this will add value to the underwriting assessment.

Income Protection: Closing the gap

Income protection remains one of the most misunderstood—and underutilised—products in the adviser toolkit. Yet the need has never been greater.

Scottish Widows' Income Protection product uses the same underwriting philosophy as our established products ensuring broader access to cover. It also includes fracture cover, rehabilitation benefit, and hospitalisation cover as standard features designed to provide practical, financial, and emotional support when clients need it most.

The human impact

Everything we do is designed to make advisers' lives easier, with 24/7 digital access and direct adviser-underwriter connectivity, we ensure support is always available when needed.

We've reduced manual underwriting requirements and streamlined processes to help advisers move from quote to cover in minutes—not days.

Accessibility: Our new underwriting decision tool supports over 10,000 disclosure combinations, helping advisers navigate complex cases with confidence.⁴
Commitment: We are working on building AI capability in house to support with reducing manual underwriting volumes, increasing instant decisions, automating GP report assessment and exploring auto decisioning for some cases.
Ease: Over 72% of Life and CI cases receive instant decisions, reducing delays and improving client satisfaction.¹

Scottish Widows deliver underwriting that's fast, fair, and focused on clearer client outcomes.

Underwriting has long been the elephant in the room—complex, opaque, and often avoided in adviser conversations. But at Scottish Widows, we believe it's time to bring it into the spotlight. We deliver fast decisions, fewer manual referrals, and better experiences for advisers and clients alike.¹

We're not just underwriting policies. We're underwriting lives—with empathy, evidence, and excellence.