28 May, 2003: Swiss Re Life and Health published Term and Health Watch, its annual benchmark analysis of new life and health insurance sales to UK consumers last month.
The results set new records in sales of term assurance, critical illness and income protection.
More than 2m new term assurance policies were sold in the UK last year, up 31% on the previous year.
And there was a 34% increase in critical illness sales, with more than 1m policies sold and almost 200,000 income protection policies sold, also up at 20%.
Term and Health Watch found that more than half of the policies were mortgage related and suggests that sales of life cover, critical illness and income protection rely too heavily on the UK housing market.
It warns that a downturn in the market could have a negative impact on protection sales.