New research conducted by Sainsbury’s Life Insurance has revealed that there has been a significant increase in the households that are comprised of unmarried couples, same-sex couples, and single-parent families.
Nuclear Families More Likely to Take Out Cover
Sainsbury’s Life Insurance analysis or Government data has revealed that in the last 10 years, there has been a significant change in the way that households are comprised.
Unmarried couples with dependent children, single-parent families, and same-sex cohabiting family units have all seen significant increases in the last decade (which can be seen in the table below).
The insurance company discovered that the aforementioned groups are much less likely to be protected by life or critical illness cover than those with a more ‘traditional’ family set-up.
| Percentage of people who only have life insurance | Percentage of people who only have critical illness cover | Percentage of people who have life insurance and/or critical illness cover | Percentage of people who have both life insurance and critical illness cover | |
| Households With Children | ||||
| Married Couples living with children | 37% | 2% | 58% | 20% |
| Single-parent families | 32% | 1% | 42% | 9% |
| Unmarried couples living with children | 31% | <0.5% | 41% | 10% |
| Households Without Children | ||||
| Married couples living together with no children | 34% | 1% | 43% | 8% |
| Unmarried couples living together with no children | 31% | 4% | 37% | 2% |
| Households With or Without Children | ||||
| All married couples | 35% | 1% | 50% | 14% |
| All unmarried couples | 30% | 2% | 38% |
(Source: Sainsbury’s Life Insurance)
“It’s Important to Ensure You Are Financially Protected”
Head of Sainsbury’s Life Insurance, Helen Williams, has said: “Worryingly, our research suggests modern family units are much less likely to protect their dependents with life insurance or critical illness cover than the traditional notion of a stereotypical family.
“Whatever the make-up of your family, it’s important to ensure you and your dependents are financially protected. Having life insurance and critical illness cover gives you peace of mind that if you or your partner dies or cannot work due to illness, you could have one less thing to worry about at a difficult time.”
In related news, another supermarket chain has announced that they are to put more focus on financial products in their stores.
The supermarket chain Asda has announced that they will launch Asda Money, to promote products such as currency exchange, insurance, and credit cards.
However, unlike similar schemes currently run in Sainsbury’s and Tesco stores, Asda Money will only be able to promote products provided by specialist companies as they do not have their own banking license.
Other products that will be available via Asda Money include; breakdown cover, as well as travel, home, and car insurance. Information on all of their products will be available at checkouts and online.
What This Means to You
If you haven’t really thought about taking out life insurance or critical health cover, it may be time to do so. Just taking out this form of cover could end up saving you and your family hundreds should the worst happen.
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