Royal London launches new guide to help advisers strengthen protection business quality

Royal London has launched a new adviser guide to help firms strengthen the quality of their protection business, with practical support focused on client engagement, application quality and long-term retention.

The move comes as Royal London data shows one in five protection applications never go on risk and one in ten protection plans are cancelled within their first year, representing missed opportunities to keep clients protected and support sustainable business growth.

The guide, ‘Building Better Business Quality, Together’, brings together tools, insight and practical support to help advisers strengthen client engagement from first conversation through to ongoing review. It focuses on the areas where adviser actions can have the greatest impact on client outcomes and the long-term health of their protection business.

Built around four core principles, risk, reputation, revenue and retention, the guide highlights how stronger business quality can support better client experiences, successful claims outcomes and more resilient protection businesses over time.

The resource focuses on three key stages of the protection journey:

• Engaging clients early and setting expectations from the outset
• Getting applications right first time
• Maintaining ongoing engagement after cover starts

It also showcases a range of support available through Royal London, including risk reports, the Value of Menu tool, pre-sale underwriting support, client review processes and personalised insight reports.

Jon Fuller, Protection Distribution Director at Royal London, said:

"Our new guide is designed to help advisers focus on the points in the journey where they can make the biggest impact. Whether that's setting realistic expectations, helping clients disclose information accurately, encouraging regular reviews or using business insights to identify opportunities, small improvements can add up to deliver better outcomes for clients and stronger business quality over time.

"By combining practical tools, data-led insight and tailored support, we want to help advisers build more resilient protection businesses while keeping more clients appropriately protected for the long term."

Maria Bishop, Protection Proposition Manager at The Openwork Partnership, said:

"Business quality is fundamental to delivering good customer outcomes and maintaining trust in protection advice. Through our regular business quality discussions, Royal London has demonstrated a strong commitment to understanding adviser behaviours, sharing meaningful insight and working collaboratively to identify areas for improvement. Their focus on using data to support better disclosure practices, application quality and customer outcomes provides advisers with practical guidance that can help strengthen standards and enhance long-term business performance."

The guide also highlights the role of regular client reviews in helping ensure cover remains appropriate as circumstances change. Alongside keeping protection arrangements up to date, ongoing engagement can help advisers reinforce the value of cover, support client retention and identify additional opportunities to meet changing protection needs.

For advisers who have submitted 25 protection applications, Royal London also offers personalised insights reports covering areas such as persistency, business mix, straight-through processing rates, claims experience and non-take-up rates. These reports can help advisers identify opportunities, spot emerging trends and focus their time where it can have the greatest impact.