- A fifth of people in the UK said they plan on making a New Year’s resolution*
- The most popular was to improve their health (36%) followed by exercising more (33%)
- Financial resolutions were also top of mind with a fifth (21%) wanting to save money and one in seven (15%) wanting to spend less
- Analysis by mutual insurer Royal London shows that health improvements could reap financial rewards as well as health benefits as smokers who quit the habit could save nearly £1,000 a year on their life insurance premiums
Celebrating the New Year is synonymous with making a fresh start and many of us use it as an opportunity to commit to new goals. This year a fifth of adults in the UK said they planned on making New Year’s resolutions. The most common resolution is to become healthier (36%), with a third (33%) of people specifically committing to exercising more. Others are determined to improve their financial health by saving more (21%) or starting to invest (12%).
Resolutions to make more positive health choices, not only improve an individual’s over-all health but can improve their finances too. The benefits of giving up smoking are clear to both health and wealth as non-smokers tend to pay lower life insurance premiums. Those who quit the habit could save almost £1,000 on premiums.
Jennifer Gilchrist, protection specialist at Royal London said:
“Many of us use New Year’s resolutions to alter our behaviour and daily routines, making positive changes in the process. Often people commit to making positive change from a health perspective but might not appreciate that they can also benefit by saving money – and realising that may help to improve their motivation to stick to their resolutions.
“When it comes to life insurance, smokers usually pay around twice as much as their non-smoking counterparts, rising to nearly three times as much for older smokers. So there’s potential savings, on top of not buying cigarettes, as well as health benefits to be had.
“Life insurance premiums take into account an individual’s over-all health, rewarding those that prioritise a healthier lifestyle with lower premiums. Royal London’s analysis highlights the substantial savings in the cost of life cover that can be made for non-smokers.”
| Age | Term (years) | Monthly premium non-smoker | Monthly premium smoker | Savings over 25 year term for non-smoker |
| 30 | 25 | £7.17 | £13.13 | £1,788 |
| 40 | 25 | £13.36 | £31.38 | £5,406 |
| 50 | 25 | £29.13 | £82.48 | £16,005 |
A smoker aged 50 would pay nearly triple per month what a non-smoker of the same age would have to pay for the same sum assured, £29.13 compared to £82.48. This highlights how it could pay to quit the habit as, in this example, savings can amount to £16,005 over a 25 year term.
ENDS
For further information please contact:
Neil Cameron, PR Manager
- Email: neil.cameron@royallondon.com
- Mob: 07919 171969
Notes to Editors
*Royal London commissioned a survey by Opinium between 17-21 December 2021 with a sample of 2,000 nationally representative UK adults.
**Quotes for life insurance premiums are based on level single life cover over a 25 year term for £150,000 sum assured, as at March 2021.
About Royal London
Royal London is the largest mutual life insurance, pensions and investment company in the UK, with assets under management of £153 billion, 8.8 million policies in force and 4,075 employees. Figures quoted are as at 30 June 2021.