Helping your clients live longer is easier than you think
When it comes to encouraging your clients to form healthy habits that last, small, consistent behavioural changes can have a big impact on their lifespan at any age, writes Greg Levine, Chief Operations and Growth Officer Vitality.
Take out cover as young as possible and don’t leave it too late. That’s typically the industry mantra to clients considering their health and protection options.
As none of us know what’s around the corner, this is certainly sound advice. Especially as the cost of cover rises as we get older.
But when it comes to helping people make healthier lifestyle choices – a growing area of focus given the health challenges facing our country – it’s never too late.
In fact, the biggest benefits we see are when people over 50 adopt healthy behaviours[1]. This makes offerings like the Vitality Programme more inclusive than you might think - a reminder it’s not only suited to those young, fit and already-active clients.
Habits are hard to break
There’s no escaping the fact that the habits we adopt over time dictate a lot of the decisions we make.
In fact, around 40% of our daily lives are controlled by habits, which, according to experts, are defined as patterns of behaviour driven by a specific desire, that become automatic through repetition.
They are also remarkably resilient. Once those behaviours become ingrained, they’re much more likely to stick.
And worryingly, the choices many people make today are contributing to rising rates of preventable, lifestyle-related ill-health.
Never too little
The good news, however, is that we can harness the power of habits to help people change their health for the better and live longer.
Findings from The Vitality Habit Index research, published in collaboration with the London School of Economics, highlight that adopting even just simple, healthy habits – such as walking – can add up to three years to our life expectancy when sustained for a period of two years[1].
Members who engage in the Vitality Programme can reduce their risk of death by up to 57% and improve their life expectancy by up to five years
Greg Levine, Deputy CEO, Vitality
If half of the UK’s inactive population did 5,000 steps just three times a week, it could save the NHS as much as £15bn[1].
Consistently walking 7,500 steps five times a week can reduce mortality risk by 27%, whilst walking 10,000 steps three times a week can reduce diabetes risk by as much as 41% and stage 4 cancer risk by 36%[1].
Also significant is that people who adopt more achievable habits like walking more – how most Vitality members earn points – are 1.5 times more likely to maintain it, compared with people who immediately start exercising with high-intensity workouts1.
By starting small, clients can then focus on building frequency and consistency over time, rather than starting too big and seeing it immediately drop off.
Not only that. Healthy habits breed other welcome behaviours. For example, maintaining three or more physical activity days a week is associated with a 10% improvement in healthy eating too1.
Never too late
Better still, adopting healthier habits is something clients can benefit from at any age. In fact, we see some of the biggest benefits amongst our older members.
Those over the age of 65 benefit from a 52% reduction in mortality risk when they sustain a routine of physical activity three or more times a week, for just three years[1].
We also see big improvements in nutritional habits in older people, with those over the age of 65 most likely to adopt healthy food habits, which again can have a big impact on long-term health and life expectancy[1].
The power of nudges and rewards
The reality of course is that many people know they should adopt healthier habits but often struggle to stick to them long-term. Think of all those healthy new year’s resolutions that fall by the wayside after just a few months.
Sometimes, what people need are regular nudges and the potential for immediate rewards to incentivise them and keep them on track.
This is where behaviour-change programmes like the Vitality Programme can be transformative. By harnessing the power of behavioural economics to drive higher engagement, we can satisfy people’s present bias and their preference for immediate gratification, by rewarding them now for making healthy choices that may not be seen immediately but will benefit them in the long run.
Through this Shared Value model of insurance, in 2024 alone Vitality members recorded over 1.2 trillion steps, completed over 600,000 Health Profiles and health checks and took part in 342,000 parkruns. They also logged 6 million gym visits and burnt 2.8 billion calories through tracked workouts[2].
In return, in 2024 members received £99 million worth of value through rewards and savings, including 2.9 million handcrafted drinks from Caffè Nero, 1.1 million cinema tickets and 100,000 pairs of running shoes[2].
And the results speak for themselves: members who engage in the Vitality Programme can reduce their risk of death by up to 57% and improve their life expectancy by up to five years[2]*.
Highly active members also incur 27% lower healthcare costs on average[3]. And for employees with Vitality Health Insurance, the improved health metrics equate to 2.5 additional days of productive time per year per employee[4].
And the best bit for advisers? Well, aside from helping your clients improve their health and live longer (arguably the best possible outcome), those who engage are also less likely to cancel[2]. This is because the Vitality Programme and their insurance cover can become embedded into your client’s daily life and be the catalyst they need to form healthy habits that stay in place over time.
[1] The Vitality Habit Index, March 2024
[2] VitalityLife Claims and Shared Value Report 2025
[3] VitalityHealth Claims Insights Report 2025
[4] ’10 years of Britain’s Healthiest Workplace: The changing face of the UK at work’, Vitality 2025
*Based on members who move from 0 to 21+ activity points a week throughout their lifetime, applied to standard UK mortality rates. Vitality study 2024
VitalityHealth Claims Insights Report 2025
In our 2025 VitalityHealth Claims Insights Report, we consider how consumer needs are changing, and how insurers - and advisers - are adapting to deliver the best possible outcomes for our clients, within a fast-changing environment.
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