Rethinking mortgage protection advice: Key takeaways from our recent webinar
Market volatility, shifting consumer behaviour and widening protection gaps are reshaping how advisers talk to clients about mortgage protection. On our recent Forward Thinking webinar, we heard from leading industry experts about what’s impacting mortgage conversations today - and how advisers can ensure protection lands
The UK mortgage market has weathered turbulence in recent few years. From Covid-era uncertainty to inflation and rising interest rates, we’ve seen both advisers and clients needing to adapt. As Stephanie Charman, CEO of the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI), noted on our recent Forward Thinking webinar, the sector is at a pivotal moment.
Hosted by Adviser Editor Rob Harvey, the webinar drew upon findings from AMI’s sixth annual AMI Viewpoint research - a deep dive into protection trends that looks back across multiple years – and one statistic really stood out: 99% of mortgage advisers say they raise protection with clients, but only 39% of clients remember the conversation[1].
That 60-point gap reveals an industry-wide challenge. Message delivered. Message not absorbed.
Charman also highlighted that even though buying a house remains the single biggest life trigger for protection conversations, a disconnect still persists - suggesting advice is happening, but not resonating.
Adding to this, 78% of consumers surveyed say the rising cost of living keeps them up at night[1]. It’s a clear invitation for advisers to reinforce the link between protecting the home, income and family stability.
Clients want protection - but biases get in the way
For Forty One Money’s Jiten Varsani, a 20-year protection adviser, the shift in client behaviour has been stark. When interest rates first jumped, many of his clients faced £600 more a month in mortgage payments - a financial shock that pushed protection down the priority list.
Where protection was once seen as more of a “given”, today’s buyers want to be convinced. They want it to mean something.
“Use the emotional element to paint the picture,” he said. “People want to understand why it matters - not just be told it does.”
Consumers increasingly associate financial wellbeing with emotional wellbeing. Advisers who connect the two - rather than presenting protection as a transactional add‑on - unlock more meaningful engagement.
Why clients deprioritise protection - and how advisers can overcome it
Julie Botha, Head of Adviser Development at Vitality, brought the behavioural science lens. Protection is not ignored because it lacks importance, she argued, but because it lacks immediacy.
Recent Vitality research shows that when new homeowners move in, their spending priority list looks like this:
- Paint, furniture, renovations
- Lifestyle purchases
- Appliances
- Protection (at the bottom)[2]
Not because clients don’t care, but because present bias pushes anything non-urgent into the “later” pile.
Yet in the same study, 62% said losing their income - and therefore their home - is their biggest fear[2].
This contradiction is textbook psychology:
- Present bias: “I’ll sort protection later.”
- Optimism bias: “It probably won’t happen to me.”
Advisers must bridge the gap between what clients worry about and what they prioritise.
The key is to reframe the conversation: from “mortgage cover” to “life cover that protects your lifestyle”.
A recurring theme in the webinar was how the industry needs to move away from think about it as “mortgage protection”.
“Mortgage protection protects the bank, not the family,” said Jiten.
Clients’ lives are bigger than their mortgage. Their financial obligations - childcare, bills, food, transport - don’t disappear if the mortgage is cleared. A holistic conversation acknowledges this.
Jiten shared his approach:
- Plant the seed early - mention protection in the very first mortgage call.
- Never bolt it on at the end of the mortgage sale.
- Hold a dedicated protection conversation once the client can focus.
- Build the story around income, goals and life plans, not products.
Stephanie added the importance of weaving protection questions into the fact-find, rather than treating it as a separate module. When clients see protection as part of their overall financial life - not an optional addon – it improves the conversation.
The power of great questions
Julie also explained that clients must discover their own need, not be told it. That means using smart, open-ended questions as prompts:
- “If your income was paused for a few months, which bills would you need covered first?”
- “Which expenses would you not want covered?”
Both assumptions subtly reinforce that cover is expected, while giving clients agency. When presenting solutions, she recommends explaining what the cover does, not just what it is:
- Life Cover clears the debt so family stability is protected
- Income Protection replaces income so recovery can be the focus
- Serious Illness Cover pays a lump sum to fund medical or lifestyle adjustments
Reframing it in this way helps avoid jargon and mirrors how clients think – in terms of ‘needs’ as opposed to products which can feel salesy.
For clients who still say “no” - keep the door open
Sometimes, despite best efforts, the client will still decline. Stephanie emphasised the importance of gently asking why - not to challenge, but to understand the barrier.
Many “no’s” result from:
- Information overload
- Undisclosed medical concerns
- Financial stress
- Misinterpreted complexity
Julie offered a powerful mindset shift: A client saying “not now” is not a rejection — it’s adding to your future pipeline.
If the adviser leaves the door open (“If anything changes, please come back to me - we’ll pick up right where we left off”) that client is far more likely to return when the light‑bulb moment eventually hits.
Watch the full webinar below:
[1] 'The Next Chapter: Protecting tomorrow, today', The Association of Mortgage Intermediaries, November 2025
[2] Research carried out by Opinium on behalf of Vitality with 2,000 homeowners with a mortgage between 17-26 October.
Related: rethinking mortgage protection
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Buying a home is one of life's most significant milestones and securing a mortgage is just the beginning. A home is more than bricks and mortar, it's where families grow and increasingly, work.
With Vitality, your clients can easily add comprehensive protection, safeguarding their home, lifestyle and the people who matter most.
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