Legal & General Retail has extended its Care Concierge service across its entire business, which gives policyholders free access to later-life planning experts. 

The division says the service is available to lifetime mortgage, annuity, workplace pension and group protection customers with a policy that began on 20 July of this year. 

It says the move will provide “policyholders and their immediate families instant access to tailored support and later-life care experts”. 

Customers can use the service through a dedicated phone line, or a digital platform, which is accessible out of hours. 

In England and Wales, around 2.5% of people aged over 65 live in residential care homes, according to the Office for National Statistics.  

On average, it costs around £800 a week for a place in a care home and £1,078 a week for a nursing home, Age UK research points out. 

The L&G unit says its Care Concierge option, which first launched to selected customers in 2021, will “provide expert, impartial guidance to help people understand, find and fund care, alongside additional help with later-life housing options and legal matters”. 

Legal & General Retail chief executive Bernie Hickman says: “Our nation’s ageing population will see the number of over 85s in the UK double by 2041.  

“With 47% of older people in residential care in England self-funding, the responsibility of paying for and providing later-life care is falling to families who are also facing an increasingly complex care system. 

“We want to help people navigate the care sector with ease and confidence and ensure they have the right tools available to support them through what is likely an already challenging time.  

“We encourage advisers to discuss this benefit with clients as part of their financial planning conversations, to help them work towards a brighter financial future for them and their loved ones.” 

The move comes after last week, the Financial Conduct Authority said that almost 400 misleading promotions by later life mortgage firms had to be scrapped or amended, following a review by the City watchdog. 

The body found that “in many cases, advice did not meet the standards expected”.   

It added: “For example, a lack of evidence that sufficient consideration of consumer’s individual circumstances had been given and advice lacked discussion of alternatives.”