Four in 10 homeowners have never reviewed or even considered protection, according to new research from LifeSearch and HomeOwners Alliance.
Among those with cover, nearly one in three (33%) have never reassessed it.
The most common prompt for doing so is buying or remortgaging a home – cited by one in five (18%).
LifeSearch and HomeOwners Alliance said this suggests that for many, protection decisions are made once and left untouched, rather than revisited as circumstances change.
A change in relationship or family situation (13%) or a significant shift in financial commitments such as childcare costs or receiving a large sum of money (12%) are other key triggers.
This rises to 25% and 27% respectively among the under-35s.
While only 5% of all homeowners who have or previously considered protection cited advertising or media coverage as a prompt to review protection, this figure rises to 14% among younger homeowners.
The research also found that, in the last 12 months, almost nine in ten (86%) homeowners have not reviewed their mortgage statement and understood their remaining balance.
Eight in ten (78%) have not calculated how many months of expenses they could cover from emergency savings, and nine in ten (91%) have never discussed with a partner or family member what would happen financially if one of them could not work.
LifeSearch chief executive Debbie Kennedy said: “These figures point to more than a protection gap, they reveal a wider financial engagement gap. Too many homeowners are going years without reviewing their cover, checking their savings position, or even understanding their mortgage balance – let alone having a proper conversation with their partner about what happens if one of them couldn’t work. Life changes fast, and financial resilience needs to keep pace.
“For me, the most important takeaway is how simple the starting point can be. One conversation with an adviser – someone who looks at the whole financial picture, not just one product – can begin to close many of these gaps.
“No one should be finding out what their financial safety net really looks like for the first time at the moment they really need it.”
HomeOwners Alliance chief executive Paula Higgins said: “Most homeowners are juggling busy lives, balancing work, family and rising bills, so it’s no surprise that reviewing finances slips down the list. But when you own a home, staying on top of your finances is vital.
“For many people, their home is their biggest asset, so the stakes are too high to simply hope you have the right cover in place if your income suddenly stops. Taking time to understand your safety net and what support you’d have in place isn’t just sensible, it’s essential to keeping your home secure in today’s uncertain economic climate.”
The research surveyed 2,000 UK adults between February 13 and 18, 2026.
