The mortgage and protection markets have both become more intricate in the past few years, making them harder to navigate.

In the protection space we’ve seen new providers launch, a wide variety of additional benefits added to policies, alongside an increase in product complexity and available options. This can be hard for any adviser to master.

However, many mortgage advisers do a great job of talking to customers about their protection requirements. They recognise the importance of raising it at this time, not only highlighting how it’s an essential part of financial planning but also guiding their customers through the options to find the right solution for each one. In fact, some of the most knowledgeable advisers are those who advise on both mortgages and protection and therefore understand the intricacies of how certain protection product features can best complement a particular mortgage.

The different types of policy and when best recommended should also form part of the core knowledge bank an adviser gains in their early training. If this foundation is built on with a robust induction course and a programme of ongoing training, the understanding of protection by mortgage brokers can be as good as anyone’s.

That said, having a good understanding doesn’t necessarily make the mortgage adviser the best placed to execute protection advice. While they have the advantage of building rapport and gaining the customer’s trust through the mortgage process, they face the pressure of keeping up with mortgage demand. When mortgage enquiries are high the protection conversation can often be delayed with a promise to revisit it later.

The mortgage advice process can also be lengthy and advisers are therefore mindful of the time they’ve taken. This could introduce reluctance to overburden the customer. The decision to hand off to a protection specialist could therefore be a wise one even if the mortgage adviser’s understanding of all things protection is second to none.

As with most things, those best equipped to provide advice will be the advisers who have a desire to learn and a determination to do the right thing by their customers, whether specialist in one role or many.

Louise Colley, UK director of retail protection, Zurich

Over the past year, brokers have been working flat out, with mortgage approvals at their highest level in more than 13 years.

While we’ve all been at home, it seems the pandemic has made people re-evaluate their living options and encouraged many to either up sticks and move or extend the space they have. On top of increased demand, stimulated in part by the stamp duty holiday, brokers are grappling with additional challenges.

The list is lengthy but includes valuation and conveyancing delays, lender service levels impacted as firms’ employees all work from home, and increased FSCS costs. Understandably, set against this backdrop, it’s unlikely that protection has been at the top of brokers’ list of priorities while they’ve been working to support and manage the expectations of frustrated customers, many of whom are experiencing lengthy delays to property-related transactions. But making people re-evaluate where they live isn’t the only shift brought about by the pandemic.

It has also made us reflect on our finances, especially the importance of financial resilience and having the right support should we or our loved ones become too ill to work, or become unemployed. This awareness, coupled with the high percentage of borrowers taking intermediary advice — and benefiting from huge savings by streamlining their mortgages — means 2021 presents great opportunities to put protection firmly on the agenda.

The services of a mortgage broker are two-fold: first, to arrange the mortgage; and second, to underpin this with adequate protection. Brokers have a key role to play here, providing clear positioning to help educate the customer.

That way, protection won’t be seen as a tag-on at the end of the transaction but instead an integral part of their financial armoury. Although we recognise that brokers are under the cosh and in need of a serious holiday after the rush of the anticipated stamp duty deadline, 2021 could be a turning point in how they support their customers’ protection needs while growing their own businesses.

Providers are well placed to support with quick decisions on applications for all sorts of flexible solutions and support services — all aimed at providing customers with a safety net and peace of mind.