Brits twice more likely to insure pets than themselves

Brits are twice more likely to insure their pets or mobile phones than their income, according to research.

However a clear north-south divide exists with Scots faring far better than the rest of the UK when it comes to when it comes to protecting themselves and their families, the Consumer Protection report revealed.

It found that Scots are the most likely to have life or critical illness (CI) insurance than any other part of the UK, with over half (54%) owning life insurance, compared to the UK average of just 44%.

However, the South and South East of the country has the lowest take-up of life insurance across the UK with just 41% of adults having taken out a product.

Northern Ireland also preformed well with 48% owning life insurance, 12% (CI) and 10% income protection (IP).

But Wales was the worst region for CI and IP take-up (just 10% and 5% respectively) and above only the south east for life (41%).

The report noted a ‘worrying trend' when comparing these figures to those of pet insurance, with more people likely to insure their pets (15%) before their income (7%).

This trend continued when looking at the number of individuals who have mobile phone insurance standing at 13%, again almost double those who are insuring their income across the UK.

Whilst the research shows a low take-up of life insurance, critical illness and income protection products in general across the UK, including north of the border, it is interesting to see individuals in Scotland seem to be more inclined to protect themselves and their families than other regions in the UK.

If we single out life insurance, the awareness among individuals is far higher than critical illness and income protection, partly due to the product being offered when individuals purchase a home.And if we look at the vast difference of take up of life insurance in Scotland compared to other parts of the UK, especially the South and South East, we can put much of this down to the fact that more Scots own their own home compared to say, London where more people will be renting.

However it cannot be underestimated how important it is for people to have protection in place to protect their rent if the unexpected were to happen.