Using human conversations to engage with clients
Guest Blog Writer: Jamie Page, Head of Protection Distribution, The Exeter
12 June 2026According to YouGov, almost two-thirds of UK adults say they’ve used an AI tool in the last 12 months1 - and that probably isn’t surprising. Many of us use AI without actively thinking about it, whether that’s through search tools, google maps, booking a hotel or getting quick answers online.
Technology is particularly good at spotting patterns and triggers. For example, when websites ask for key dates – such as when your client’s insurance policies are due for renewal - technology can signal that a policy is ending. This tech might prompt an automated email, a reminder to search online, or a suggestion to review cover. But while technology can recognise a date, only a human adviser can understand what that milestone represents in someone’s life.
That distinction matters when discussing mortgages and protection. Mortgages and life insurance often go hand in hand given the significant financial commitment a mortgage represents. Choosing to put life cover in place that aligns with a client’s mortgage can help to ensure that money is available to help support their loved ones if they die during their policy term. But what about keeping up with mortgage payments if they became too ill to work?
Helping clients understand the importance of protecting their income
One of the biggest challenges in talking about income protection is helping clients see how central their income is to their everyday life. It pays for the essentials like housing, food, bills, transport and supports their plans, lifestyle and sense of stability. Yet many people still don’t consider what would happen if their income stopped due to illness or injury.
The IPTF’s Protect Your Everyday video is a great tool for bridging the gap, by focusing on the simple truth that income is often the foundation everything else rests on. When that foundation is shaken, the rest of life can quickly become harder to manage.
By explaining the practicalities of income protection, what policies cover, and how quickly they could pay out, you can help clients understand how this cover could support them in maintaining their mortgage repayments and financial stability when it matters most.
Reminding clients of the purpose of their cover at remortgage is equally valuable.
The remortgage opportunity
Revisiting protection at remortgage is less about starting from scratch and more about checking whether existing cover still aligns with a client’s goals and responsibilities. It’s possible that other changes in their life now makes them feel over or under-protected. Perhaps their relationship status has changed, they have become a caregiver or moved employer.
Use open questions to explore how your client’s life has changed since they took out their original mortgage. The safety net put in place years ago may no longer reflect the lifestyle or financial pressures your client has today.
The mental load
As clients approach a remortgage, they will already be thinking about their long-term financial commitments. And while it’s likely that your client will already be mentally stretched with different mortgage options, by framing protection as a normal part of the mortgage review process, it can be made to feel like an extension of the same conversation.
Asking clients for a protection ‘sense check’ is a great way of broaching the topic and checking the cover they have remains suitable for their new mortgage. After all, increased monthly payments are common at the point of remortgage and could alter affordability and financial resilience.
With the ongoing cost of living pressures, your client may have cancelled their protection plans altogether. Perhaps they could no longer remember why they took out protection and have decided to stop paying their premiums. Or perhaps it was an expense they felt they could no longer afford.
If your client does have protection in place, checking whether it’s still fit for purpose is critical. Inflation will have reduced the buying power of older insurance products. So, a policy worth £100,000 ten years ago will buy a lot less today than it would have when it was originally taken out. Does their current protection cover the full remortgage amount, and is the term long enough?
Behavioural barriers to revisiting protection
It’s natural for clients to believe they’re adequately protected simply because, at one point in time, they were told their needs had been met. But circumstances change, and so do products. Reassurance from you, as their adviser, can make the difference between having cover or a policy being cancelled.
So, when a client says they already have protection in place and only need to remortgage, that may be true, but it’s just as likely that their existing policies no longer reflect their current situation. Clients are human, and humans typically avoid uncomfortable conversations around changes in health or personal circumstances.
This is where having empathy driven conversations matter. As an adviser, you’re expertly placed to guide your clients through uncertainty, reflecting what they have already stated as important to them and showing just what they stand to lose if it weren’t protected. You have the skill to ensure that your clients’ protection needs are fit for purpose and remain up to date as their lives change.
Sources
British AI Usage
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