Why Gen Z and Millennials are more open to income protection than the industry thinks

For years, the insurance industry has held the view that younger consumers are simply not interested in income protection (IP) products. These assumptions have been based on decades of low take-up figures and poor engagement, but our recent Critical Thinking 2026 Report suggests the problem may be less about appetite and more about how protection products are framed.

Low awareness of IP, confusion about what it covers and how it works are rife among younger consumers, with over one in two (53%) of Millennials and Gen Z saying they have not seen or heard anything about IP over the last 12 months.

This lack of exposure points to an industry that is failing to reach its customers and suggests that low engagement is less about apathy and more to do with a failure in communication.

It also suggests that many of these consumers still haven’t been spoken to in a way that helps them understand what income protection is and the benefits it can offer them, rendering them unable to make truly informed protection decisions.