Accident, Sickness and Unemployment cover - past, present and future

Significant shifts in usage and design

clock • 6 min read

Ian Sawyer, commercial director at Assured Futures, takes a closer look at the changing face of Accident, Sickness and Unemployment (ASU) cover and asks what role it could play in the future protection landscape.

The first fire, accident and life insurance companies were set up in the UK in the 1700s. In an industry with a 300-year heritage, it is tempting to assume little changes. However, while the concept of insurance goes back centuries, how and why customers want and need it has evolved hugely as has the shape of those products and how they are viewed. Even products with much shorter histories like Accident, Sickness and Unemployment (ASU) cover have seen significant shifts in their usage and design, even across just this century. ASU is a form of income protection that pays a tax-free propo...

To continue reading this article...

Join COVER for free

  • Unlimited access to real-time news, key trend analysis and industry insights.
  • Stay on top of the latest developments around health and wellbeing, diversity and inclusion and the cost of living crisis.
  • Receive breaking news stories straight to your inbox in the daily newsletter.
  • Members only access to monthly programme 'The COVER Review'
  • Be the first to hear about our CPD accredited events and awards programmes.

Join now

 

Already a Cover member?

Login

More on Individual Protection

CIC claims for prostate cancer up by 65% since 2023: Aviva

CIC claims for prostate cancer up by 65% since 2023: Aviva

£38m paid out for prostate cancer in 2025

Jaskeet Briah
clock 15 June 2026 • 1 min read
Partner Insight: The evidence bottleneck - why claims slow down, and how we fix it together.

Partner Insight: The evidence bottleneck - why claims slow down, and how we fix it together.

Faster evidence. Clearer updates. Better support. Changes that could ease the bottleneck.

Dave Thompson, Senior claims technical manager, Scottish Widows
clock 15 June 2026 • 4 min read
ProtectZ 2026 round up

ProtectZ 2026 round up

"Protection is personal so it cannot be generalised"

Jaskeet Briah
clock 11 June 2026 • 2 min read