Stop treating GI as an add-on and start the conversation early, and renewals will do the heavy lifting
According to estimates from across the market, approximately 90% of mortgages completed by intermediaries are not linked to a home insurance sale.
That’s a striking missed opportunity, and perhaps arguably a client service issue. After all, your clients are, without exception, legally required to have buildings insurance in place before they get the keys to their new home.
So why are intermediaries missing out on an opportunity to boost income whilst improving the level of service they deliver to clients?
GI isn’t a sale; it’s a service moment
Lenders will almost always require buildings insurance to be in place from the moment contracts are exchanged. The purchase is compulsory; therefore, the conversation doesn't need to be a sales pitch.
The moment to raise GI isn't at the end of a mortgage application, as an afterthought, or once the offer is issued. By then, the client may have already started shopping around on the comparison sites, or even worse, received advice from ChatGPT. Not only is this a missed opportunity for your business, but the client risks purchasing a policy that might not meet their individual needs.
Our advice is to frame the importance of the right GI protection at the start, so that it becomes a natural part of the journey rather than an awkward add-on.
Thousands upon thousands of pounds are left on the table every year
Our new data illustrates just how valuable getting GI right can be, and more importantly, just how little effort it takes to boost income.
Based on assumptions of £75 commission per policy, an 85% annual retention rate, and just two GI sales per week, your recurring income could reach £7,200 in year one, growing to £26,700 by year five and £38,550 by year ten. That's over £3,200 a month from a standing start of fewer than 100 policies a year.
Step that up to five sales per week, and the trajectory changes dramatically. £18,000 in year one, £66,755 in year five, and almost £100,000 by year 10. That’s a whopping £8,000 additional monthly income. The compound effect of retained renewals does the heavy lifting, while your ongoing effort remains minimal.
The comparison between two and five sales a week is particularly striking. The difference between the two approaches over a decade is almost £58,000 per year. That gap is created not by doubling the workload, but by making GI a structured part of every mortgage conversation you have.
The size of the opportunity is huge, given that there are approximately 12.4 million outstanding mortgages in the UK, totalling over £1.7 trillion, and every single one of those homeowners needs insurance, especially those with non-standard requirements.
If you embed GI into the process from the very first client interaction, positioning it not as an upsell but as part of the comprehensive service you provide, you’re building a book of recurring income that grows quietly in the background, year after year, as well as differentiating your business based on holistic service and long-term relationships.
Ready to grab the GI opportunity?
The income potential is already there; all it needs is a savvy intermediary ready to grab it.
So, in summary, we leave you with three key pieces of advice:
Firstly, move the GI conversation from the end to the beginning and set the expectation early that arranging appropriate insurance cover is simply part of what you do, so there’s no need for clients to risk their homes and lifestyles by turning to aggregators or AI. Secondly, be consistent. Even two placements a week will make a huge difference, but five a week and you’ve got yourself a genuine additional income stream. Finally, don’t be scared of the GI conversation; after all, you're talking to people who are legally obligated to protect the asset they're about to buy.
Oh, and one more…
Make sure you have a GI partner who can give you access to the broadest range of standard and non-standard property insurance options, the best level of support, tech-enabled quote and buy journeys, and market-leading commission rates so that you can embed GI income into your business for years to come.
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