UK Personal Finance adopts Matrix

UK Personal Finance’s customers will have access to the product with its 253,000 policy combinations.This will mean that mortgage payment protection is designed to suit the individual needs and budget, rather than forcing an individual to accept a ‘one-size-fits-all’ policy.

David Burrows, managing director of UK Personal Finance Limited, commented: “We believe there is a need to substantially increase the sale of mortgage payment protection in the UK to ensure that homeowners are adequately protected and repossession numbers are kept to an absolute minimum. However that protection must be tailored to suit each individual customer’s circumstances and it must be priced appropriately. Assurant was the only company that could deliver this kind of solution so the choice was an easy one.”

The Matrix addresses many of the criticisms levelled at payment protection products over recent months from consumer bodies and regulators alike.It enables lenders and brokers to offer their customers a level of flexibility and affordability. The Matrix is accessed via a simple to use, white-labelled software application called Assurant Intermediary, which calculates the right cover according to individual customer profiles and assists a compliant sales process.

Ian Moffatt, sales and marketing director at Assurant Solutions, said: “It’s gratifying to see the months of hard work and considerable investment coming to fruition and to see consumers benefiting from our new products.We’re delighted that UK Personal Finance has chosen to partner with us and to be a part of the future of mortgage payment protection products. It’s only been a few weeks since we unveiled the Matrix, but already we’re in discussion with a number of other parties who are keen to see their customers benefit from its flexibility.

“We believe that The Matrix meets the concerns of the FSA and consumer watchdogs head on.This product takes the flexibility and compliance of mortgage payment protection products to another level. The response we’ve had from brokers, and the support from both trade and consumer bodies has been tremendous. We genuinely believe the Matrix will become a blueprint for our industry.”