Yet, as Helen White, head of protection at the ABI, has been keen to point out, our welfare system has been based on a fundamentally flawed assumption that those households recognise this and arrange provision privately.
Other interesting areas for development include providing for long-term care needs and the wrap and protection markets joining forces to offer inheritance tax planning products.
In short, although 2014 is not going to go down in history as the year the protection industry broke any sales records, in the fullness of time it could certainly be seen as a watershed in which a wave of new ideas and initiatives paved the way for future growth.
Jennifer Gilchrist is senior product development manager of Scottish Provident and Bright Grey
