The policy was traditionally sold alongside a mortgage loan but ‘A-Day’ changes in April 2006 mean it can now be offered as a standalone product.
However, the portal believes intermediaries have yet to comprehend these changes and they are missing out on a potential tax benefits it can offer consumers, especially high-net worth clients.
Stephen Wynne-Jones, director of sales and marketing at Assureweb, said: “The fact that so many advisers are steering clear of PTA, despite its well-documented benefits, is a concern that needs to be taken seriously. The industry as a whole needs to do more to reinforce the important part this product has to play in the financial advice market, particularly now the post-‘A-Day’ publicity has died down somewhat.”
Assureweb currently handles around 100,000 PTA quotes a month but it believes there is significant space in the market for further expansion.
It stated that higher-rate taxpayers could see many benefits as the tax relief supplied by the PTA policy could bring them significant savings.
The Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI) recently highlighted the pro’s and con’s of PTA in a factsheet, in an attempt to help explain some of the risks involved with the policy.
Rob Griffiths, associate director of AMI, said: “We would suggest there is a business opportunity for intermediaries but they must be clearly aware of the risks in the sale of PTA. Firms need to make sure they have the systems and controls in place to manage the risks before they make it part of their toolkit as we do not feel it is a product you can jump head-on into. Brokers need to make sure they are aware of everything that’s involved, and the factsheet highlights some of the risks they will come up against.”
