Legal & General sales dip in tough market

New business sales at UK insurer Legal & General slipped today amid a weakening housing market and a fall in corporate annuity sales.

The group said total UK sales – which account for most of its business – for the nine months to September 30 fell 9% to £1.09bn (€1.5bn) from £1.21bn (€1.7bn) the year before.

A housing slowdown, volatile equities and the credit crunch have made investing tough for consumers, it said.

The softer property market meant individual protection sales – including mortgage related business – grew by a “robust” 1% in the nine months.

The pace of housing market activity over the next 12 months remains uncertain, L&G said.

It added: “Industry sales of individual protection will likely struggle to grow over the next year if current housing market conditions persist. However we expect once again to outperform the industry next year.”

L&G expects a sales relationship with Nationwide Building Society to contribute to new business figures from early next year.

Bulk purchase annuity volumes were down 32% in the year to date, reflecting a fall in the number of schemes coming to market in the period.

Recent changes to the Financial Assistance Scheme have resulted in a temporary freeze on the number of small schemes with insolvent employers able to buy out their liabilities.

Meanwhile, buoyant conditions for pensions sales following A-day reforms continued in the third quarter, up 9% year-on-year in the third quarter.