The Bank of Ireland life assurance and pensions subsidiary, Lifetime Assurance, has reported mixed sales results for the first six months of 1997. Total annual or regular premium sales increased 6 per cent to £10.6 million but sales of single premium products fell 4 per cent to £29 million. The results showed continuing strong growth in the sale of pensions but a fall in the sale of other investment and savings policies.

Within the total annual premium sales figures, sales of pension products increased by 60 per cent to £4.1 million. But sales of regular premium savings and protection policies were down 13 per cent to £6.5 million. Within the single premium - once-off lump sum premium payments - figures, sales of savings and investment products were 10 per cent lower at £25 million, while sales of pension products increased by 75 per cent to £4 million.

Marketing manager, Mr Quentin Teggin, attributed the fall in single premium sales to the fact that the company had only one "tracker" savings/investment product on the market for the period compared with two in the same period of 1996.

Lifetime introduced another "tracker" bond in recent weeks and Mr Teggin said he expected single premium sales for the full year to be "at least equal to, if not ahead of" the 1996 outcome.

The latest first half results compare with strong sales of annual premium savings products in the first half of last year, according to Mr Teggin. "This year we broadened out focus and more effort was put into pensions", he said. Lifetime managing director, Mr Roy Keenan, said that the recent growth in the pensions marketed reflected "the strength of the economy combined with the realisation that people need to take responsibility to provide for their own retirement income".