Bank of Ireland's Lifetime Assurance has benefited from demand for regular savings products compared to low-yielding bank deposits, leading to a rise in sales for the first half of this year.
Results for the year to June 1999 show a 34 per cent increase in sales of its savings products, worth an annual premium equivalent of £32.7 million (€41.52 million), compared to £24.1 million for the same period last year.
Single premium bonds proved popular as consumers sought potentially higher returns from equity-based products in the low interest rate environment, says Lifetime. Sales of the bonds grew by 78 per cent to £119 million in the first half of this year.
Regular premium product sales increased by 19 per cent in the first six months to £20.8 million from £17.4 million during January to June 1998.
Sales of life assurance products increased by 17 per cent to £3.4 million from £2.9 million the previous half year. Serious illness protection was the strongest growth area in this category.
