General Insurance Article - Aviva provides Countrywide with protection insurance

 The new deal, which replaces a former distribution agreement with Friends Life1 that began in 2002, is testament to the success of that partnership and to the confidence in Aviva’s market-leading protection proposition following the insurer’s acquisition of the Friends Life business.

 Through Countrywide’s extensive network of more than 900 branches, which arranged more than 90,000 mortgages last year, customers will be able to access Aviva’s market-leading life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection cover simply and conveniently.

 The deal will see new protection business underwritten through Aviva’s ALPS platform, (Aviva Life Protection Solutions), providing home-buying and rental customers with a simpler customer journey, faster underwriting decisions and secure digital storage of important policy documents.

 Daren Boys, Strategic Partnerships Portfolio Director at Aviva, said: “This is a significant distribution agreement with our long-standing partner Countrywide, which will see customers benefitting from Aviva’s strong digital capabilities.

 “Customers’ protection needs rightly come into sharp focus during the house buying or property rental process and our market-leading digital ALPS protection proposition will help protect more lives, more easily through an enhanced customer experience.”