Life - Articles - IPT half year total hits near-record £4.53bn

At a monthly level, receipts stood at £40 million in September 2026 – the exact same level as September 2025 where receipts stood at £40 million.

 

The latest figures come just a week before the Autumn Budget and follow a record annual total of £9.04 billion for the 2025/26 financial year, which exceeded the previous year’s full-year total of £8.88 billion by £157 million.

 

The Office for Budget Responsibility’s latest Spring Statement forecasts indicate that IPT is now expected to raise £57.8 billion between 2025/26 and 2030/31, a £500 million upgrade on estimates made following the Autumn Budget in November (£57.3 billion). Continued demand for health-related insurance products is expected to remain a key driver of receipt growth.

 

Cara Spinks, Head of Life & Health, Broadstone, commented: “With just a week to go until the Autumn Budget, near-record IPT receipts of £4.53 billion in the first half of the financial year once again highlight the growing cost of insurance.

 

“Pressure on NHS services means more employers and individuals are turning to private medical insurance and other health insurance products to access diagnosis and treatment more quickly. At the same time, rising medical costs are feeding through into higher premiums and, in turn, higher IPT receipts.

 

“There is a real question over whether taxing these products is consistent with the Government’s wider aims. If we want employers to play a greater role in keeping people healthy, in work and economically active, we should be making it easier for them to invest in workforce health, not adding to the cost.

 

“The Budget is an opportunity to address this. Removing or reducing IPT on health insurance, alongside targeted incentives for workplace health programmes and support for smaller employers, could help widen access to earlier intervention, treatment and rehabilitation.

 

“That would support employers and employees, while also helping to reduce pressure on the NHS and tackle economic inactivity. The aims of the Keep Britain Working Review are absolutely right - the tax system now needs to support them.”