LONDON, May 13, 2026, 15:06 (BST)
Legal & General Group Plc reported Wednesday that it paid out over £1.388 billion in protection claims during 2025, highlighting the heft of its UK retail insurance operations as it leans harder into its capital-return push. More than 26,000 retail and group protection claims were settled, the company said, averaging £3.8 million in payouts every day.
The update lands as Britain’s regulators keep a sharper eye on protection insurance. The Financial Conduct Authority has been digging into “pure protection” products — that’s life cover, critical illness, and income protection, which kick in if a policyholder dies, gets seriously ill, or is unable to work. As of May 2024, roughly 16.2 million UK adults had one of these policies, the regulator said.
L&G has been snapping up its own shares, too. As of May 8, the company’s buyback tally hit 100.5 million shares—costing about £253.2 million—part of the £1.2 billion program kicked off in March. Over in London, AJ Bell’s lagging market feed showed L&G at 247.20p/247.30p, a gain of 0.88%.
Retail Protection handed out close to £993 million to individuals and families, with life and over-50s policies accounting for almost 14,000 claims totaling £527 million. As for Group Protection—coverage employers provide for their workers—it paid out £396 million, including £284 million on group life policies, plus over £82 million for group income protection. James Shattock, L&G’s managing director for protection and retail retirement, described protection as “more than paying a claim,” adding that new investment in digital tools aims to make the claims process “efficient, transparent and flexible.”
L&G reported that online channels now initiate over 40% of retail protection claims. Its retention team, for 2025, kept coverage in place for 22,000 retail protection customers who could have otherwise seen their policies lapse or be cancelled.
Those numbers give L&G a tangible win in retail, a segment overshadowed by its heftier institutional retirement and asset management businesses. Back in March, L&G posted a core operating profit of £1.623 billion, up 6%. Assets under management closed out the year at £1.2 trillion. The group also reported global pension risk transfer deals totaling £11.8 billion. In these transactions, the insurer takes on the pension obligations from company schemes, receiving assets to cover future payments.
Competition remains fierce. Back in March, Aviva—one of the UK’s leading names in protection and retirement—reported £1.99 billion paid out on 61,632 protection claims for 2025, with over £677 million tied to group protection alone.
L&G isn’t presenting the claims data as an indicator for profits. Even so, it fits into the broader investor pitch: the company aims to demonstrate that retail protection isn’t just about retaining customers—it’s about processing claims digitally, delivering cash generation, and allowing the board to keep returning capital via dividends and buybacks.
Risks remain. If sickness absences rise, claims turn heavier, or policy lapses pick up, the economics could shift. The FCA has flagged room for improvement in parts of the protection market. After L&G reported in March, Hargreaves Lansdown’s Matt Britzman pointed to “near-term risks,” adding the company could struggle if economic conditions deteriorate. Hargreaves Lansdown
Key investor dates are coming up fast: L&G’s annual and general meetings fall on May 21, with a dividend set for June 4 and half-year numbers due August 5. That doesn’t give management much time to sharpen the narrative on margins, retention, or capital returns from recent operating figures.
