Aviva adds new wellbeing boost to Group Accident and Travel products

Two people talking while holding travel mugs

...as UK business leaders cite staff mental health as key risk.

  • One in six UK businesses see mental health and wellbeing of staff as a major risk
  • In a GI first, counselling and mental health training for managers now included in Aviva Group Accident and Business Travel products, helping to boost employee wellbeing
  • Additions come at no extra cost and are available for existing and new customers alike

Aviva’s Group Personal Accident and Business Travel customers are now benefiting from additional mental health support, at no extra cost. In a first for the industry, Aviva has added a range of wellbeing services and benefits, including a line manager toolkit for mental health, health and wellbeing discounts, offers on products and services that can support those living with cancer and a counselling service, to every Group Personal Accident or Business Travel product. 

Aviva research* found that employees’ mental health and wellbeing is amongst the top six major risks that  business leaders are concerned about. One in six (17%) business leaders cited the mental health and wellbeing of their staff as one of their biggest risks, up from 14% of businesses last year. Charities (31%) and public sector businesses (28%) were most likely to rank this in their top three worries. 

With this in mind and ahead of Time To Talk Day on 1 February, Aviva’s new additions are designed to support businesses and their employees with their mental health and wellbeing, building resilience and understanding as well as providing professional support to deal with issues. This package of enhancements is the first of its kind in General Insurance, with Aviva’s Group Personal Accident and Business Health the only policy in the market that offers mental health training for managers and counselling support.

The Group Personal Accident and Business Health wellbeing additions are:

  • The Aviva Line Manager Toolkit: Mental Health**, which provides bite-sized training videos to help line managers support the mental health of their team. Developed by mental health professionals, the videos and resources aim to empower line managers to spot the warning signs of poor mental health in the workplace, help them feel more confident in holding supportive conversations with their team members and learn more about reasonable adjustments and adaptations to support team members.
  • A counselling service, which offers direct access to British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapists (BACP) accredited counsellors 24/7, 365 days a year. This provides support from the first point of contact for a wide range of difficulties, such as bereavement, stress, anxiety or depression, relationships and domestic abuse. The counselling service is available to employees and members of their immediate family – providing they live together and are over the age of 18 (or aged between 16 and 18 and in full-time employment), with each customer entitled to six sessions.
  • Get Active**, which supports wellbeing and fitness goals with money-saving offers at over 3,000 health and fitness clubs and a range of offers to support a healthy and active lifestyle.
  • Cancer Care with Get Active**, which provides access to discounted products and services that can help with the daily living adjustments a cancer diagnosis and treatment can bring, as well as offers on services and experiences that may enhance quality time spent with family and close friends. Customers can access the offers for themselves or to gift somebody they know who is living with cancer.
  • Wellbeing library**: An online wellbeing library that offers useful content, hints and tips, plus guides and tools on a wide range of wellbeing situations. Employees will find helpful support for family and relationships, money or work, mental or physical health conditions.
Our Group Personal Accident and Business Travel customers and their employees can now benefit from mental health training, counselling and support for a cancer diagnosis. This is already making a difference to thousands of employees across the country, all at no extra cost to them.

Luke Powis, Aviva’s Head of Accident and Health, said: “Mental health and wellbeing is an area of concern for many employers and we’re proud to be supporting resilience in this area with a new package of enhancements. Our Group Personal Accident and Business Travel customers and their employees can now benefit from mental health training, counselling and support for a cancer diagnosis. This is already making a difference to thousands of employees across the country, all at no extra cost to them. We know that effective mental health support strategies have the potential to improve productivity, employee engagement, reduce absenteeism and help make businesses better places to work, which is why this area is so important.”

Further details of the wellbeing enhancements are available here: Accident and Health Insurance - Aviva.

-Ends-

Sources:

*The research was carried out by YouGov on behalf of Aviva. YouGov surveyed more than 1,200 UK senior business leaders from small, mid-market and corporate businesses (as defined by their annual revenue), from nine industries: professional & business services; manufacturing & industry; construction & real estate; arts, entertainment & leisure; technology & electronic; retail & wholesale; motor trade; charities; and the public sector. Fieldwork was conducted between 15th September and 8th October 2023. 

**This is a non-contractual benefit and can be changed or removed at any time.

Access to all these services is only available for United Kingdom, Northern Ireland, Channel Islands and Isle Of Man customers. This service is not available to Gibraltar, Ireland or overseas customers. 

Enquiries:

Claire Jermany

General Insurance⁠ — Commercial Lines, Community, Heritage

Notes to editors:

  • We are the UK's leading diversified insurer and we operate in the UK, Ireland and Canada. We also have international investments in India and China.
  • We help our 19.2 million (as at 31 December 2023) customers make the most out of life, plan for the future, and have the confidence that if things go wrong we’ll be there to put it right.
  • We have been taking care of people for more than 325 years, in line with our purpose of being ‘with you today, for a better tomorrow’. In 2023, we paid £25.6 billion in claims and benefits to our customers.
  • In 2021, we announced our ambition to become Net Zero by 2040, the first major insurance company in the world to do so. We are aiming to have Net Zero carbon emissions from Aviva’s operations and supply chain by 2030. While we are working towards our sustainability ambitions, we recognise that while we have control over Aviva’s operations and influence on our supply chain, when it comes to decarbonising the economy in which we operate and invest, Aviva is one part of a far larger global ecosystem. There are also limits to our ability to influence other organisations and governments. Nevertheless, we remain focused on the task and are committed to playing our part in the collective effort to enable the global transition. Find out more about our climate goals at www.aviva.com/climate-goals and our sustainability ambition and action at www.aviva.com/sustainability
  • Aviva is a Living Wage, Living Pension and Living Hours employer and provides market-leading benefits for our people, including flexible working, paid carers leave and equal parental leave. Find out more at https://www.aviva.com/about-us/our-people/
  • As at 31 December 2023, total Group assets under management at Aviva Group were £376 billion and our estimated Solvency II shareholder capital surplus as at 31 March 2024 was £8.5 billion. Our shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange and we are a member of the FTSE 100 index.
  • For more details on what we do, our business and how we help our customers, visit www.aviva.com/about-us
  • The Aviva newsroom at www.aviva.com/newsroom includes links to our spokespeople images, podcasts, research reports and our news release archive. Sign up to get the latest news from Aviva by email.
  • You can follow us on:
  • For the latest corporate films from around our business, subscribe to our YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/user/aviva

      More from our Newsroom