Millennials are no different from any other section of society, in that whether they need protection or not will really depend on their personal situation, so says Craig Brown, director of intermediary at Legal & General.

While this is true, there are several reasons why millennials are not seeking cover for income and critical illness.

Mr Brown suggests: "The big issue is that the younger we are, the more invincible we think we are, and so millennials may have a greater need to have the risks pointed out to them by an adviser. Not enough people consider the impact ill-health might have on their lifestyle."

But encouraging millennials to seek a financial adviser to have the protection conversation with is another challenge for the protection industry and adviser community.

Most people will consider protection for the first time when they are about to purchase a house and go to a financial adviser for a mortgage application. But increasingly, millennials are staying in the rental sector, thereby missing out on the opportunity to discuss these options with an adviser.

However, protection providers are finding other ways to appeal to this generation, using technology predominantly, but also simplifying product ranges as a way to introduce them to protection and its benefits. 

Stephen Crosbie, protection director at Aegon, says: "For young and healthy consumers, there are plenty of simple protection solutions available, and at an affordable price. For no extra cost, an adviser can help identify the right product to meet their needs and their budget."

There is also another reason, as Mr Crosbie suggests: "Helping younger clientele with their protection needs is one way advisers could be future-proofing their business as this generation is likely to form their client base in the years ahead as they pay off debts and look for mortgage, investment and pensions advice."

So it should be a win-win situation.

In this guide, there are features on why millennials may benefit from protection and how they can shop around for the right policy. The guide also looks at what providers are doing to engage millennials and how they are using technology to do so.

The guide is worth an indicative 60 minutes of structured CPD.

Contributors to this guide include: Emma Thomson, life office relationship director at LifeSearch; Fraser Glass, financial planner at Fryer Glass; Stephen Crosbie, protection director at Aegon; Paul Roberts, head of protection at Old Mutual Wealth; Iona Bain, founder of the Young Money blog; Mark Cracknell, head of protection distribution at Aviva; Craig Brown, director, intermediary at Legal & General; Tom Conner, director at Drewberry Insurance; Steve Bryan, director of distribution and marketing at The Exeter; Paul Yates, product strategy director at iPipeline; Old Mutual Wealth; and Aegon.

Ellie Duncan is deputy content plus editor at FTAdviser