The survey of the UK’s ten biggest cities revealed that more than 40% of people say they are overweight, around 66% don’t eat the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, and more than 40% tuck into a fast food meal at least once a week.

Only about a third of people admit to doing some form of moderate physical activity every day, and only around a quarter say they are a member of a gym or sports centre. When it comes to sleep, around four out of 10 people are getting less than the recommended seven to eight hours rest a night.

What's more, stress levels are also on the rise with 45% of the people questioned, admitting that they are feeling under pressure with concerns about their family health and rising costs related to the credit crunch.

A healthy business requires a healthy workforce and employers should be encouraged to create a climate in the workplace where employees are motivated to take greater interest in their wellbeing.

Bupa offers a free online health assessment tool to all its]]> Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:29:00 GMT http://www.uk-insurance-index.co.uk/Bupa-Cash-Plan-Gets-Record-Customer-Satisfaction.html A Bupa survey of it's customers has resulted in it's healthcare cash plan achieving record customer satisfaction scores, with a substantial 92% of customers rating the service as either 'very good' or 'excellent'.

The scores come as the Bupa Cash Plan celebrates its 10th year of providing cover for healthcare expenses such as eye tests, dental care and chiropody plus other treatments that are not readily available on the NHS.

Head of Bupa Cash Plan, Stuart Wright commented: "Customer service is our top priority, so we're really pleased with these results. In the last 10 years, we have seen a three fold increase in customers and the popularity of cash plans continue to rise. It is an outstanding achievement by our dedicated team that they have sustained such high quality customer service alongside our strong expansion."

The Bupa Cash Plan was created when company bought Mercia Health Benefits, which was originally founded in 1870 as the Coventry and Warwickshire Hospital Saturday]]> Thu, 10 Jul 2008 15:00:00 GMT http://www.uk-insurance-index.co.uk/Norwich-Union-Launches-New-Income-Protection-Plan.html Norwich Union Healthcare has launched a new personal income protection product named Income Protection Solutions which is designed to combine competitive premiums with no standard exclusions, guaranteed or reviewable rates, flexibility options such as limited benefit terms and retirement ages from 50 to 70.

Marketing propositions manager at Norwich Union Healthcare, Nick Homer said: "State incapacity benefit currently only provides £75.40 per week (rising to £84.50 after 52 weeks) which for most people is nowhere near enough to meet their needs. Consequently many people are currently vulnerable to the potentially devastating financial effects caused by long-term incapacity. Also, the State welfare system is set to be reformed further in October this year, meaning the need for long-term income protection has never been greater."

Norwich Union is also providing individual claims advisers, many of whom are trained counsellors, who will complete claims forms for customers over the phone in additiona to a rehabilitation service which is provided by medically trained staff who can help get policyholders back into]]> Wed, 9 Jul 2008 15:09:00 GMT http://www.uk-insurance-index.co.uk/Employee-Stress-Proving-a-Big-Headache.html A recent survey conducted by Employee Benefits Magazine and HSA Healthcare has highlighted that stress appears to be particularly concerning for large companies including those operating within the public sector.

The annual benchmark survey which surveyed over 500 readers of Employee Benefits magazine, showed that 47% of companies believe stress is a primary cause of sickness absence which increases to 64% for companies with more than 10,000 employees. Again this figure risies to to 86% among public sector organisations.

Glenn Rhodes of HSA, commented: "Over the years we have supported this survey, stress has increasingly become an issue for organisations. Despite this, many seem to be burying their heads in the sand over the problem. This is especially prevalent within larger organisations, which suffer more sickness absence from stress, yet almost half have no strategy in place to tackle it."

Editor of Employee Benefits Magazine, Amanda Wilkinson, sais: "The percentage of organisations citing stress as a major cause of sickness absence has risen for the third year in a row and now stands at 47%. Yet, a large proportion of employers (63%) still do not have a strategy in place to reduce stress in the]]> Thu, 5 Jun 2008 14:45:00 GMT