Legal & General is to scrap paper applications from tied business partners using its e-Protection Choices service in favour of a fully-fledged online procedure.
The move comes in the wake of an enthusiastic response to the firm's e-Protection Choices package which, since its launch in April 2002, has resulted in over 95 per cent of applications by tied business partners being submitted over the Web.
Legal and General says the only paper exceptions will be complex cases that cannot be submitted over the Internet.
Graham Newitt, protection and housing director, says "By agreeing with them to dispense with costly paper versions of applications we will be able to focus our investments on continuing to develop electronic trading functionality for the users."
The company adds that over 50 per cent of its protection business from IFAs is also online, and it plans to make similar changes to the IFA service once the provision of online submission facilities is more widespread across the industry.
"We will continue to offer IFAs paper applications until there is clear demand from IFAs for an online solution only," says Newitt.