The Association for British Insurers has this week brought out a new set of guidelines which advise that gay men do not have to undergo unnecessary HIV testing in order to take out life insurance policies.

The Association for British Insurers sets the standards for the majority of insurance companies in this country and the new consumer guide will no doubt have a massive impact.

The guide has been updated in order to reflect equality issues, which have become a hot topic in the insurance industry of late. The ABI states that there are “changes being made across the industry to ensure that people in civil partnerships are treated the same as married couples."

Assistant director at ABI, Mr Nick Kirwan, expressed his views on the importance of the new guidelines on providing equality for everyone.

"This builds on the good work done by the insurance industry to ensure lesbian and gay people are treated fairly, and have access to practical information about insurance," he said.

Chris Morgan, managing director of Compass and who as a member of the ABI’s HIV Expert Working Group was part of the team involved in drawing up the new guidelines was optimistic about the impact that they will have on the insurance industry.

“I am very proud to be associated with the new Consumer Guide,” he said. "It is extremely important that information is available to the gay community on life and protection insurance issues.”

"The amendment to the Guide clarifies the industry’s position on civil partnerships, and I am extremely proud to have played my part in achieving what I believe to be full equality in life insurance products,” he added.