Nearly half of all Britons have no life insurance and critical illness cover, a new study by Barclays has found.

In spite of soaring unemployment and mounting debts in the country, the survey revealed that people are failing to purchase policies that would guarantee them and their families protection.

It also discovered life insurance and income protection policies have been relegated to the bottom of priority list as people struggle to control their expenses.

About half of all those interviewed admitted having no any form of protection at all, while 52 per cent said they have no life cover. And 75 per cent do not have critical illness insurance.

“When finances are tight it is often responsibilities like protection policies that fall to a lower priority, and of course these policies protect outcomes that people don’t want to talk about,” explained head of customer proposition at Barclays Financial Planning, Alison Tattersall.