This year’s National Conversation Week, which takes place from 18-24 March, has a focus on encouraging people to have more conversations about their finances and, where possible, to seek professional financial advice.

In a recent YouGov survey, 38% of people admitted that finance is their biggest worry,but only half of those surveyed said they would ever seek professional advice.

General insurance provider, Paymentshield, is a supporter of National Conversation Week’s mission to tackle the lack of conversation around people’s financial situation and to promote the value of proper advice.

One of the ways National Conversation Week is helping to highlight the importance of professional advice is the creation of a customer facing guide which highlights the financial products people should discuss at various stages in their life. The guide is available to download from the official National Conversation Week website, nationalconversationweek.co.uk.

Paymentshield has also created a guide for advisers who may be struggling to incorporate a conversation about general insurance into their sales process, with ideas on how they can more GI conversations started. It’s called Let’s Talk GI, is available on the Paymentshield Advisers website and, for every copy of the guide that is requested during March, Paymentshield will donate £1 to National Conversation Weeks charity partner, Mind, which will contribute to helping more people get the advice and support they need if their experiencing a mental illness.

Rob Evans, CEO at Paymentshield, said: “At Paymentshield, we want as many people as possible to speak to professional advisers to help improve their financial situation and as specialists in general insurance, we’re doing everything we can to spread the word on the importance of seeking advice before choosing insurance products.

“Although the internet is a valuable way to find out more about insurance products, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution, and, without financial advice, consumers could end up paying over the odds for a product that is completely unsuitable for their needs. Seeking advice from an adviser is the only way to ensure that a consumer really understands the best way forward.”