Legal and General Life Insurance | ActiveQuote
Founded in 1836, Legal and General have an almost two-century pedigree in business and insurance. Here, we provide a Legal and General life insurance overview, covering their products, features and benefits.
Types of Legal and General Life Insurance
In terms of Legal and General’s life insurance, the company offers two packages: life insurance with increasing or decreasing cover and over 50s cover. To qualify, you must be at least 18 years of age and currently living in the UK for a minimum of 183 days in the last tax year. The upper age limit is 77 for upper life insurance ending at 90, 74 for decreasing life insurance ending at 90 and 50-80 for over 50s cover. Every package pays a cash lump sum, meaning there are no family benefits.
Life Insurance Cover
Legal and General’s life insurance covers an insured party if they die or are diagnosed with a terminal illness within the length of the policy. The party will choose exactly how much cover they want along with its duration, complemented by guaranteed premiums that remain unchanged as long as the policy stays the same. The maximum length of time is 50 years, but the policy must end before a party’s 90th birthday. Premiums begin at £6 per month. As part of the application, Legal and General will ask for the party’s medical history, occupation and lifestyle-related questions. The first year of the policy isn’t covered in the event of suicide. A waiver of premium is an option, but this comes with an extra charge. Two cover options are available: level cover and increasing cover. If a party chooses level cover, their amount of cover remains the same unless they ask for it to be changed. Increasing cover, on the other hand, will see the amount of cover increasing in line with inflation on each policy anniversary.
Decreasing Life Insurance Cover
Decreasing life insurance cover is specially designed for mortgages. This Legal and General life insurance is made with mortgage repayments in mind, where an underwriter will apply an interest rate equivalent to the original amount of cover that matches a client’s rate of mortgage repayments. As a result, the amount a party is covered for will be the same or similar to what is left of their insurance repayments. That way, monthly repayments remain the same, but the volume covered eventually trickles down to zero. Of course, if a party’s mortgage changes, then the amount paid out will not fall in line with the mortgage repayments left. Premiums begin at £6 per month.
Over 50s Life Insurance
UK residents between the ages of 50 and 80 can apply for over 50s life insurance. Premiums lie between £5 and £75 a month while remaining static, with full payment coverable after one year. In the case of accidental death, it will be payable within one year. Those who fall within the age range will get guaranteed acceptance, too. Even though premiums stop at 90, the cover will last for the rest of an insured party’s life. However, the total payout may be less than the premiums contributed, depending on how long a party has had the cover for, plus inflation may impact the value of the final payout. 100% of claims are paid, with bonuses for non-smokers. Premiums remain static but can be reduced after 12 months under extenuating circumstances.
Other Types of Benefit
Accidental death benefit is inclusive while the application is processed, which covers for accidental death. The maximum payment will be the amount of cover a party applied for or £300,000 (whichever is lower). This cover lasts up to 90 days. There is also terminal illness cover wherein the full amount is paid out if an insured party is expected to die within 12 months. Free life cover is included in life insurance or decreasing life insurance cover, which covers an insured party if they die between exchange of contracts and completion of a property purchase. This cover lasts for up to 90 days and is available to those under 55 and been accepted on Legal and General’s terms.
Legal and General Life Insurance Review and Results
In 2018, Legal and General’s policy led to the following results:
- 97% of claims paid out
- The average age of claimant was 67
- 10,046 life claims settled amounting to £332.7m
- An average pay-out of £34,279
