Life insurance – find the best option for you
There are a number of types of life insurance, to suit different needs. Below is a handy guide where we've outlined the different options available, highlighting the key features of each.
1. Life Insurance
Level term:
- Cover stays the same throughout the term
- Price fixed
- Can also be assigned to a mortgage – if you die the mortgage is cleared and remaining cover given to your estate.
Convertible term:
- Level term with a conversion option (option to extend the term)
- No medical questions asked at time of extension
- Treated as a healthy person of the age they extend
- No option to add more cover
- Extension can only be as long as the initial policy.
Indexation:
- Premiums and cover increase at defined rates to help protect against inflation.
2. Mortgage Protection
Mortgage protection safeguards your home. It pays any remaining balance on your mortgage in the event of your death. Mortgage protection is essential – from the day you buy your home until your mortgage is fully paid. As your mortgage value decreases over time, so too will your mortgage protection cover.
3. Specified Illness Cover
Standalone Specified Illness:
- Pays lump sum on diagnosis of a specified serious illness
- Fixed premium
- Fixed benefit
- Can also be taken as part of your life insurance policy.
Accelerated Specified Illness:
- Fixed premium
- Decreasing benefit
- Taken with life cover
- A claim for specified illness reduces amount of life cover remaining
- Often taken with mortgage protection