As a senior UK citizen, you may have family members you want to provide for and financially protect. Although we might not want to think about it, there comes a time when we will not be able to support our families when we pass away.
For this reason, life insurance for people over 60 is an important factor to consider.
Many life insurance options are available, so it's crucial to compare quotes to find the best option for you. But which quotes for the best life insurance over 60 should you consider?
This article will reveal our direct reviews the most favourable options available to senior citizens over 60. Read until the end to discover the top seven insurance options for senior citizens.
| Provider | Score | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 1. AIG | ★★★★★ | Learn more |
| 2. Aviva | ★★★★★ | Learn more |
| 3. SunLife | ★★★★★ | Learn more |
| 4. Legal & General | ★★★★★ | Learn more |
| 5. Vitality | ★★★★★ | Learn more |
| 6. Liverpool Victoria | ★★★★★ | Learn more |
| 7. British Seniors | ★★★★★ | Learn more |
What Is Life Insurance for Over 60s?
Life insurance for those over 60 is a policy you can take out so that when you pass away, your beneficiaries or loved ones will receive a lump sum and have financial security. This type of life insurance is specifically designed for individuals 60 years and over.
A few main examples of this insurance include decreasing life insurance, increasing level term cover and whole-of-life insurance.
How Does Life Insurance Work for People Over 60?
If you're researching life insurance, you may know it works by providing your family a lump sum when you pass away after paying monthly premiums.
Many insurance companies will consider your circumstances, your budget, how much coverage you aim for, and age to determine whether they can offer you a policy. If you pass away during the insurance term, this is when your loved ones will receive the funds.
It makes sense to use ‘in trust' arrangements to ensure your funds pass directly to your loved ones, family or beneficiaries. If you don't use these arrangements, there is a chance the lump sum will become part of your inheritance tax. ‘In trust' means a trustee will handle and manage the lump sum when you pass away.
While level-term life insurance will always pay out the same amount, a decreasing life insurance policy will lead to decreasing amounts as the term progresses.
Over 60s Life Insurance Features
Knowing its main features before you choose a policy can help you know what to look for.
Let's closely examine the main features of this insurance type.
- Premium — The premium is the monthly amount you pay in exchange for a lump sum your loved ones, family, or beneficiaries receive when you pass away. Some premiums are very high for this type of life insurance.
- Flexible options for payout — You'll be able to receive your payout in various ways with this insurance type. For example, you can choose for the benefit to be paid all at once or over the specified timeframe. In other situations, you may combine these payout options to get both lump sums and have payments in installations.
- Life insurance calculator — Many policies will come with a life insurance calculator, which you can use to determine how much life insurance will suit your situation.
Life Insurance Over 60s Pros and Cons
Knowing the features of this insurance type is a good starting point, but it's well worth considering the advantages and disadvantages before you make your choice.
Here are some of the pros and cons you should think about.
Pros
✔️ You can support your family — Your family's sum can go towards their mortgage payments, bills, or other costs, helping them achieve financial security even after you pass away.
✔️ Your family may use the funds for funeral expenses — Your family may use the life insurance sum to pay for and cover funeral costs when you pass away.
✔️ Your loved ones may use the funds for your debts — If you pass away without paying outstanding debts and want to avoid passing these expenses to your loved ones, your insurance lump sum can cover these costs.
✔️ The lump sum is not taxed — The money you pass to your family or loved ones is tax-free. This means they will not have to pay tax on the lump sum they receive from you.
✔️ The funds are passed to your loved ones quickly — In comparison to other types of inheritance, your family will not need to wait long to receive the lump sum. It passes to them faster than other inheritance types that must go through probate.
Cons
❌️ High premium payments — To pass on the lump sum to your family, you must make higher premium payments than other types of insurance. The main reason you'll need to pay high premiums is that you have a higher chances of making a claim. For this reason, you will need to consider if your budget can meet these high premiums.
❌️ Health conditions can make it challenging to get a policy — If you have any pre-existing medical conditions or are in poor health, it can be challenging to get a policy. You'll likely have to undergo a medical history check and exam before they approve your application. Something like high blood pressure can stand in the way of a life insurance cover option.
7 Best Life Insurance for Over 60 — Reviews
We've now covered all you need to know regarding this insurance type's features, advantages and disadvantages.
Here, we’ll reveal the findings of our direct reviews of the seven best options available to UK senior citizens over 60.
1. AIG
AIG offers life insurance for UK residents over 60. This leading insurance organisation operates internationally and offers your loved ones a single cash sum when you pass away. Leaving sums of money behind is possible if you aim to cover funeral costs.
Now, if you do not ensure the insurance from AIG is not held in trust, we learned that it will pass to your estate. This policy rule means your loved ones might need to pay inheritance tax under specific circumstances. For example, if your estate value exceeds the tax threshold for inheritance tax, tax must be paid.
AIG will pay your insurance when you pass away if your policy began a minimum of two years before. Your family will receive three times the current amount of insurance in the event of accidental death.
When reviewing this option, we learned that the maximum AIG will insure you for is £50 per month. In their payout example, if you make monthly payments of £15 and are a 65-year-old non-smoker, your loved ones will receive a specific, fixed amount of £3,147 if you pass away two or more years after taking out life insurance. If you pass away due to an accident, AIG will pay out £9,441.
2. Aviva
Aviva provides UK residents with life insurance for individuals aged between 50 and 80. When we reviewed this, we found that you will not need to pass a medical history test or health check to make your application, and you can receive cover for life.
You can select the monthly premium amount you wish to pay or the cover amount.
There are a few advantages of Aviva's insurance for over 60s. They will pay out the cash sum within three and five working days after your passing, and after 30 years, they will not expect you to pay premiums.
Aviva will pay your cover if you pass away after a year of taking out the policy. We also discovered that if you pass away before 12 months of taking out the policy, they will pay a cash sum worth the same as the premiums you have paid.
It's possible to pay from just £5 per month up to £100 each month for your premium. The premium costs will never increase — they are fixed and will stay the same.
In their example, Aviva states that as a non-smoker who pays a premium of £20 monthly, you can receive a payout of £4,721 if you take out cover at the age of 60. If you take out cover at 70, this reduces to £2,885.
3. SunLife
SunLife offers whole-of-life insurance options to individuals between 49 and 85. You will not be required to respond to medical questions, and your premium will never increase.
This insurance provider's premiums start from £3.70 monthly, making it one of the most affordable cover options available.
We learned when testing this option that some higher premiums with SunLife may cost you up to £74 per month.
Your loved ones can potentially receive cash payouts of up to £18,000 and receive full cover when one year has passed between you taking out the policy. We also discovered that SunLife will pay out your cover to your loved ones within three days.
If you pass away due to accidental death or injury within the initial year of having your policy, SunLife will still cover you and provide your loved ones with the payout. You need to be a permanent resident in the UK to be eligible for SunLife insurance cover.
4. Legal & General
With Legal & General, you can receive fixed premiums that will not increase and leave a lump sum for your family to use after you pass away.
When testing this option, we found that you will receive full cover after one year and instant cover if you pass away due to accidental death causes.
If you pass away within the one-year timeframe between taking out the policy, Legal & General will refund the premiums you have paid.
We learned that the premium you pay each month can range from just £5 and extend to £75. This will depend on a few factors, such as whether you smoke and your age.
You will not be expected to undergo a medical examination. However, you may have to answer questions related to health conditions.
One advantage of Legal & General's insurance is the option to reduce monthly premium costs if you've had the policy for at least a year. You can change it to suit your specific circumstances but must pay for the minimum premium.
5. Vitality
Vitality offers insurance for senior citizens that is the equivalent of life insurance for individuals of any age.
We discovered that with this cover, your loved ones will receive a cash sum when you pass away, which they may use for funeral costs, your debts and other expenses.
When looking into this option, we found that this provider offers cover in exchange for monthly premiums starting from £5 monthly.
The premiums you spend will depend on a few specific factors, including how much cover you will get, your health quality, your age, and your smoker status. Although you can get cover as a smoker, your premium is likely to be higher than a non-smoker's premium.
You can select between term life insurance and whole life insurance, with term life insurance covering you for five to 70 years and whole life insurance covering you until you pass away.
To claim on your policy, your loved ones should call Vitality and have the document plan, medical details cause of death, and name and address of your GP to hand. Vitality will handle the claim for them.
6. Liverpool Victoria
With Liverpool Victoria, you can take out a life insurance policy as a UK resident between 17 and 84. You have the option to select the length of your policy (between five and 50 years), but the policy should end before the day of your 90th birthday.
We discovered that this policy will form part of your estate, meaning your loved ones may need to pay inheritance tax if the part is worth more than £325,000.
Your loved ones or family members will not get a pay-out cash sum if you commit suicide within 12 months of taking out the policy.
Liverpool Victoria might ask for answers to medical questions or a medical report as part of your application. However, there are a few advantages to this policy. Your premiums will not change unless you make changes to your cover.
Your cover can also increase following specific life events. You can access Liverpool Victoria's doctor services and legal advice line without additional costs.
When assessing this service, we found that their cover starts at just £5 monthly, making this an affordable cover that suits tighter budgets.
7. British Seniors
Choose British Seniors, and you can receive cover as a UK resident aged between 50 and 80. With this provider, you won't need to complete a medical or blood test.
This policy offers several advantages, such as leaving a cash gift to your loved ones, leaving funds for end-of-life care, covering funeral costs, and more.
In our first-hand review, we found that premiums will not increase, except if you select British Seniors' Increasing Benefit Option. You can pay a small sum of just £4.32 monthly to get cover. Some specific factors influence your premiums, including your age, smoker status, the amount of cover you require and whether you select an increasing or level policy.
The benefit amount you can receive if you're aged between 50 and 69 is up to £10,000. If you are aged between 70 and 74, we learned that your maximum benefit is £9,000. Cover is offered for accidental death, and after 12 months, you receive cover if you pass away for any cause.
With British Seniors, you select the benefit amount or the monthly premiums rate, which refers to the amount you're covered for and the amount you'll pay each month.
Best Life Insurance for Over 60s: The Verdict
Life cover and insurance policies can be the ideal solution if you need to give your family the financial support they need after you pass away. Affordable life insurance is available for you, even if you are over 60, but you will need to compare life insurance to find the best options.
Some ideal policies include SunLife and British Seniors, but it's crucial to align the policy with your budget. Ensure you start with our list to compare quotes from the best insurance types for citizens over 60.
Shop around to find the best cover amount for the most favourable premium costs to give your loved ones and family the financial support they need for their financial commitments, even when you pass away.
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