Term Insurance

Term insurance is the simplest and often the cheapest because it pays out only if you die within the defined term. For example, you might take out a 25-year plan so the policy would pay out if you were to die in the next 25 years.

Your family would get nothing if you were to die after the end of the term. You can buy level term insurance, where the pay-out remains the same whether you die in year one or year 25. Or you can arrange decreasing term insurance so the pay-out gets gradually smaller.

For example, a policy might pay out £100,000 in year one but only £5,000 in year 25.

Decreasing term insurance is often linked to a repayment mortgage because the amount you owe the lender reduces over time.Another option is family income benefit. Here, instead of a lump sum pay-out, the insurer commits to paying a set monthly income from the time of the claim to the end of the agreed policy term.

A regular income can be easier to manage as it can simply replace your salary. Premiums can also be cheaper as the longer you live, the less the insurer has to pay out.

The premiums for both level and decreasing term insurance and for family income benefit are fixed throughout the policy term. However, decreasing term insurance and family income benefit tend to be cheaper than level term insurance.

Whole of life cover

Whole of life assurance pays out whenever you die. It is usually linked to an investment such as a pension or an endowment policy and is often the most expensive type of cover because a claim is inevitable (which is why it’s called assurance; insurance is for something that might happen). The premiums can vary if the investment performance is poor.

The amount of cover you need depends largely on your personal circumstances and your budget. If you have several young children, for example, you may need more cover than someone with one older child.

The size of your mortgage can also help to determine the size of the sum insured.Check, too, whether you have any existing cover. For example, your employer might offer death-in-service benefit, which could pay a lump sum of around four times your annual salary if you were to die while still employed by the firm.

You should include any potential death-in-service pay-out when determining how much insurance you need to buy.Insurers take into account a number of risk factors when setting the premiums for life insurance. Older people are obviously more risky than younger people as they are more likely to die sooner. For the same reason, someone in poor health can expect to pay more for family life insurance. Dangerous occupations and pastimes can also push up premiums.

Financial Tip: Life assurance costs have reduced over last number of years. We may be able to save you money on your existing life cover or mortgage protection policy so contact us if you have a life policy, especially one whereby the premium is due to increase shortly e.g. a Whole of Life policy.

Factors Affecting Life Assurance/Life Insurance/Life Cover

• Level of cover you require
• Your Age
• Smoker Status
• Health Issues
• Length or term of cover

Over 50’s Life Insurance

There are two options available to us when getting life cover for over 50’s.

Option 1:

We will endeavour to get life insurance for you through the normal route i.e. You complete an application form with personal/medical details and the case is underwritten to provide acceptance terms. We guarantee to get you the best quote on the market for this type of cover.

Option 2:

If we cannot get you accepted through Option 1, we can offer Guaranteed Life Cover without the need to provide any medical information. This type of life cover is a guaranteed acceptance protection plan for the over 50s, which could give your family or estate a guaranteed lump sum when you die. This product works as follows:

• Set amount of life cover at a guaranteed price for the rest of your life
• No medical information requested
• During the first two years of your policy, if you die as a result of an accident, you are fully covered for the benefit chosen. If however, you die as a result of anything other than an accident, a refund of payments will be made to your estate.
• After the first two years of your policy, a full payment would be made should you die.

The initial two year waiting period for full cover is imposed due to the fact that you are not providing any medical evidence to the insurer.

If you would like advice or are looking to get a quotation just enter your details in the box provided or call us at 01 8700370. We have qualified and experienced staff who can deal with all of your questions. Phone Colm or Lindsey and we will answer all of your questions and can provide you with a quotation.

We are Fully Independent Brokers and Regulated by The Central Bank of Ireland as Authorised Advisors.

Contact us to get a quote if any of the following apply to you: