When shopping for the best life insurance policy it is important to get the best cover available at an affordable price. Our lives are the most valuable assets we possess so insuring them sufficiently should be the top priority. Shopping for life insurance in the UK can be complicated because there are several providers, each claiming to be the preferred one. There is no one best plan for all individuals but here are some tips for finding the most suitable cover at the lowest price.

Discard the Assumption of a Single, Best Plan for All

One size does not fit all when it comes to life insurance cover. Each person has a unique situation based on age, health status, financial status, and cover needs. A plan that may be ideal for a friend or even a family member may be unsuitable for you.

The size of the insurance company does not always equate to the amount of cover or value of premium offered. Some people find comprehensive cover at excellent prices from small insurers.

The key to shopping for life insurance is to discard assumptions. Begin with an idea of the type of cover desired and research the different policies available. A fast and easy way to request quotes from multiple insurance companies is to use a price comparison website.

Submit a single form that contains personal information and details about desired cover and receive a list of policies and premium quotes from different companies.

Shopping Around Can Reduce the Cost

In addition to insurance companies, banks, building societies, supermarkets, and high street retailers sell life insurance policies. One company may even sell the policies of another as in the example of Nationwide Building Society, which sells life insurance policies from Legal & General.

Premiums for identical policies from the same insurer vary based on where the policy is purchased. Shopping around for cover is one way to get the best deal.

Some life insurance brokers, which deal with multiple insurance companies, operate online. They may offer lower premiums because they pass through some of their commissions to the insured. Some even rebate commission throughout the policy term, reducing the premium on an ongoing basis.

Both price comparison sites and online brokers offer competitive quotes for life cover.

Cashback sites allow consumers to purchase life policies from insurers and receive rebates through the third-party sites. A cashback or voucher offer is usually only recommended when a policy quote is near or at the top of the table. Cashback offers vary from one site to the next, with the same insurer offering different cashback and voucher deals through different cashback websites.

Buying Direct

Some people prefer to avoid cashback and price comparison sites, instead purchasing life insurance direct. Different providers rise to the top based on the policy term, age, and smoking status of the consumer. Companies to research include Aviva, Sainsbury’s Bank, LV=, Saga, and Zurich. Comparing insurance companies is equally important when buying direct but it may take more time.

People who do not know what type of life insurance they need should contact a financial provider or unbiased insurance professional offering free advice. Several charities and other non-profits advise consumers on insurance and financial topics free of charge.

Once consumers know which type of life cover is best for their situation, they can follow the approaches above to find the most comprehensive policy at the lowest price.

Some medical conditions are on-going and may cause denial of life insurance cover. When applying for this cover, applicants may need to answer medical questions that go into great detail and extend back many years. Applicants are expected to be honest about their previous and on-going medical problems including heart conditions.

Advanced treatments and technologies enable people with heart issues to live longer and healthier lives than past generations did. Some life insurance providers specialize in cover for people with heart issues.

Help with Finding Cover

Insurance professionals may focus on individuals with heart disease and other heart conditions, helping them find life insurance. These experts know which providers to approach for life cover when the applicant has a heart issue. Acceptable cover is not guaranteed but these professionals will find relevant policies and present them to applicants.

In some cases, they may find multiple providers and will then help individuals identify which is the best value from cover and premium standpoints. An insurance expert may assist with document completion and serve as the primary contact throughout the application process.

Traditionally, the life insurance sector avoided providing cover to people with heart-related medical issues. Recently, some companies have started to offer policies for individuals whose high blood pressure is controlled or whose angina is stable.

People who have heart arrhythmia without additional complications may be eligible for life cover at rates that are near normal for their age group. This is possible even when they have co-existing conditions such as diabetes.

Life Cover for Heart Surgery and Heart Attack Patients

Though a heart attack is a serious medical situation, it may not automatically prevent someone from qualifying for life cover, especially if there are no complications and the event took place six or more months before completing the life insurance application.

If the heart attack sufferer smokes, life premiums will be at least two times those offered to non-smokers of the same age. Cover may still be offered if an individual has additional medical issues or has experienced multiple heart attacks but the premium will be higher than the premium available to people who are not in these categories.

Heart surgery patients may be approved for life cover. Individuals who have had a successful angioplasty procedure and stenting or an aorta graft surgery due to a swollen aorta may qualify for cover six months after the procedure. Cover is available one year after heart valve replacement, bypass surgery, or a stroke as long as there are no resulting complications.

Guidelines for Purchasing Life Insurance

Life insurance underwriters consider many factors when determining applicant risk. If a website that provides online life quotes requires visitors to answer just a few questions and the premiums returned seem low, expect to answer additional questions, some related to heart issues, on the official application.

Unless they require completion of a comprehensive application, websites and agents provide only preliminary quotes based on the short medical history supplied and their knowledge of the market. Individuals with heart conditions should use agents or websites representing multiple providers to increase the chance of a positive response.

When completing a life insurance application, a person who has a rateable heart condition should provide a recent letter from his or her physician. This letter should include the medical history of the applicant, health outlook, and list of medications currently taken.

The agent and policy underwriter will use this to gain an accurate understanding of the medical status of the applicant. An underwriter is particularly concerned with whether the medical condition has stabilized, is getting worse, or is improving and whether the applicant is following the recommendations of the treating doctor.

A joint mortgage is issued in the name of two people rather than one person. When purchasing a property with a partner or friend, people should protect their investments. Life insurance is one way to ensure that the other owner does not suffer financially upon your death.

However, many people neglect to purchase this important cover, leaving the co-owner responsible for payment of the entire mortgage balance.

Life Insurance Designed for Joint Mortgages

It is not typically compulsory to purchase life insurance for mortgage protection. However, it is wise in the case of a joint mortgage or if the individual has a family. Joint mortgage life insurance is designed to repay the mortgage balance if one owner dies. This policy pays out upon the first death and then terminates. If either partner dies, the mortgage loan will be repaid and the surviving partner will not be forced to make loan repayments in the future.

When the holders of a joint mortgage consider this type of cover, they typically wonder if they both need to have life insurance. They do not and in some situations, it may be wiser for one partner to purchase life cover rather than for both to buy a joint plan. For example, individual life cover may make more sense if only one partner is employed and makes mortgage payments.

While a joint policy pays out only once, if each party gets an individual policy, two payouts are possible. The cost of two separate life policies is typically only about ten percent higher than the cost of a joint term life policy. This additional premium may be exceeded by any claim that is paid upon the death of an insured. If the partners opt for a joint policy, adding critical illness cover will create a pay-out if either person suffers one of the listed injuries or critical illnesses.

Joint Mortgages Without Life Insurance

If the joint mortgage holders do not take out life insurance, the surviving partner must continue to make mortgage payments for the duration of the loan. If both incomes were applied toward these payments, this can create a financial burden. Many partners have children, making it even more difficult to spread income across necessary living expenses.

Joint mortgage life insurance may not even be sufficient in this case because it is designed to repay the mortgage. The surviving partner may not earn enough to support children and him or herself.

Joint life insurance policies are available to registered civil partners, married couples, and cohabitating couples with joint financial obligations such as a joint mortgage. A joint or individual life policy can be worth the cost of premiums when both partners are parties to a joint mortgage.

When taking out a mortgage with another individual, consider how his or her death will affect the ability to repay the loan without the financial protection provided by life insurance.

While many people know that they are the beneficiaries of life insurance policies, others are unaware. Receiving a payout from a life insurance policy of a long lost relative is an unexpected surprise.

Though most people are unhappy to hear that a loved one passed away, they are comforted to know that this individual considered them important.

According conservative estimates, approximately £2 billion in life insurance benefits are unclaimed in the UK.

Life Insurance Is the Forgotten Benefit

Life insurance is a long-term benefit so it is easy to forget it. If a family member dies without a will, it can be difficult to discover whether the individual had a life insurance policy. Reviewing check registers and old bank statements of the individual may identify whether premiums were paid for life insurance.

If the deceased had a solicitor or accountant, this person may have helpful information. Speaking with previous employers may reveal a group insurance policy that the deceased participated in that may still be in force.

The UK life insurance industry does not currently offer a tracing service…

However, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) provides assistance with the search for unclaimed assets including life insurance policies. If a surviving loved one discovers that the deceased had a policy but does not know the name of the insurer, this group may be able to help.

The ABI can be contacted via mail, telephone, or its website. If the individual knows the name of the insurance company but cannot find contact information, an online search or review of the online ABI member list may provide the details.

The Unclaimed Assets Register (UAR) provided by Experian is another way to find missing money and get in touch with the financial institutions that hold it. To identify lost assets including life insurance policies, an individual establishes an online UAR account and searches the database. Whenever a financial institution provides new information to the UAR, Experian runs the established search request to identify matching lost assets. This alert service is currently provided at no charge for a six-year period.

Tracking Down Friendly Society Policies

Friendly societies were popular during the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. These were established by groups of people banding together to create an association or a local branch of an existing association. These individuals paid fees that went into the treasury of the association and made available to them during a time of need. Members could choose from different services including disability, health, and life insurance.

During the early 1950s, there were hundreds of these mutual organizations but many of them no longer exist. Loved ones can track down a friendly society insurance policy provider through the Association of Financial Mutuals (AFM), which maintains a register of many friendly society business transfers and mergers. If a prospective beneficiary does not have any details regarding such a policy but believes that one exists, the My Assets Reunited tool from AFS may help find it.

The UAR currently has approximately 4.5 million assets from 85 different participating companies. When an organization believes that it has lost contact with a customer due to death or relocation, it often registers assets with the UAR. Experian processes approximately 600 requests each month, matching around ten percent to possible assets. The ABI and AFM have also helped many UK residents find lost life insurance policies of their deceased loved ones.

Some UK residents consider life insurance a bother and others cannot qualify for a term or whole life policy. In these cases, it is smart to consider alternatives life insurance because death does not announce itself, leaving many surviving family members unprepared to deal with the financial consequences. The most common alternatives to life insurance involve investing money or saving it to create a financial cushion for loved ones who are left behind.

Investing or Accumulating Savings

To accumulate enough money for surviving family members to live comfortably, most people must save a substantial amount every year or make investments that earn extremely high returns. If saving is a priority from a young age or the individual is a very smart investor, it may be possible to amass enough money.

Other people may find themselves sacrificing their own lifestyles to save money for generations that may outlive them. One advantage to saving rather than purchasing life insurance is the ongoing availability of the money.

Since no one knows when death will come, it can be difficult to know how much money to save. There may not be enough time to accumulate an amount that will provide long-term benefits to surviving loved ones. In many cases, an individual must save enough to cover a lump sum repayment or a lifetime of monthly mortgage payments.

Survivors may also require money to cover living expenses until minor children reach adulthood or until these caregivers can obtain employment that offers a decent income.

Mortgage Insurance as a Life Insurance Alternative

Individuals who own homes should review the different mortgage insurance plans available. This insurance helps to keep the mortgage from defaulting due to unemployment, accident, illness, or the death of the insured. Since it combines mortgage life insurance with critical illness cover and mortgage payment protection insurance, it technically does have a life insurance component.

Level term policies are suitable for interest-only mortgages and decreasing term policies are designed for principal repayment mortgage loans. A mortgage life insurance policy with indexation tracking the Retail Price Index is also available. The sum assured by this policy increases annually with inflation.

An experienced life insurance professional will provide more information and guidance regarding the most appropriate and affordable policy.

Options for People Without Dependents

An individual who does not have any dependents is usually more concerned with taking care of his or her financial needs in the event of an unforeseen circumstance. Income protection insurance or a stand-alone critical illness policy may be the solution. Income protection provides financial benefits when redundancy prevents the policyholder from working and critical illness benefits apply when the insured is diagnosed with a serious illness meeting certain criteria.

Life insurance is a popular benefit in the UK but it is not ideal for everyone. Individuals who prefer to do without it should focus on investing and saving money for their loved ones to live on in the future. A homeowner may find a mortgage insurance package an attractive alternative that does not require saving a substantial amount of money.

People without dependents may wish to purchase cover that provides financial relief when an illness, accident, or loss of employment prevents them from working.