Frequently Asked Questions

Smart Family Life Insurance

• Why is Smart Family Life Insurance important?

  Smart Family Life Cover provides cover to help fill the financial gap for your family if the worst were to happen and they were suddenly left without you to provide for them.

  If you are the main breadwinner in the family, it’s important to make sure that your family would have adequate funds to ensure that the dreams you have for your family are not jeopardised if you were no longer there.

  Smart Family Life Insurance provides a benefit which is paid to your family in the event of your death or terminal illness (diagnosed with 12 months or less to live by a medical specialist). The money can be used to help give your family a secure future – by helping to pay off the mortgage, outstanding debts or simply assisting with daily living expenses so life can go on even if the worst were to happen.

• What does Smart Family Life Insurance cover?

  Smart Family Life Insurance covers death due to any cause (self-inflicted deaths excluded in the first 12 months). 

  You can also claim your full benefit amount if you are diagnosed as being terminally ill (with 12 months or less to live). This special benefit may help you get the best medical treatment available, put your personal affairs in order or settle other family needs.

• How does Smart Family Life Insurance work?

  Smart Family Life Insurance is a type of life insurance where you pay an agreed amount each month. If you continue to pay that monthly amount you will be covered if you were to pass away. With a Smart Family Life Insurance policy, you have a couple of options on how long you would like your policy to last and how you would like your cover to work. 

  You have the choice of either an age-based or a level policy. With an age-based policy, your monthly premium will start at a lower amount and increase each year based on your age. A Level policy is where you decide both the amount and how long you will be insured for at the beginning of the policy. This will then stay the same for the remainder of the policy term which could be between 10 and 40 years. 

  No matter what you decide to go with you can feel confident that you are choosing one of the highest quality offerings on the market. We work with Scottish Friendly who won ‘Best UK Mutual Insurer’ at the Capital Finance International (CFI) Awards for 2022.

• How long do I need to have the family life insurance policy before I can make a claim?

  With Smart Family Life Insurance cover there is no waiting period. You are covered as soon as your application is accepted, and your chosen benefit is paid for death by any cause (self-inflicted deaths excluded in the first 12 months).

• I’m healthy, why would I need Smart Family Life Insurance now?

  Life is unpredictable and we never know what lies around the corner. If you wait until you are unwell, the cost of life insurance could substantially increase, and it may also be difficult to obtain. Once you have a Smart Family Life Insurance policy in place, you can keep it for life, and we guarantee to renew your policy, providing you continue to pay your premiums when due, regardless of changes to your health, occupation or pastimes.

• How much does Smart Family Life Insurance cost?

  Family Life insurance is a very personal purchase. The Family Life Insurance quote Smart Insurance will give you will depend on the amount of cover and the optional covers you choose, the premium type you choose, the term you select (applies to level premium policies) and your personal circumstances, for example your age, the state of your health, family history and occupation.

  You could buy life cover at £6.89 a month in the first year (that's 23p a day!) for £100,000 of benefit. That's for a 32-year-old non-smoker on a single, age-based policy. Your premiums increase annually based on age and your chosen benefit amount.

• Am I eligible for Smart Family Life Insurance?

  All UK residents aged between 18 and 64 are eligible to apply for Smart Family Life Insurance. Medical or blood tests are not required as insurability will be determined by your answers to some health and lifestyle questions. This is all done over the phone.

• What is the 5% automatic benefit amount increase?

  The age based policy features a 5% automatic annual increase to your chosen benefit amount for your Family life insurance and any optional cover you have.

  This increase is not subject to further health and lifestyle questions.

  It is applied automatically to your policy on your policy anniversary each year for 10 consecutive years from the policy start date.

  For example, a benefit amount of £100,000 will increase by 5% to £105,000 after the first policy anniversary and will reach £150,000 after 10 years. The automatic benefit amount increase is a great way of increasing your benefit amount gradually over the years, for example as your family or mortgage grows. You will be sent a new schedule each year, which will show your new monthly premium recalculated based on age and the new benefit amount. At this point you have the flexibility of deciding to accept the increase, in which case you wouldn’t need to do anything, or you can let Smart Insurance know if you wish to opt out of it. If you change your mind, you can still opt back in to the 5% benefit amount increases within the 10 years, whatever suits your needs best.

• What optional cover is available with Smart Family Life Insurance?

  Once you have been accepted for Smart Family Life Insurance, you can choose from a range of additional options available so that you can tailor your cover to suit your needs. Options include Children’s cover, Critical Illness cover and additional Accidental Death cover.

• What are the premium payment options?

  We know that everyone has different needs, so we have two policy types to choose from; age based premium or level premium. Both policy types are flexible which allow you to apply for changes if your circumstances change. For example, you will be able to increase your benefit amount if you move to a larger home, or decrease it when the children leave home and you decide it’s time to downsize. Maybe your financial situation changes and you decide you would like even more peace of mind by adding critical illness cover, adding Children’s cover or increasing your Accidental Death cover.

  Age based policy type – How does it work?

  With an age based policy, your premium is based on your age. The premium is recalculated each year at your policy anniversary; gradually increasing in line with your age.

  With an age based policy, your monthly premium will start lower compared to its equivalent on a level policy type, so this may appeal to those on a tight budget during the early years of holding the policy. Plus, with an age based policy, you can keep it for the rest of your life (whole of life) rather than deciding on a fixed term.

  Automatic benefit amount increases: The age based policy features a 5% automatic annual increase to your chosen benefit amount for your family life insurance and any optional cover you have. This increase is not subject to further health and lifestyle questions. It is applied automatically to your policy on your policy anniversary each year, for ten consecutive years from the policy start date. Example: If you have chosen a £100,000 benefit amount at the start of the policy, the next year you will be covered for £105,000. At the end of ten years, assuming you don’t opt out of the increase, your benefit amount would be £150,000. The benefit amount increase is a great way of increasing your benefit amount gradually over the years, for example, as your family or mortgage grows.

  You will be sent a new schedule each year, which will show your new benefit amount with the 5% automatic increase included and your new monthly premium recalculated based on your age and the automatic increase. At this point you have the flexibility of deciding to accept the increase (in which case you wouldn’t need to do anything), or you can let Smart Insurance know if you wish to opt-out of it (in which case a replacement schedule will be issued which will show your rise in premium based on age only). If you change your mind, you can still opt back in to the 5% benefit amount increases within the ten years, whatever suits your needs best.

  Level policy type – How does it work?

  Our level policy is great for people who want certainty, knowing that their increasing age will not affect their monthly premium – it will stay the same each year unless you ask Smart Insurance to make changes to your policy. With our level policy you have the choice of a fixed term from 10 to 40 years. Once you have been covered for the length of the term you choose, your policy will end.

  The 5% automatic benefit amount increase is not available on a level policy, so your chosen benefit amount will stay the same. It is important to note that as the value of the benefit amount you choose at the start of the policy will not increase, it may not keep up with inflation.

• Which type of Family Life Insurance is better?

  One advantage of an age based policy is the lower initial monthly premium. So if you have a tight budget, an age based policy may be right for you, but you will need to consider that as you grow older, you will pay a higher premium each year. An age based policy can be a good way to keep the premiums low in the early years. It also features an automatic 5% benefit amount increase which can be a great way of increasing your cover gradually over the years with no further health or lifestyle questions to answer. This could be useful to cover a larger mortgage or increasing family expenses as your family grows.

  In contrast, a level policy may appeal if you prefer the certainty of a fixed monthly premium. With fixed premiums, you will know how much you are going to pay in the future and you won’t need to worry about it increasing. It’s important to bear in mind that the level policy option does not include a 5% automatic increase to your benefit amount and, as such, the value of the cover may decrease over time.

• Will my Family Life Insurance premium increase?

  When you select the age based premium option, your premium will increase as it is calculated each year on the policy anniversary and is based on your age and any applicable benefit amount increases at that time.

• How long can I keep my Smart Family Life Insurance policy?

  With an age based policy, as long as you pay your premiums, the cover is for the rest of your life – even if your health and circumstances change.

  If you select the level policy type, you can choose the length of time that you want to keep your policy in place, from 10 years to 40 years. On a level policy type, you will be covered until the end of your chosen term or after the policy anniversary following your 79^th birthday, whichever is sooner.

  With both policies, you’ll be covered anywhere in the world, 24/7.

• Are there any exclusions to a Family Life Insurance policy?

  Smart Family Life Insurance and all optional covers have exclusions and limitations as per our Key Facts and Policy Terms and Conditions document.

  The Smart Family Life Insurance benefit amount will not be paid if you die, or are diagnosed with a terminal illness, directly or indirectly as a result of an intentional self-inflicted injury that occurs within the 12 months from the start date of the policy (the deferred period).

  We may apply specific exclusions before your policy is issued. These will be shown in your schedule under the ‘Additional exclusions and limitations’ section.

• How do I or my family actually get my Smart Life Insurance benefit amount if I have a serious injury or I die?

  There are 3 ways for your family to make a claim in the event of your death:

  • Call us FREE on 0800 458 6901 Monday - Friday from 9am to 7pm
  • E-mail us at service@smartinsurance.co.uk
  • Write to us at Smart Insurance, PO Box 6063, Windsor, SL4 9GL

  We will send out a claim form to be completed, signed and returned to us.

  Note: If the claim is accepted, the insurer will pay the benefit amount to the person who is legally entitled to it and they will refund any premiums paid between the date of death and the date the claim is paid.

• How do I put my Smart Life Insurance policy into trust?

  You can put your Smart Life Insurance policy into trust after you take out the policy. If you are thinking about putting your policy into trust you can find out more information here, or you can seek independent legal advice. We are unable to give you any advice or recommendation on the suitability of Trusts.

• Will I get anything back if I cancel my Smart Life Insurance?

  You have 30 days from the receipt of your Policy documents, during which time you can cancel your Policy by writing to us or giving us a call. You can still cancel your Policy after 30 days, but you will not get anything back.

• How does the 10% Smart Cashback® work?

  As a Smart Insurance policy holder, after your 12th successful monthly payment, we'll give you back 10% of the premiums you've paid. The 10% Smart Cashback is paid to you within 14 working days of us successfully receiving your 12th monthly premium. It's simply our way of saying thank you for choosing Smart Insurance.