A life insurance term policy coming to an end shouldn’t leave you panicking. Life insurance is there to protect you and your loved ones if things go wrong. If you’re fortunate enough not to have claimed on your life insurance, it may come to an end. The thing is that you might not know what to do next.
In this article, you’ll be able to find some of the most common questions and considerations you’ll need to make if your term life policy is running out. As we progress through life our considerations change and our life insurance should reflect these changes. With Smart life insurance, you could have options no matter what stage you’re at.
What kind of life insurance do you have?
First, you should determine exactly what kind of life insurance policy you’ve got at the moment. It might have been a while since you’ve had a look over the details so this can be an important step to even determining when it will end. Generally speaking, there are two main types of policies that people can go for:
Term Policy
This kind of life insurance policy is where you select how long your cover will last for. With Smart Insurance this is called a level policy and it’s available under our Family Life Insurance policy. This is where you will know exactly what your monthly premium will be for that time period.
Whole-of-Life
With this type of life insurance policy the cost of your monthly premium will be recalculated each year and will tend to increase based on your age. As your premium increases so too does your benefit amount. At Smart, we call this an age-based policy.
What happens exactly when the policy runs out?
As the name might suggest with a whole-of-life policy it will be valid for your entire life as long as you continue to pay the premiums. It’s important to note here that if you choose to go with our Guaranteed Life Insurance premiums are no longer payable after your 95th birthday. However, with a term policy, there will be a time when this insurance will come to an end. This will ultimately depend on what you have agreed upon with your insurance company.
A term policy is generally taken out at a time when you might start a family or have some large financial commitments. The logic here is that while you have these commitments it’s important to make sure that they are covered if you passed away. Once you have reached the end of the agreed term the policy will end. All of this is dependent on the continuous payment of your monthly premiums. If you miss a couple of payments your cover could come to an end early and you won’t get anything back.
Do you still need the same life insurance?
Throughout our lives, we go through many different changes. What’s important for us to protect now may not be a priority later on in our lives. When it comes to renewing life insurance it’s vital to make a few considerations of what exactly you want to protect. It might be tempting to just go for the same thing again but with a little research, you can make sure that your new life insurance policy reflects these changes.
Chances are that if you’ve gone for a term or level based policy you were looking to make sure that your family has some financial help with things like a mortgage or other large loans. When a policy like this ends you need to assess your needs at that time. How much is left on your mortgage? Or are there other expenses that could leave your family vulnerable?
Smart’s Family Life Insurance is available to UK residents aged 18 to 64. So if you fall into this bracket when your policy expires and you think your family might need some financial assistance this insurance policy could help.
Another option available to you is Smart’s Guaranteed Life Insurance. This insurance is available to any UK resident aged 30 to 80. With this kind of life insurance, you can provide a lump sum payout to your family if you pass away. You won’t have to provide a medical and you won’t have to answer any health questions.
Support for you throughout life’s changes
There are plenty of landmarks and milestones in life. At Smart Insurance we are here to help you protect the things that are important to you. There are plenty of options available to you and while it might seem intimidating our friendly UK based call centre is ready to help you with any questions you might have.
