Life Insurance

Every family has a different set-up, so consider your personal circumstances. If you’re a homeowner, you may want to take out life insurance to cover the length of a mortgage; for example, 25 years. If you have a family, could your loved ones afford things like childcare, educational costs and daily living expenses?

You may want to think about your annual salary multiplied by the number of years your family will be financially dependent on you. Think about the amount of money your family would need to maintain their lifestyle and cover things like everyday living expenses.                                                                                      

If you'd like more help, you might find our life insurance calculator useful. Alternatively, you could speak to your financial adviser if you have one, or get a life cover quote today.

Even though your policy may have been set up at the same time as you took out a mortgage, or made another financial commitment, they are separate products.

Your policy would pay out in the event of a valid claim during your policy term, whether or not you still have that mortgage or financial commitment in place.

It is at the discretion of your beneficiaries how they choose to use the proceeds in the event of a valid claim.

You may be eligible for a free gift after you take out a Legal & General Life Insurance Policy online or by telephone.

You could be eligible for a gift card 6 months after the start of a new policy, so long as you haven’t cancelled it and you’ve made all your payments.

Note that our offer is only available if you apply directly to Legal & General. If you apply through a Financial Adviser, or any website other than Legal & General’s, such as a comparison site, you will not be eligible for the free gift. Customers who have cancelled a Legal & General Life Insurance or Decreasing Life Insurance policy within the last 18 months are not eligible for this offer, you will not be able to take advantage of the gift card.

To take advantage of the gift offer, other terms and conditions apply.

If you’re looking at your options later in life, you may be torn between getting life insurance or Over 50s Fixed Life Insurance. Let’s take a look at some of the differences.

Life insurance is designed to pay out a cash sum if you die during the length of your policy. When assessing your life insurance application, we'll ask you questions about your medical history, occupation and lifestyle. Life insurance is there to offer financial protection to your loved ones. The cash sum paid out could be used by them to pay off a mortgage for example, or help with childcare costs and other everyday living expenses. Some age restrictions apply - please read the Policy Summary PDF for full details.

Over 50s Fixed Life Insurance is designed for those aged 50 to 80 who want a fixed cash sum to give to their loved ones when they die. It's for people who want guaranteed acceptance with a simple application process and who don't want to answer medical or lifestyle questions. Full cover is payable after just one year. Please read the Over 50s Policy Summary PDF for full details.

There are other important factors that you need to be aware of when you compare life insurance vs Over 50s Fixed Life Insurance, so please read all the information available, and contact Legal & General for more information.

Please remember that neither of these plans are a savings or investment product and have no cash value unless a valid claim is made.

Read more about life insurance

Read more about Over 50 Life Insurance

You should think carefully about how long you need cover for. Some people decide to get life insurance to cover the length of a mortgage term; say, 25 years, while others think about how long their children will be financially dependent on them.  

Ultimately, it’s a personal decision and you should factor in your family’s unique circumstances.

Yes, there is nothing to stop you having more than one life insurance policy. In fact, you can have as many policies as you want. However, if you find your situation changes in the future it's sometimes possible to adapt your existing policy. For example, if you have a life insurance policy with us you may be able to increase your cover without the need for further medical information on certain life events. You can also request to make other changes, such as changing the term, the amount of cover, removing a name from a joint policy or even changing your premium payments from monthly to annually.

So there is nothing to stop you from taking out more than one life insurance policy, but given our flexible approach, it’s by no means necessary. Terms and conditions apply.

You won’t be covered if you die within the first year of your policy as a result of suicide, death caused by intentional and serious self-injury, or an event where in our reasonable opinion, the insured person took their own life.

We won't pay out if you are diagnosed with a terminal illness which doesn't meet our definition. Terminal Illness Cover can't be claimed:

• after your death
• if the length of the policy is less than two years

There could be some circumstances where we are not able to provide full cover based on the answers you gave in your application. If there are any exclusions to your cover, these will be explained in your Policy Booklet.

Your cover will end if you stop paying your premiums when due and it's important to remember that life insurance is not a savings or investment product and has no cash value unless a valid claim is made.

See the Policy Summary PDF for the full list of exclusions.

Life insurance costs vary according to how much cover you need, your age, and other factors such as your health history. With Legal & General, our premiums start from £5 per month, but to get a more accurate idea of how much your cover could cost you'll need to get a quote online.

If you have a history of smoking, this can also increase your life insurance costs as the risk of death is greater. Lifestyle factors such as dangerous jobs and hazardous hobbies are also taken into consideration.

If you decide to add Critical Illness Cover to your life insurance policy when you apply, this will be for an extra cost.

Once your policy has been agreed and is in place, your premiums are guaranteed and won’t change unless you make any changes. This will help you plan ahead and budget for the cost of life cover. 

When you apply for life insurance as a new customer, your policy terms will be based on your smoker status at the time of your application. If subsequently you take up smoking after purchasing the policy, your policy or premiums will be unaffected, so long as the details you gave when you made the application were accurate, and your premiums are up to date. Note that if you miss your premiums in the future and we require a health form, you won’t be able to have your policy reinstated.

If you’re a policyholder and you no longer smoke, this won’t affect your current policy or premiums. Your policy would remain valid.

That said, if you now meet our definition of a non-smoker, you may be eligible to take out a new policy as a non-smoker. The cost of a new policy may have changed since you took out your previous one. To classify as a non-smoker, you must have used no tobacco or nicotine replacement products, including electronic cigarettes, over the last 12 months.

If you’re looking to make a bereavement claim, you’ll need to provide us with the following:

• Your policy number
• The name of the person who has died
• The cause, date and place of death (if known)
• Who you are and your relationship to the deceased
• The identity of the legal next of kin (if known)

What happens next?

• Call them on 0808 271 8226 between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday. Then our team will carry out some basic policy checks
• When you call us, have the death certificate to hand (if available), or details about the circumstance of the death
• By speaking over the telephone, we’ll be able to obtain as much information to start the claim and can progress matters more quickly
• Our team will assess your claim; this may include writing to the GP, Coroner (or procurator fiscal) and any other involved parties so we can obtain additional information
• Throughout the process, we’ll keep you updated

You can also read our Bereavement Claim FAQs for more information and support.