Over 60s life insurance

Taking out life insurance is something people start to think about as they get older. Whether it’s to take care of family or ensure funeral costs are covered, a good policy can give peace of mind to you and your loved ones.

When you get past 60, you might worry that finding a policy might be impossible. Fortunately, this isn’t the case, with a range of different products and options available to you. To make things easy, we’ve broken down over 60s life insurance, to give you an idea of what’s going to work for you.

In This Guide:

• What is over 60s life insurance?
• Best types of life insurance for over 60s
• How much does over 60s life insurance cost?
• Should I get over 60s life insurance?

Best types of life insurance for over 60s

When it comes to life insurance, there’s no one-size-fits-all policy. In fact, there are many different types of plan available, which all work in slightly different ways. The type of policy that works best for people over the age of 60 depends on the policyholder’s specific circumstances and preferences:

Whole of life cover:

This type of policy keeps running you until the end of your life. That means that as long as your continue to pay your premiums, you are covered and will receive a payout when you die. As a payout is almost always guaranteed, the amount you would receive is generally lower than a fixed-term policy. With Whole of life cover, there are different types of cover. Namely, guaranteed over 50s plans or whole of life insurance. Both types of cover will last for the remainder of your life. However, guaranteed over 50s plans do not require medical information and all applicants who are UK residents aged 50 to 85 will be accepted. Whereas whole of life insurance will require medical information during application in order to underwrite the policy. 

Fixed term cover:

This type of cover uses medical information and does not offer guaranteed acceptance. 

If you only need life insurance for a certain period, then fixed-term cover is probably for you. It protects for a set period that you would agree with your insurer. Once that time is up, you will need to take out a completely new policy which will require further medical underwriting.  Fixed term cover only protects you for a certain period for the length of the policy. That means if you die outside of the agreed period, your beneficiaries will not receive a payout. Many will opt for this if they need to ensure that their family are protected up until a certain point, e.g before their children leave home.

Whereas whole of life policies are fairly uniform, fixed-term generally have three different types. However, it's important to note that not all providers offer all three types of fixed term life cover.

Increasing term:

This type of policy increases in both its premiums and payouts as time goes on by certain providers. It’s designed to keep in step with inflation and is best utilised if the money will go towards living expenses. This type of cover is only available through some providers and brokers. 

Decreasing term:

Decreasing policies have premiums that stay the same while the payout decreases. Generally, these are used to mirror certain obligations like mortgages, so you pay relative to the amount you owe.

Level term:

If you choose a level policy, then your premium and the payout are fixed throughout the term. These are the most straightforward fixed term policies, but may need to be adjusted should your situation change.

Funeral plan:

Although not technically a type of life insurance policy, funeral plans fulfil a similar role. Where this type of policy is offered by a provider, you lock in a funeral price at the current rate, and when you die, funds are released to pay for the costs.

However, premiums need to be paid over less time than life insurance, generally between one and ten years, so it can be more expensive in the short term. For more info, check out our page comparing funeral plans and over 50s life insurance.

This type of cover is only available through some providers and brokers.