About You Can Mortgage

Life Assurance

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Premiums can vary greatly between the cheapest and most expensive providers. Many of our customers have made significant savings by finding the cheapest policy.  We will be happy to check your existing policies to ensure that you have the best value for money.

How Much Cover Do I Need?
If you are taking out life insurance to cover a mortgage then the amount of cover will usually be the mortgage amount less the value of any existing life policies you may have. However, whilst arranging your mortgage cover it may also be a good time to consider whether you need any additional cover to protect your family in the event of your death.
In usual circumstances, if you are the breadwinner of your family, you should have sufficient cover to pay off any outstanding debts and then leave enough to be invested to produce an income of at least two thirds of your current annual income, for as many years as your family will be dependent on you. That means that your life insurance should produce a lump sum that is capable of being invested to produce an annual income for your dependents equal to two thirds of your salary. This could be as much as ten years gross salary or in some cases even more.  Don’t forget to take into account any death in service benefit you receive from your employer.  If you have an occupational pension you probably do have death in service benefit which will pay a lump sum if you die whilst you are still employed.
 There are other ways of insuring to provide an income other than receiving a lump sum to invest.  For example Family Income Benefit will provide a monthly income for a fixed term.  This may be less expensive than lump sum term assurance and can be particularly  useful for couples with a young family.
If you are at all unsure about how much or what type of  cover you require please discuss it with us.

Types of Cover

Term Assurance This is the most common type of cover and is designed to pay out a lump sum (the sum assured) should the policyholder die during the term of the policy. This type of policy can be used for family protection or to cover an interest only mortgage where there is no reduction in mortgage debt during the term. These policies can be taken out on a single life or on joint lives ( in which case the policy would usually be designed to pay out on the first death).

Mortgage Protection These policies are sometimes referred to as Decreasing Term Assurance as the level of cover is designed to reduce during the term. These policies are designed to cover a repayment or capital & interest mortgage and the level of cover will be designed to reduce in line with the reduction in mortgage debt.

Critical Illness Benefit Some polices will include Critical Illness Benefit which means that the policy will pay out the agreed benefit either on death or on the diagnosis of serious illness such as cancer, heart attack or stroke. You should make sure that you understand exactly what is covered before taking out such a policy as the coverage can vary from company to company. These policies will be more expensive than traditional life cover but do offer an added level of protection.

Waiver of Premium This is an optional benefit that can be added to most policies and means that the premium will be paid on behalf of the policyholder if he/she is unable to work for long period due to accident or sickness. This enables the policy to be maintained in full force even on the event of a long term illness. There will be a small increase in the monthly premium paid to take account of this additional cover.

How Much Will It Cost
Insurance companies will take into account many factors when determining their monthly premiums. Factors such as age, sex, health, smoker or non-smoker and mortality rates are all taken into account when insurers calculate their premiums. However, the one thing that is certain is that the cost of cover varies considerably from one company to another for the same level of cover.  We strive to find the least expensive policy suitable for our clients.
Call 01202 254092 for further information.