Posted 26/01/2022
Life insurance provides protection to individuals and their dependents in the event of the policyholder’s death, meaning outgoings like mortgages and household bills can be covered.
However, MoneySupermarket found that only 58 per cent of homeowners have life cover, while 40 per cent have avoided taking out a policy.
The top reasons cited by Brits for not taking out life insurance include believing they don’t need it, the cover being too expensive, having an underlying health condition making life insurance difficult or too expensive, or simply not wanting to think about it. Some people said they didn’t buy life cover as ‘insurers never pay out’.
According to MoneySupermarket data, life cover premiums start from as little as £4.36 per month, based on £100,000 worth of cover for a non-smoking 30-year-old for 20 years.
The price comparison site said that the perception that insurers never pay out is not accurate, pointing out that in 2019, a study by the Association of British Insurers found that the percentage of claims paid out by insurers stood at 98.3 per cent.
MoneySupermarket also asked Brits which perks offered by life insurance companies would most likely incentivise them to take out cover. Free activity trackers such as a Garmin, Fitbit or an Apple watch came first as cited by 15 per cent of respondents.
They were followed by discounted gym memberships at 10 per cent, reduced price fresh food subscription services like Hello Fresh, also at 10 per cent, offers on mindfulness and healthy living services at nine per cent, and exercise classes, also at nine per cent. Discounted prices on GP app services that enable you to see a GP through your mobile device were of interest to eight per cent of respondents.
