13 Tips for the Cheapest Life Insurance in the UK

As policyholders, we may never see the benefits of our life insurance policies ourselves, but it is one of the most important, rewarding and reassuring monthly payments we can make. It’s certainly worth a lot more than the Netflix subscriptions we all fork out for each month!
Whether you choose to take out a life insurance policy because you have a new-born child, or because you recently bought your first house, it’s important to use our life insurance advice in order to do everything you can to reduce the cost of your premiums before you get cover.
Now, the cost of life insurance is not substantial - it’s usually a small monthly fee that’s barely noticeable - but because most policies last so many years, those small amounts can build up over time. For this reason, it’s important that you get the most sufficient level of cover and the cheapest life insurance deal possible for your situation before signing on the dotted line and agreeing to the long-term commitment of a policy.
To help reduce the cost of your premiums, here are our quick tips for getting the cheapest life insurance for you:
#1 – Quit smoking if you want cheap life insurance
Smokers are likely to pay as much as 100% more than the equivalent non-smoker for their life insurance, as a result of the well-known and proven health risks associated.
That could be as much as £75 more per month in premiums for a comprehensive package in the UK, which is enough to put anyone off smoking!
You’ll always be asked if you smoke when you take out insurance, even if it’s for an over 50s plan with no medical check, but it’s imperative that you’re truthful (see tip 12).
Vaping or using e-cigarettes may offer a reportedly safer alternative to smoking, but your insurance provider won’t see it that way. Using those alternatives will also double the cost of life insurance in most cases.
The best and cheapest life insurance policies in the UK are only offered to those who are non-smokers, but whether you’re a smoker or not, we do our utmost at Unite Life to find the best deal available in the UK for you and your situation – so don’t let the price of premiums put you off! You’re likely to be pleasantly surprised at how cheap life insurance can be!
Simply get in touch with us today and we’ll find you the cheapest life insurance quote for you in the UK, obligation-free, regardless of your lifestyle choices. As always, it’s important to be honest when applying for life insurance, as you will only worsen the situation and possibly void your policy if you claim to be a non-smoker and the provider later finds out that you were lying.
Read more: Life Insurance for Smokers
#2 – Don’t do drugs
Similarly to smoking, life insurance and recreational drugs are never going to be a successful pairing.
As you might imagine, drugs are no better for your premium cost than smoking. The best life insurance companies in the UK want low-risk policyholders and will charge you more for your premiums if you’re a drug user, as a result of the known health risks associated with all types of recreational drugs.
Similarly to smokers, it’s so important to be honest with your provider and explain your lifestyle situation with as much accuracy as possible, so you get the fairest policy for you.
Our Unite Life life insurance advisors do not judge and they will remain completely sensitive to your situation, no matter what you’re lifestyle. All they are concerned with is making sure that your loved ones would be financially protected in the event of your death.
If you’re truthful, you may pay somewhat higher premiums, but you can rest assured that your family are protected and will receive the payout in the event of your death (depending on the specific terms of your policy).
Your life insurance will, however, become invalid if you pass away and the provider later finds out that you lied about your drug use, meaning that your loved ones will not receive a pay-out.
#3 – Work out! Life insurance rewards fitness
We’re not suggesting that everyone should become a gym addict, but providers are likely to see healthy and active people as less of a risk and they will in turn receive a cheaper life insurance premium.
When you apply to take out life insurance, you will be asked about your weight and general fitness level, and the harsh reality is that an unfit, overweight person is more of a risk to insurers and will therefore be required to pay higher premiums.
So, do your best to get as healthy as you can before you take out life insurance, because it could well save you money each month on premiums.
Research carried out by Oxford University has shown that moderate obesity reduces life expectancy by around three years and that severe obesity reduces life expectancy by 10 years, so higher premiums are usually based on statistics.
Being overweight can also lead to the following illnesses:
- Heart disease
- Stroke
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Some cancers
- Osteoarthritis
Although it may seem unfair that some people will pay more for their life insurance than others due to their weight, it is all based on statistics.
We recommend that you try your best to get as healthy as possible before taking out life insurance, but here at Unite Life we can help you get the best deal for you, regardless of your health or fitness.
#4 – Link your life insurance policy to a fitness tracker
If you’re getting fit, you might as well link your life insurance policy to a fitness tracker and get rewarded for your efforts!
Whether you’re already an active person or you’re trying to lose weight, linking a health tracker to your policy is great. Some providers across the UK are now offering discounts on activity trackers for members and are using these trackers as incentives to motivate their policyholders to stay active.
You could purchase the tracker itself at a discounted price, get rewards for completing fitness goals (free cinema tickets and Starbucks coffee), and may even receive cheaper premiums. It’s a win-win situation!
The insurance companies also benefit, because their members become healthier and are therefore less of a risk to them.
Get in touch with us today at Unite Life to find out more about how you could benefit from certain providers.
#5 – Extreme sports and life insurance don't mix well
While we advise you to stay active and healthy, try to steer away from extreme sports if you want cheaper premiums (and if you can!).
Activities such as climbing, auto racing, base jumping, scuba diving, sky diving and bungee jumping could all lead to higher insurance premiums, due to their inherent dangers.
Cheap life insurance is hard to come by as a daredevil, but here at Unite Life, our team of trained advisors are available to help you find the best deal regardless of your interests, including a specialist cover if needs be.
Read our full explanation of whether life insurance covers extreme sports for more information.
#6 – Select the right amount of life insurance cover
One common problem with a number of policyholders is that they’re actually over-insuring themselves by having more cover than they need.
Determining how much cover you should get generally depends on your personal circumstances. For example, if you want to cover the cost of your outstanding mortgage, replace a loss of earnings or cover your funeral costs (whole of life or over 50s cover), you should only get the amount of cover that is relevant to you.
As a life insurance broker, Unite Life works with the best life insurance companies in the UK to help you figure out how much cover you should have in place, simply give us a call for free and with no obligation today.
#7 – Choose the best life insurance cover for you
Deciding on which type of life insurance is best for you can be a difficult decision to make without any help, as you’ve got a range of policies to choose from, including:
You’ve also got income protection to cover you if you become too injured or ill to work, and there are some sub-categories within the types of insurance listed above - just to confuse things that much more!
If you’re struggling to determine the best life insurance policy for your situation, get in touch with us at Unite Life today and we’ll be more than happy to provide you with invaluable life insurance advice and help answer any questions.
Make sure you choose the best life insurance policy your needs – for example, whole of life cover is usually the most expensive because it will eventually pay out whenever you pass away, whereas term life insurance is cheaper but will only pay out if you pass away within the time frame set out by you and the insurance provider at the time of application.
If you only want insurance to cover your mortgage, you’re better off choosing the cheaper term life insurance and setting the policy to end when your mortgage has been paid off.
So, what is the cheapest form of life insurance? Each case varies and it depends on a variety of factors, including the length of the policy, level of cover, your lifestyle, medical history, and so on. It’s important not to look solely for the cheapest life insurance in the UK when looking to take out cover, as it must be a policy that covers your needs and will pay out a sufficient amount to your loved ones when the time comes.
As always, ensure you know exactly what your life insurance covers before signing on the dotted line.
#8 – Start your policy as early as possible
It’s certainly worth considering life insurance as soon as you begin adult life, or at least when you have your first child or take out a mortgage. The younger you are beginning your policy, the cheaper it will usually be.
#9 – Be wary of optional extras you don’t need
Certain policies will automatically include extras such as bereavement counselling for beneficiaries, terminal illness cover, or a waiver of premium.
You may not want – or need – these optional extras, so be sure to enquire about any additional clauses within your policy before you agree to it, because they could be costing you more each month.
#10 – Write your life insurance in trust
Writing your life insurance policy in trust could save your beneficiaries the huge burden of inheritance tax at a staggering 40% on any estate valued above the threshold of £325,000.
Placing your policy in trust means that it goes straight to your beneficiaries, rather than to your estate, and inheritance tax is therefore not applicable.
With inheritance tax out of the way, your loved ones are able to receive exactly the payout that you intended when taking out the policy, hassle-free.
As far as life insurance advice goes, this is among one of the most important tips to follow.
For example, if you pass away and your estate is worth £600,000, there will be an IHT bill on anything above the £325,000 mark – which is £275,000 in this case. This means that you would owe a huge £110,000 in IHT, a significant amount of your estate that would go to the taxman, rather than your loved ones. You could avoid this huge death tax bill by simply putting your life insurance in trust with us here at Unite Life.
Remember, your estate includes any of your possessions, including life insurance proceeds, properties, vehicles, and cash savings, so you may be worth a lot more than you initially think.
A lot more people have an estate valued above the threshold, so be sure to consider all of your assets when calculating how much your estate is worth.
It can be quite complex to get your head around though, so be sure to give us a call for a free, no-obligation chat about your options when it comes to putting your life insurance in trust.
Read more: How to Avoid Inheritance Tax with Life Insurance
#11 – Keep your life cover up-to-date
If you already have insurance in place, keeping your life cover up-to-date ensures that your information will remain accurate and that there will be no complications or disputes when you pass away.
You’ll also be making sure that your policy is more suitable for your current situation, so it’s representative of 50-year-old you, rather than the 26-year-old who took the insurance out.
Get in touch with us today to review your current policy (or policies) to make sure you’re not paying too much for your life insurance.
#12 – Don’t lie!
Lying to insurers may be tempting if you’re a smoker or someone with a history of illnesses, especially when you hear of the higher premium costs associated. However, lying to insurance providers has some serious implications and it may come back to haunt you and your loved ones.
If you falsely tell providers that you are not a smoker (when you are), pay premiums for 40 years, and end up passing away as a result of smoking, your loved ones are unlikely to receive the payout and all of your investment will have been worthless.
Your family may receive absolutely nothing as a result of any inaccurate information you provide, so it’s really important to be honest, even if it means paying higher premiums.
Remember, you can get the cheapest life insurance in the UK, or the whole world, and it will count for absolutely nothing if you’re refused a pay out because you’ve been caught lying on your application.
#13 – Call Unite Life for free life insurance advice!
Whether you want to chat about your existing policy or you want to take new cover out, our friendly and experienced advisors at Unite Life are on-hand and ready to help you today, for free and with no obligation.
Simply give us a call or complete our short contact form and we’ll be in touch at a time that’s most convenient for you to discuss the cheapest life insurance premiums that suit your needs.
Our life insurance advice is offered for free and on a no-obligation basis, so contact us at a convenient time for you and we’ll see what we can do to help.
In summary, to get the cheapest life insurance in the UK, you should:
- Stop smoking
- Refrain from drug use
- Remain as active as possible
- Link your policy to an activity tracker
- Avoid extreme sports at all costs
- Avoid over-insuring yourself
- Choose the best life insurance policy for your needs
- Take out your policy at a young age and lock in cheap premiums
- Regularly review and update your personal details
- Remain truthful
- Call our trained advisors for free life insurance advice
Get started today by getting in touch with us here at Unite Life!
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