October 17, 2006

How to Buy the Right Life Assurance – A Step By Step Guide

During the next series of posts we're going to look at the crucial topic of making sure you have sufficient life assurance in place for your family, should you die prematurely.

Just thinking about premature death can be a morbid thought, but making sure you have the right amount of protection is very important.

It’s all very well building assets and wealth through investments and savings plans, but if this is all undermined by an unforeseen event (such as death) and your family then have to use those assets and savings to live day to day, how much financial pressure might they end up feeling over the long term?

It’s forecast that the majority of the population in the UK is vastly underinsured, meaning that on premature death their families are often left to pick up the pieces. Whilst we don’t know the statistics for those in the dental or medical professions, there are steps you can take to make sure you’re covered sufficiently. This is especially important if you have children or dependants.

There are a number of types of policies available, including term assurance, whole of life cover and family income benefit.

In addition, from April 6, 2006 Pension Term Assurance was improved and allows you to claim tax relief on your premiums. For a higher rate taxpayer a gross premium of £100 pm will only cost £60 pm.

The aim of this series of posts is to inform you about your options so that you’ll be able to make the right decisions relevant to your specific situation.

We’ve split it into 6 parts: