How much does Life Insurance cost in 2024?
The average life insurance premium in the UK in 2024 is £10.20 to protect a typical family with £200,000 of cover over 25 years. Most parents pay an average of £30 to £40 per month for their life insurance and income protection insurance to protect their children if anything happened to them.
Life insurance provides financial protection for your family if a parent dies and it can prevent major money problems. It’s natural for parents to want to protect their children but it’s also difficult to think about what happens if we’re not physically there for our kids.
You can get life insurance to protect your children from as little as £5 per month for younger parents, and older adults will usually pay slightly more. Unfortunately, only 50% of parents with mortgages has life insurance in the UK, which is something that we’re trying to help to change.
Our Money Mum and Dad have created several guides and videos to explain how much life insurance costs, how it works, and to help understand the value of life cover. The leading personal finance experts recommend that parents should have life insurance, including Martin Lewis and us of course.
Our recommendation is, don’t put off getting life insurance to protect your family because you never know what’s around the corner. We urge parents to think about life cover to protect their family and especially for those with no savings or other financial protection… it generally costs less than people think.
60-Second Summary – How much is the average life insurance in 2024?
Life insurance is one of those things that as parents, we often think about but unfortunately it sometimes gets missed or forgotten about. The cost of life insurance can sometimes seem like a waste of money and especially when times are tough and money is tight.
Generally, life insurance premiums are less than people think, and the average cost of life cover is £10.20 per month for £200,000 of cover to protect your children.
- Most parents should seriously consider life insurance to protect their children because they don’t have enough savings to be able to provide for them if they died (Average savings in the UK is £11,185).
- Life insurance is one of the highest claims payout rates of all insurance products with an average of 98% of claims paid, according to recent stats.
- On average, most households will spend around £30 per month on life insurance to protect their children and for peace of mind if anything happens to them.
- Top financial experts such as Martin Lewis, strongly recommend that parents have life insurance for the main breadwinner at least.
What is the average cost of life insurance in the UK in 2024?
The average life insurance premium in the UK in 2024 is £10.20 for £200,000 for a parent to protect their family. This is for a standard family life insurance (level term life cover) policy over 25 years or to around retirement age.
Research suggests that nearly 20% of first time buyers in the UK are now parents and that only 50% of parents with a mortgage has life insurance. This statistic shows that there is a lack of emphasis put on families to have the right financial protection in place.
How much does £100,000 life insurance cost?
The average cost of £100,000 life insurance is £7.59 per month over 25 years to protect a typical household and the family. You can also add critical illness insurance to this to cover for serious illness such as cancer, heart attack, stroke, and other conditions.
Below is a table showing the average costs of £100,000 of life insurance over 25 years and examples for different ages.
| Age of applicant | Single policy (Non-smoker) | Single policy (Smoker) | Joint policy (Non-smokers) | Joint policy (Smokers) |
| 30 | £4.80 | £7.70 | £7.67 | £13.59 |
| 35 | £6.00 | £11.70 | £10.20 | £21.13 |
| 40 | £8.78 | £18.65 | £15.66 | £34.64 |
| 45 | £13.75 | £31.80 | £24.65 | £58.51 |
| 50 | £21.42 | £51.37 | £39.62 | £94.83 |
The examples shown in the table above were accurate on 03/07/24 from the UK’s top life insurance companies and a full assessment of the market. You can see from the illustrations how much life insurance costs change as you get older and the difference between a single and joint life insurance policy.
How much does £200,000 life insurance cost?
The most common amount of life insurance for families in the UK is £200,000 based on the average mortgage currently. Most parents will take life insurance to retirement age or until their children are no longer financially dependent.
The average cost of £200,000 of life insurance is £10.20 for a 25 year policy to protect a family. It is strongly recommended that you at least have enough cover to protect your mortgage if you or your partner dies.
Below is a table that shows several examples of the cost of £200,000 of life insurance over 25 years for different ages of applicants.
| Age of applicant | Single policy (Non-smoker) | Single policy (Smoker) | Joint policy (Non-smokers) | Joint policy (Smokers) |
| 30 | £7.46 | £12.95 | £12.62 | £22.94 |
| 35 | £10.15 | £20.09 | £17.98 | £36.47 |
| 40 | £15.29 | £32.44 | £27.48 | £61.11 |
| 45 | £24.03 | £55.97 | £44.17 | £100.38 |
| 50 | £38.38 | £90.67 | £71.14 | £168.12 |
Premiums shown in the table above were produced on 03/07/2024 using live pricing from all of the UK’s top insurance providers to show a fair reflection of the market.
How much does £500,000 life insurance cost?
If you think about what life insurance is for and what it does, then £500,000 might be the sort of figure that you need to protect your family. Life insurance can be used to pay off any debts (including your mortgage) and any other ongoing costs, such as school fees, household bills, and funeral costs.
The average cost of £500,000 of life insurance to protect a family over 25 years is £38.70. The table below shows the different costs of this amount of life insurance for smokers, non-smokers and for single or joint life policies.
| Age of applicant | Single policy (Non-smoker) | Single policy (Smoker) | Joint policy (Non-smokers) | Joint policy (Smokers) |
| 30 | £14.83 | £26.47 | £26.49 | £50.18 |
| 35 | £21.56 | £44.15 | £37.81 | £80.98 |
| 40 | £33.00 | £72.28 | £59.52 | £132.36 |
| 45 | £52.57 | £120.14 | £96.40 | £229.26 |
| 50 | £86.05 | £216.48 | £155.47 | £388.85 |
Our examples shown in the table above were produced on 03/07/2024 using our live pricing systems for all of the top insurance companies in the UK.
Which is the best life insurance company?
We’ve also produced a guide which shows the best life insurance companies in the UK in 2024 and the most recommended. In this guide, we look at all of the main review services for life insurance, including:
For more information you can read our full guide to ‘Who is the best life insurance company UK 2024?’.
How can I get the cheapest life insurance to protect my children?
There are several different types of life insurance policies to protect your children, as well as options for amount and length of cover. You can also choose from around 20 different life insurance companies who will all offer different benefits and prices.
Ultimately, the cheapest life insurance policy might not be the best option for protecting your children. There are also lots of different ways to save money and reduce the cost of life insurance but still get the best cover.
MoneyPeopleOnline Top Tips to save you money on your life insurance:
1. Get quotes from a discount life insurance broker.
Most of the top discount life insurance brokers will offer cover from a range of life insurance partners to get you the best cover at the lowest prices. You should check online to find the best life insurance brokers and to make sure that they’re recommended by other customers.
2. Avoid getting cover from your Bank or Price Comparison websites.
You might naturally assume that your bank or a price comparison website would be the best place for cheaper life insurance. In fact, it is the opposite and generally these are the most expensive options because they charge more for cover.
3. Compare quotes from several life insurance companies.
You can also usually get a cheaper price for your life insurance if you get several quotes from different companies. This can be time consuming as well so you might not always be able to do this, and it’s often difficult to go through several different applications.
4. Don’t go for a cheaper ‘Guaranteed life insurance policy’.
There are several life insurance companies that offer guaranteed policies which they suggest are quicker and cheaper than traditional life insurance. These are usually cheaper to begin with and then very quickly increase in the latter years of the policy.
5. Speak to a specialist if you’ve got a pre-existing medical condition.
Life insurance underwriting is complicated and can be very difficult to understand, which is why there are medical life insurance specialists. You can end up paying a lot more than you need to if you don’t get proper advice and your cover might not even be valid in some situations.
*Warning: make sure that you disclose all of your medical information and history of your life insurance application. If you fail to tell your life insurance company or advisor about any pre-existing medical conditions then your cover may be invalid.
Frequently asked questions
Below are some of the top questions that parents and families ask about the cost of life insurance and value for money.
Is life insurance worth the money?
If you’ve got children then you should really think about what would happen to your family financially if you die. It’s not a nice thing to think about but we never know what’s around the corner and it’s important to make sure that our family is protected.
- Life insurance pays out an average of 98% of claims.
- Life insurance premiums start from only £5 per month.
- If you’ve got savings and investments then you might not need life insurance.
- Only 50% of families with a mortgage has life insurance.
Does life insurance pay out?
Every year, all of the top life insurance companies publishes its claims statistics and pay out rates. You can view these online or look at our guide to the ‘Best life insurance companies’ to find out more.
The average life insurance claims pay out rate in the UK in 2024 was around 98% which is the highest of any insurance policy.
How much does life insurance cost with a pre-existing medical condition?
Life insurance is fully underwritten at the point that you apply for cover and so you’ll be asked about your health and medical history. One of the most important things to remember is that life insurance does not exclude pre-existing medical conditions and the price you pay will include anything that you’ve had previously.
You will usually pay a slightly higher premium for life insurance if you’ve got a pre-existing medical condition or any health problems. Premiums and costs for life insurance are based on risk which means that your health will be a factor.
How much does life insurance cost for smokers?
One of the most common health and lifestyle disclosures on a life insurance application is smoking or vaping. Smokers will naturally pay higher premiums for life insurance and that can be as much as double the cost.
Smoking is known to cause additional health and medical risks which can significantly reduce your life expectancy, hence the higher premiums. If you stop smoking during your life insurance policy term then you can review your cover and potentially save a lot of money.
How can I find the best and cheapest life insurance?
There are lots of different ways to buy life insurance in the UK and lots of companies that offer life cover. You should make sure that you get your quotes from a life insurance expert that has a good panel of insurers and a good reputation.
To speak to a friendly life insurance expert you can contact 0800 009 6559 or CLICK HERE for more information.
