IRISH Life's basic term insurance cover is among the cheapest on the market in a number of different age categories. The increasing popularity of adding other features to term insurance, especially when it is purchased in the form of mortgage protection, has prompted Irish Life to introduce a new product, Mortgage Protector Plan.
As with similar mortgage protection policies on the market, this policy decreases in value with the reducing balance owed on the mortgage. Because the cover matches the level of debt, the effect is to reduce the cost of premiums. Irish Life claims that its rates are particularly competitive for the main group it is targeting with this product ie. non-smokers, under age 45. You can buy the Mortgage Protector Plan in the form of simple decreasing life cover only, as serious illness cover only, or a combination of the two. Where life cover is chosen, your mortgage value is paid on death only under the second option, the mortgage is paid off if you suffer a listed, serious illness (such as cancer, stroke, certain heart diseases, etc.). If you choose the all-in-one option your mortgage is discharged whether you fall seriously ill or die.
Irish Life's quotations for the all-in-one version of the Mortgage Protector Plan are quite a bit lower than its competitors. The company cites its increasingly lower cost structure lower underwriting and re-insurance costs and of course the fact that the value of the cover is decreasing each year. And while it is very good news that prices are coming down for this type of mortgage protection product - and making serious illness cover more accessible to people who otherwise may not have been able to afford it buyers should note that Irish Life's policy may or may not be as comprehensive as some of the other major players in the serious illness product market and other companies' definitions of illnesses or permanent total disablement (PTD) may be more extensive or liberal. Other benefits which prospective policyholders may want to check is automatic protection for children and hospital cash payments. Canada Life, for example, which is the market leader in serious illness cover, has extended its list of illnesses on four occasions. It, like a number of the other providers also offers hospital cash benefits, which now include up to £100 a day for pregnancy-related hospital visits. (Pregnancy is usually excluded from all serious illness policies.)
The other development in the serious illness market is that more and more insurers will pay out benefits to patients on waiting lists for serious surgery or transplants. Canada Life will also now cover blindness occurring after age 65 in the terms of the contract. A good broker will be able to assist you in assessing product strength and suitability.
The above table is a rate chart comparing costs for non-smokers aged 30, 35, 40 or 45, seeking £65,000 joint life (husband and wife with payout on first death) on a decreasing cover basis, plus accelerated serious illness and permanent total disability.
