What age should I take out life insurance?

While you should think about life insurance as soon as you become an adult, it’s particularly important as soon as you have children, or a partner or family members who rely on your income. No matter what your age, our guide helps you to get the right life insurance policy.

Kamran Altaf

From the Life team

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Posted 27 JULY 2020

Are there age limits for taking out life insurance?

You should be able to take out some form of cover up to about 90. Many providers offer life insurance if you’re over 50; sometimes you’ll need to have a medical or show a doctor’s report. However it’s worth keeping in mind that taking out a policy is more about the stage in life you’ve reached, and your changing circumstances like your financial security, rather than just your age.

There’s no minimum age for life insurance, but you will need to be 18 to take out a financial contract such as an insurance policy.

How does age affect the cost of life insurance?

Generally, the older you are the more you should expect to pay for a policy. That’s because you’re considered more of a risk to an insurance provider as you get older because you’re more likely to pass away, and so the higher the likelihood is you’ll die during your policy term. A provider will take into account many other factors though.

What if I didn’t buy life insurance when I was younger?

There can be cost benefits to buying life insurance when you’re younger. But if you didn’t take out insurance when you were young, don’t worry – you can use our comparison service at any age to find great cover at the right price for you.

How does life insurance cost change with age?

Any life insurance policy you’re offered will be based on a number of factors such as your age, your health and whether you’re a smoker or not, as well as how much cover you want and how long for.

Our data shows the average price** of a life insurance premium for each age bracket:

16-29 year-olds is £18.11 per month
30-39 year-olds, the cost rises to £25.90 per month
40-49 year-olds pay on average £32.34 per month
50-59 year-olds, it costs £35.01 per month
60+ year-olds, the cost is £45.59 per month

**Our average life insurance prices are based on all our customer quotes for each age group stated. They cover a mix of personal circumstances, as well as different types and levels of cover. All average premiums are based on  Compare the Market data from 1 March 2020 to 1 June 2020  where the customer has clicked through to buy from the life insurance provider. You may find a cheaper or more expensive quote based on your personal circumstances.

What else could affect my life insurance premium?

Before comparing life insurance, it’s important to keep in mind that:

With the exception of specialist over 50s life insurance, a provider will typically ask whether you have any medical conditions or unhealthy lifestyle choices that could potentially lead to an increase in your premium. For instance as a smoker, you can expect to pay a higher premium than a non-smoker if you’ve had any tobacco products in the past 12 months.
If you and your spouse/partner both need life cover, check whether it’s better value to buy a joint life insurance policy, rather than one policy each. However, make sure that’s the right option for your circumstances, because if one of you passes away a joint policy will end after one lump sum pay out leaving the other person without cover. So, if you and a partner were both to pass away at the same time, for example in a traffic accident, there would just be one pay-out instead of two for a joint policy. It’s important to be sure that if the worst happens a child or another dependants are protected.
Ask yourself whether you also need  critical illness cover. For a slightly higher cost, you can arrange for the policy to pay out not only in the event of you passing away, but also if you become seriously ill. Learn more about critical illness insurance.

Compare life insurance now

Life insurance is something we should all think about sooner rather than later, especially so if you have a family, mortgage, debts or dependants. But you could need a life insurance policy at any time of your life.

Start a life insurance quote and see if you can save