What Makes a Life Insurance Rate?

When you ask for a life insurance, critical illness or income protection insurance quote there are several things that affect the rates offer. The basics are your age, the type of cover and the amount of cover you want.

Then there is the amount of money paid to the company arranging the plan. This is known as commission and is added to your plan whether you take you policy via a broker, Online or even direct to an insurance company.

With Go Direct we make our life insurance quotes cheaper by rebating 50% of the initial commission that the provider would have paid to us back into your policy. This will reduce the up from cost and your monthly life insurance rates. By doing this it makes our premiums cheaper than going direct to the assurance company for your policy.

Example Life Insurance Rates by Age 2024

The table below shows example costs of a level term life insurance policy. Quotes are based on a non-smoker, in good health, with a 20 year term for a £100,000 of cover.

Age Level term cost per month Premium
20 £3.10
25 £3.26
30 £3.76
35 £4.80
40 £6.45
45 £9.27
50 £14.28
55 £21.97
Correct as of the 06/01/2024 (source Webline) for a guaranteed level premium for the policy term.

Types of Family Life Cover

There are three ways to protect your family in the event of your death, With a family life insurance you can set it up on the following basis,

  • Level lump sum

Provides a fixed amount of level life cover for the term of the policy, so you will need to factor in the affects of inflation to the lump sum you require.

  • Increasing lump sum

This will provide a lump sum that is reviewed on each anniversary and the sum assured will increase inline with inflation and the premium will also rise.

  • Level monthly income

Provides a fixed amount of monthly income for the term of the policy, so you will need to factor in the affects of inflation to the monthly income you require.

  • Increasing monthly income

This will provide a monthly income that is reviewed on each anniversary and the sum assured will increase inline with inflation and the premium will also rise.

What can affect your Life Insurance Rates?

The above life insurance rates are based on the best premiums available for someone in good health and a low risk for their age. Below is a guide to some of the things that can affect the rates you are offered.

  • Health & wellbeing - You must disclose any medical conditions you have - these including both mental health and physical conditions. Having a pre-existing condition could lead to the rates offered on application being increased, depending on the type and severity of your condition.
  • Medical history - You’ll also be asked about any medical conditions you have had in the past, as well as your family medical history. Depending on whether the condition could re-occur, you may again experience an increase to your premiums.
  • Weight/BMI - Generally, if you have a BMI score of 30 or above, your premiums may be higher than if you have a BMI in the 'healthy' range. When you apply for life insurance, your age and waist/dress size may also have an affect on the rates offered.
  • Smoking status - Smokers or Vapes will be quoted higher rates for life insurance due to their increased risk of developing health conditions like lung cancer or heart conditions.
  • Lifestyle - Other details about your lifestyle could also result in higher rates. For example whether you smoke or drink alcohol, have a dangerous pastime or if you travel to high risk areas overseas.
  • Occupation - If your job could be considered dangerous or hazardous, it may mean that a claim is more likely to be made on your life insurance policy, and therefore your monthly premiums may be higher.

Tele Underwriting to Reduce Possible Increased in Rates

Many Online life insurance quotes systems these days ask you many of the questions above to give your a quote. This can lead to you potentially being offered a higher rate for your cover without speaking to anyone. Our Online quick life insurance quote system will not do this. We believe that its import that if you have anything you feel may affect your premiums that you should get in touch with us.

With Go Direct our advisors will help to try and minimize any potential rate increases on your life insurance.(known as a rating, which is typically a % increase on the initial rate offered. i.e. 25% or 50% rating). All the major life insurance companies have dedicated underwriters we can call for an indication of terms. This can help us recommended a provider as potentially some providers may not increase their rates or do so by a lower amount. This will depend on your individual circumstances but will be quicker to find out than waiting without cover whilst a GP report is requested.

All of this service is available with our discounted online rates. This means that if you are charged a higher rate for your life insurance the % that is applied will be on our cheap life insurance premiums.