Cancel endowment insurance and put money into pot?

Space_Cadet_Smith

I have paid my mortgage off early and I have an endowment that I no longer need. I am continuing to pay into it (about £90 a month). I obviously no longer need the insurance. Is there any value cancelling the insurance premium​ part and paying the insurance part of it into the main fund (i.e. keeping the payments the same). Will this make any real difference on the end pot? (there is about 6 years left).

Of course the easy thing to to do is nothing, but that might now be the best thing financially. I'm mid 40s non smoker, no dependants and no plans of going anywhere. If it means a bigger pot in 6 years for more holidays that sounds like a good thing...

Will it make any real difference?

dunstonh

You wont be able to change the endowment. A change now would make it non-qualifying and the provider wont do that. Plus, you need an element of life assurance with that tax wrapper. Your options are likely to be keep it or surrender it. You could make it paid up but that is often only worthwhile in a small number of cases.

Space_Cadet_Smith

Hmm, interesting. I guess I need to phone them, as a couple of years ago, they were OK reducing the insurance element of the endowment to reflect a lump sum I paid off of the mortgage, and paying the difference into the fund, keeping the payments the same.

The only difference this time around is I was thinking of cancelling the insurance altogether and paying ALL the insurance into the fund.

kingstreet

Was this a non-qualifying unit-linked contract in the first place?

These are more flexible, but you lose out on the tax benefits of a qualifying policy.

Space_Cadet_Smith

No idea. That's mostly babble to me. As far I am know, it's just an endowment with some mandatory insurance cover. Let me see if I can find something more about it.

It was taken out late 90's

Space_Cadet_Smith

As with all these things, it's hard to tell what it actually is. All I know it as is "Countrywide Assured Home Purchase Plan."

It was originally taken out to cover my house purchase of £50k (ahh, the90's!!!), and a few years ago, I reduced the cover and lowered the target amount to 35k, and it's now green "on-track".

The projections are 1.5%, 4.5% and 7.5%

TrickyDicky101

My experience of Countrywide is they are Unit Linked. Wouldnt know if they are qualifying or not though. Do you get annual statements from Chesnara?

Space_Cadet_Smith

I do get a statement from Countrywide Assured each year, but nobody else. The endowment annual statement calls it a Managed Investment Fund, and talks about Units Brought Forward, Units Held, Fund Value etc.

It talks about units to the value being added each year, also units deducted for the "protection benefits" (the life insurance I no longer want or need).