Should I cancel? Is this OK?

Narola1976

Hoping for some advice.

For a number of reasons which on reflection was just dumb I never sorted out proper life insurance when I was younger and  healthier and now as I head towards my 50s, with health conditions, weight etc, it’s impossible to get life insurance.

 Some years ago though I took up an offer for Cover (it was a unison insurance offer when I was still employed by the LA). This only pays out £15000 - the premium was quite small for the first year as I recall but it went up with time but for some reason the document now say the premium will not go up although the fine print says it can.  I currently pay £31.13

I have had the policy since 2009. The lump sum is £15000 but if I don’t die before my 70th birthday, I will get a rebate of 100% of premiums paid by me less the admin costs. Looking at last year’s statement, I can’t find this year for some reason - they state my cash out amount projected at policy expiry date is £11288 which I assume is what they say I will have paid in by 2046. The annual cost of the policy  (last year) is £373.  That is a lot. So if I continued to pay this policy by the time I am 70 - 26 years from now, just how much would the admin cost be and what would I actually get as a payout?? Probably a lot less than £11000 is what I am thinking.

I do have life cover for the mortgage which we took out with the bank at the time and never changed it so if I did die the mortgage would be paid off. My daughter is now 18 so technically not a dependent although she obviously still is in reality. It is now too late to get life cover which would leave her a decent sum for her future.

 I am just wondering whether this is really worth continuing to pay -by my rough calculation after 11 years I have paid circa £3220 so far. It’s life cover but will probably just be enough for a cheap funeral. It certainly wouldn’t cover any debt payments. 

I don’t want to throw away these many years of paying especially since I can’t really get other life cover but I just do not know whether I should continue paying this for another 26 years. Any advice would be gratefully received.

Old_Lifer

I'm not clear from your post exactly what type of policy you have.     You say the premium won't go up but seems to be reviewable, you say it provises a rebate of premiums   and you are asking how much the admin costs are likely to be in the future.

All   I can suggest is that you contact the product provider  and  ask them  to respond  to your queries.   You will probably find contact details on your annual statement.   If it is a reviewable policy the cost will increase with age.

Narola1976

Thanks @Old_Lifer. I will check with them.

As I understand it the policy is Life Cover but with a tiny payout of £15000 if I die before age 70. If I don’t, I get back 100% of premiums paid less admin cost. I will check with the provider what this is likely to be

My main question is whether or not this policy is worth it at all? The amount I will get back if i don’t die is small, the payout at death is small for the amount I have put in (over £3000) so far and the amount I still have to pay over next 26 years is circa £9000. Am I just wasting my money for very little return and should I just cancel this policy?

Weighty1

Whether you can get cost effective life cover at this time will depend on the extent of "health conditions, weight etc".
If the health conditions are things like well controlled blood pressure or cholesterol then it may have no impact on the premiums.  If it's diabetes and coronary artery disease then it would massively affect them.  Same with your weight.  If you are only a little overweight there's a good chance it'd be ignored.  If you're 3-4st+ overweight then it will definitely impact the premiums.