Saga's Life Insurance Products: Over 50s, Term and Mortgage Life Cover

Saga carries three life insurance products:

• Over 50s Guaranteed Life Insurance
• Term Life Insurance
• Mortgage Life Insurance

Why Go with Saga?

Here are some reasons to go with Saga:

• Great value. Saga provides a cash voucher for every policy purchase, depending on terms, conditions and time limits covering the promotional offer.  Currently, there is a £50 Marks & Spencer voucher for each plan purchase which is sent within 28 days after receiving the third premium. Plus, Saga’s Over 50 Life Cover provides full payment (for death where the cause is other than accidental death) after the first year, unlike other plans, which will provide full payment for death regardless of the cause only after 2 years.
• No hidden costs. With Saga’s product offerings, what you see is what you get. There are no extra costs – all you need to do is pay your premiums regularly.
• Easy application. You can get a quote from the Internet, and the Over 50s cover provides guaranteed acceptance to eligible applicants.

Quick Facts

Plan Details

Payment of Benefit. The policy will pay out the Sum Insured when the Person Insured

• dies
• becomes terminally ill (except for Over 50s cover
• becomes critically ill (if this is added into the policy)

The payments will only be made if death or illness occurs within the plan term and as long as the policy remains in force.

Number of policies. More than one policy can be allowed, as long as the total monthly premium does not exceed the maximum limit.

Premiums. For life cover and mortgage life cover, the premiums can either be guaranteed or reviewable.

• Guaranteed. The premiums remain the same throughout the policy term.
• Reviewable. The premiums are up for review (based on age, medical condition, etc.) every 5 years. Reviewable premiums are cheaper at the onset but may be more expensive than guaranteed premiums further into the policy term.

Additional Benefits/Options

Serious Illness and Bereavement Care.  This free cover helps the Person Insured and their loved ones if they undergo trauma and stress due to the death or serious illness of the Person Insured. An advisory service, RED ARC, offers helpful advice and emotional support to callers face-to-face and via the telephone.

Funeral Benefit Option. This allows the proceeds of the life cover to be paid directly through The Co-operative Funeralcare providing that the Person Insured’s funeral is arranged through this provider. This provides an additional £250 towards the expenses.

Other details:

• The £250 will be provided by The Co-operative Funeralcare and this will be used to pay for funeral expenses.
• This can be added or removed any time during the life of the policy. However, once removed, it cannot be included in the cover.
• If the funeral expenses are larger than the proceeds of the cover plus the £250 Funeral Benefit, the remaining balance should be paid by the one who arranged for the funeral. If the funeral expenses are smaller than the available insurance proceeds, the remaining balance will be paid out to the beneficiaries of the policy.

Critical illness Cover. This pays out the Sum Insured (tax-free) if the Person Insured is diagnosed with a covered critical illness. This can be used to pay off a mortgage, cover medical costs or help provide for the family’s needs.

The Critical Illness Cover will pay if the Person Insured is diagnosed with:

• Alzheimer’s disease
• Aorta graft surgery
• Aplastic anaemia
• Bacterial meningitis
• Benign brain tumour
• Blindness
• Cancer
• Cardiomyopathy
• Coma
• Coronary artery by-pass grafts
• Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease
• Deafness
• Dementia
• Encephalitis
• Heart attack
• Heart valve replacement or repair
• HIV infection
• Kidney Failure
• Liver failure
• Loss of hand or foot
• Loss of speech
• Major organ transplant
• Motor neurone disease
• Multiple sclerosis
• Multiple System Atrophy
• Open heart surgery
• Paralysis of a limb
• Parkinson’s disease
• Primary Pulmonary Hypertension
• Progressive supranuclear palsy
• Removal of an eyeball
• Respiratory failure
• Stroke
• Systemic lupus erythematosus
• Third degree burns
• Total and permanent disablement
• Traumatic head injury

Other details:

• Children’s critical illness. Provides automatic and free cover to all of the Person Insured’s children (natural, legally adopted and stepchildren) aged 30 days to 18 years (or up to 21 if the child is in full time education). This pays out a maximum of £25,000 or 50% of the Sum Insured (whichever is the lesser of the two) if a child is diagnosed with a covered critical illness. Only one claim is payable per child, subject to a maximum of two claims.
• Additional benefits. This is a separate benefit that will not affect the Sum Insured payable for covered critical illnesses. This pays out the lesser of 25% of the Sum Insured or £25,000 if the Person Insured is diagnosed with:
  • Ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast
  • Low grade prostate cancer
• Exclusions. This won’t pay out if:
  • The critical illness does not meet the definitions of the policy
  • The Person Insured has been living in other countries aside from those belong to the European Union, the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Isle of man or the Channel Islands for more than a year when a claim is made

Accidental death benefit. This is a free cover offered while the application for life cover is being processed. This is guaranteed cover provided without the need for underwriting.

Other details:

• Accidental death is defined as death resulting from injuries caused by an accident.
• Length of cover
  • The cover starts upon receipt of the completed application.
  • The cover ends on the earliest of:
    • 90 days
    • The day the application is accepted, postponed or declined
• Amount of cover. This would be the lower of
  • £300,000
  • The Sum Insured being applied for
• Once this is paid out, the cover will no longer be effective and no further payments can be made.
• This cover is not available for those who are applying for a new cover to replace an existing plan, even as you remain covered under that plan.

Terminal illness cover. This pays out the Sum Insured earlier than the Person Insured’s death if he is diagnosed with a terminal illness. This is designed to help in the last days of the Person Insured in order for him to pay medical expenses, leave a financial gift to loved ones and so on.

Other details:

• The terminal illness is something that is no longer curable and is expected to result in the Person Insured’s death within 12 months or less.
• The terminal illness is only payable if it is diagnosed before the last 12 months of the policy.
• The policy must be in effect for at least 2 years for the benefit to be payable.

Waiver of Premium. This pays for the premiums in the event that the Person Insured is unable to work and earn an income due to illness or injury.

Other details:

• The Person Insured can only apply for this if he is under age 55.
• There is a waiting period of 26 weeks from the date that the Person Insured becomes incapacitated. This means that the benefit will only start after 26 weeks and that the Person Insured still has to pay for the premiums during that time in order to keep the policy in force.
• If the Person isn’t working before the incapacity occurs, the incapacity will be based on the Person Insured’s inability to perform three or more of work tasks, which include walking, climbing, bending, getting in and out of a car, lifting, writing.

Free life cover. For mortgage life cover, this ensures that the mortgage is paid up in the event that the Person Insured dies between the time that the contracts are exchanged and the property purchase is finalized. In Scotland, this is referred to as the completion of missive and the date of entry.

Other details:

• This is a free cover provided to Persons Insured under mortgage life cover.
• Maximum age that this is available is 55 years old. The Person Insured should have a policy that is issued at standard terms.
• Amount of Cover. This is the lower of:
  • £300,000
  • The Sum Insured being applied for

Guaranteed Insurability Options. This allows the Person Insured to increase the Sum Insured for specific life events without the need to provide additional medical evidence of insurability.

Other details:

• Life events include:
  • Parenthood (either by natural birth, legal adoption or taking on stepchildren)
  • Marriage or entry into a civil union
  • Increase in the mortgage due to a new house or major home renovations
  • Increase in income due to a new job or promotion
• Instead of increasing the cover of the existing policy, a new plan is given with the equivalent of the amount of increase being applied for.

SmoothMove. This benefit is provided free of charge to those who have Mortgage Life Cover. It is designed to help out during the Person Insured’s move to a new house. This is provided by Inter Partner Assistance.

Other details:

• The benefit is up to a maximum of £750 for unexpected events such as the late arrival of the moving van, refund of hotel costs if the house is still unavailable for occupancy at the expected time of moving, etc.)
• Provides cover for home emergency repairs for up to £250.
• Also provides free legal advice

How to make a claim

Death claims are paid out to the Person Insured’s beneficiaries while Terminal Illness claims and Critical Illness claims are paid out to the Person Insured.

Here are some of the documents required for a claim:

For critical illness or waiver of premiums:

• Doctor’s certificate where the doctor is a specialist in the illness being diagnosed and is practicing as a consultant in a hospital in the UK
• Results of medical tests
• Signed statement allowing the company to access medical records of the Person Insured

The medical evidence will also be reviewed by the company’s Medical Officer.

For death claims:

• Birth and death certificate of the Person Insured
• Marriage certificate (for claimant spouse) or birth certificate (for claimant children) or a last will and testament to show proof that claimant is the legal beneficiary
• Police report (if death is due to accident)

The content of this article is provided for informational purposes only and is not created to be a financial advice. Contact Saga directly for details about their offerings.
Updated on: 10.06.2013

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