When Should You Increase Your Life Insurance?

Life insurance is not a fit-and-forget product. The right sum assured at age 28 is rarely the right sum at 38, and the term you picked when you took out your first mortgage is probably shorter than the commitments you now have. A policy review every 3-5 years, or on any material life event, is best practice.

The five triggers that most often mean you need more cover are: remortgaging or moving home (new, larger loan balance), having a child or adopting (new dependant for 20+ years), marriage or civil partnership (new spouse, possibly with existing children), starting a business or taking on commercial debt, and a substantial pay rise that changes your household standard of living.

Rather than cancelling an existing policy, most UK insurers allow you to "top up" by adding a second plan on the same life assured. This avoids medical re-underwriting on the original policy and keeps the cheap original premium intact. Your adviser can help decide whether a top-up or a full replacement gives the better total cost.