Mortgage protection insurance is legitimate when it is a policy from an authorised insurer, and the name is often used for decreasing term life cover. Whether a particular letter, call or seller is legitimate is a separate question, and it has a practical answer: check the firm yourself before you give any details.

Had a mortgage protection offer and cannot judge it? Ask an FCA-authorised broker what it would mean for your own loan, free, starting with the form on this page.

Is mortgage protection insurance real, or a scam?

It is real. Legal & General describes its decreasing life insurance as "often called mortgage life insurance" and as "designed to help protect a repayment mortgage when you buy a home". It adds that the cover "reduces roughly in line with the way a repayment mortgage decreases" (Legal & General, reviewed 1 June 2026). A policy sold on those lines is an ordinary life policy whose payout shrinks over the term.

What is loose is the label. Some products sold under similar names are not life cover at all, which is explained in how the two terms overlap; the mechanics are in how mortgage life insurance works. Whether the policy is worth having is a different question, taken up in is mortgage protection worth it.

A genuine product can still be sold badly, and a scammer can borrow a genuine name. The rest of this page is about telling the difference.

What should you do with an unsolicited mortgage protection letter or call?

An unexpected approach is not proof of a scam, but it heads the warning signs in the FCA's scams guidance (last updated 19 January 2026), which asks "Is it unexpected?" and says "Scammers often call out of the blue", by email, text, post or social media as well as by phone. Pressure to act quickly, and an offer that sounds too good to be true, are on the same list.

The same guidance advises readers to treat "all unexpected calls, emails and text messages with caution" and not to assume they are genuine "even if the person knows some basic information about you". That matters here, because a letter that quotes your name, address or lender shows that someone holds those details, not that they are your lender or an insurer.

A sensible routine for a letter or call you did not ask for:

  • Do not ring the number on the letter or reply to the message. Look the firm up yourself, as in the next section.
  • Do not give bank or card details to anyone you cannot identify.
  • Take your time. A genuine business will not mind you checking first.
  • If you already have a mortgage, your lender's own contact details on your statements or website are the safe way to ask whether it has written to you.

Is the seller on the FCA register?

Arranging insurance is a regulated activity, so a firm selling mortgage protection should be on the FCA's Firm Checker. Almost all financial services firms in the UK "must be authorised or registered" by the FCA, and the tool shows whether a firm is authorised and has permission for the service you want. It takes a few minutes:

  1. Go to the Firm Checker by typing the FCA's address into your browser, not by clicking a link in an email or on the seller's own website, as such a link "could be part of the scam".
  2. Search for the firm's name and look for permission to arrange or sell insurance.
  3. Compare the firm reference number and contact details you were given with the entry. They should "match the details on the Firm Checker".
  4. Contact the firm only through the details on the entry, because "some firms pretend to be authorised firms".

Being on the register does not make a policy right for you, and the Firm Checker cannot tell you whether a particular insurer will cover your circumstances. Weighing cover against your own mortgage, and learning which insurers a broker deals with, is what the free call from the form on this page is for.

If a firm is not listed, or the details do not match, treat that as a reason to stop. The FCA's insurance scams page (last updated 19 May 2026) gives "Not on the FCA Firm Checker" first among its warning signs, and says that without the right authorisation you would have no access to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme or the Financial Ombudsman Service if something went wrong.

Can you get a refund if mortgage protection was mis-sold?

You may have more than one route, depending on how long ago you bought it.

Within the cancellation period. Under the FCA's rules (ICOBS 7.1, last updated 1 January 2016), a consumer has "a right to cancel, without penalty and without giving any reason" within 30 days for a contract that is, or has elements of, a pure protection contract. Cancelling such a contract cannot cost you anything (ICOBS 7.2.2), and the firm must return what you paid without undue delay and no later than 30 days after it receives your notice (ICOBS 7.2.6). For this kind of policy the 30 days start on the later of two dates: the day you learn the contract is in place, or the day the terms and conditions reach you (ICOBS 7.1.5). Follow the cancellation instructions in your documents; notice sent on paper or by email before the deadline counts.

After that, complain. The Financial Ombudsman Service says to complain to the business first. For most complaints a business has up to 8 weeks to respond. If that time passes with no final response, or you are unhappy with the one you get, you can take the complaint to the Ombudsman, which is free to use; you have 6 months from the date on a final response to do so. You do not need a lawyer or claims management company.

Time limits also apply to the original problem. You usually need to complain to the business within six years of the problem, or three years of when you became aware, or should reasonably have realised, that you had cause. If serious ill health or a bereavement at the time stopped you complaining sooner, the Ombudsman may still look at it as an exceptional circumstance, but it must be satisfied that those circumstances caused the delay.

If the Ombudsman finds you were treated unfairly, it will "tell them to put you back where you'd be if they hadn't made a mistake" and may ask for an award for distress and inconvenience. Whether that means a refund of premiums, and how much, depends on the facts of the case, so no outcome can be promised in advance. The complaint goes first to the firm that sold the policy.

Unsure what you were actually sold? A broker can go through the paperwork with you by phone, free of charge, starting from the form on this page.

Frequently asked questions

Can you stop mortgage protection junk mail?

The Mailing Preference Service is a free register for opting out of unsolicited addressed marketing mail, and it says full effect can take up to three months. It does not block overseas mail, unaddressed mail or mail addressed to "The Occupier". The Telephone Preference Service, also free, covers marketing calls.

What if a caller says they are from my lender?

Do not take their word for it, however much they seem to know about you. End the call, then ring your lender on the number printed on your statement and ask whether it contacted you.

Who can I report a suspicious call or letter to?

The FCA asks to hear about suspected scams on 0800 111 6768, and for anything it does not regulate, or if you have lost money, to contact Report Fraud on 0300 123 2040. The ICO takes reports of nuisance marketing calls.

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