To apply to Legal & General for life insurance, you start online with a quote, and when you apply L&G asks health and lifestyle questions and decides whether it needs a medical or a report from your doctor. Would you like to go through the questions with someone first? An FCA-authorised broker can talk an application through with you by phone at no charge, and you ask for that using the form on this page.

This page follows one application from the first screen to the decision. The questions themselves are on medical questions for life insurance, and what the answers lead to is on what underwriting means.

What does applying to L&G involve, step by step?

L&G's life insurance page (reviewed 1 June 2026) says it takes "around 2 minutes to get your personalised life insurance quote". For that you need three things: your date of birth, contact details and smoker status; the type, amount and length of cover; and whether the policy is for you alone or for you and another person. A joint policy is chosen at the start, because the same page says to "Decide if you want a policy in joint or single names."

Applying is open to UK residents. L&G's page says "To apply you need to be a UK resident aged between 18 and 77", and that Critical Illness Cover brings the top age down to 67.

The page has three buttons near the top: plan details, a quote in two minutes, and "Retrieve a quote". It also gives a free number for people who would rather phone, 0800 316 5591, open weekdays from 8:30am to 8pm and Saturday mornings from 9am to 1pm (read 27 October 2026). Quotes are covered more widely on life insurance quotes.

Is there a Legal & General application form to download or print?

L&G's pages for people buying cover themselves offer two ways in: the online quote and the free phone line above. Its guide to medical records says the lifestyle and medical questions are asked within the application form itself. If you would rather apply through someone else, the broker who rings you back will describe how applying through them works.

The enquiry form here is not an insurer's application. It takes only your name, age band, telephone number, email address and postcode; health details are for the conversation itself.

Will L&G ask me to take a medical?

Often not. L&G says that when you apply it asks about your health and lifestyle and, "based on this – and the amount of cover requested" it decides "if a medical is required or not". Its figure for 2025 is about 7.5% of applicants asked to attend one.

If L&G does ask, it says it pays the cost of the examination, and that having a medical "doesn't mean you will be charged any more". Depending on what you have told it, the examination may include blood tests, a smoker test or an ECG. How a smoker test works, and what happens to a claim if smoker status was misstated, is covered on how insurers find out whether you smoke.

A medical is separate from a report from your own doctor. L&G says it needs your consent before requesting one; you are then notified and have 21 days to arrange seeing it with your doctor. You can refuse, but L&G warns that refusing "may affect your ability to get life cover". Would L&G want a medical or a doctor's report from you? The broker can go over that on the free phone call.

How long does L&G take to decide?

It depends on the applicant. L&G says every applicant's circumstances differ, and that after you apply it will assess your application and "let you know within a matter of days or weeks whether we require additional medical information". Its policy summary describes the possible outcomes as accepting, postponing or declining the application. A refusal or a delay has its own page: after a decline.

Am I covered while the application is being assessed?

Partly. L&G's policy summary (QGI14786, October 2026) lists Accidental Death Benefit as included with its life insurance. It covers you "from when we receive your application, for up to 90 days or until we accept, postpone or decline your application", and if you die due to an accident during that time it pays the sum you applied for, up to a maximum of £300,000 for all applications. The summary adds that it does not apply from the date you tell L&G you no longer want the application to go ahead.

Exclusions apply, including suicide and dangerous sports, so read the summary's list before relying on it. Waiting periods and first-year rules across insurers are on waiting periods for life insurance.

How do I check the status of my application?

L&G's pages describe a My Account area where existing customers can "view and manage your Legal & General products online", and there is more on it at L&G's app and online account. For an application L&G is still assessing, ask on its free number above; if a broker arranges your cover, they can say on their call how they keep track of it.

What if I change my mind after applying?

Until the policy starts, you can tell L&G you no longer want to go ahead, which also ends the accidental death cover above. Once it has started, the policy summary says "You can cancel the policy at any time" and that if you cancel within 30 days L&G will refund any premiums you have paid. The two cases are compared on cancelling a life insurance application, and L&G's own routes are on cancelling an L&G policy.

If you want the policy written in trust once it is in place, the L&G trust form has its own page. For L&G's wider range, see Legal & General life insurance.

Want to talk an application over before you send it? A broker will phone you, free, once you ask through the form here.

Frequently asked questions

Can I retrieve a quote I started on the L&G website?

L&G's life insurance page has a "Retrieve a quote" button next to its plan details and new-quote buttons. If a saved quote will not come back up, ask on L&G's free quote line, 0800 316 5591.

How old can I be when I apply to L&G?

L&G's life insurance page gives 77 as the top age to apply, and 67 if you add Critical Illness Cover. Both are on its page reviewed 1 June 2026, so check the current figures when you apply.

Does L&G pay for the medical?

L&G says it will pay the costs of any medical examination it requests after receiving your application, and that having one does not mean you will be charged any more.

Do I have to let L&G see my GP records?

L&G says it needs your consent first. It also says refusing may affect your ability to get cover, and that you may ask to read the report first.

Does it matter if I answer a question wrongly?

L&G's policy terms list, among the reasons a claim can be refused or affected, that you or someone acting for you "didn't answer our questions correctly during your application for the policy". If you are unsure how a question applies to you, medical questions for life insurance is the place to start.

Can I apply if I already have a health condition?

You can apply, and L&G assesses the answers you give. How insurers approach long-term conditions is covered on life insurance with medical conditions.

Sources

  • Legal & General, Life insurance (reviewed 1 June 2026), read 27 October 2026. legalandgeneral.com
  • Legal & General, Life Insurance and Critical Illness Cover Policy Summary (QGI14786 - 2026/10), read 21 October 2026. legalandgeneral.com
  • Legal & General, Does life insurance with no medical exist? (28 May 2026), read 26 October 2026. legalandgeneral.com
  • Legal & General, How do life insurance companies obtain your medical information? (12 August 2026), read 26 October 2026. legalandgeneral.com
  • Legal & General, Life insurance with pre-existing medical conditions (16 March 2026), read 26 October 2026. legalandgeneral.com
  • Legal & General, Life Insurance Policy Terms and Conditions (QGI12849 - 2026/10), read 26 October 2026. legalandgeneral.com
  • Legal & General, Getting Help | Existing Customers (undated), read 27 October 2026. legalandgeneral.com