Royal London over 50s life insurance is not among the plans on Royal London's life insurance page, which shows Advised Life Cover, Diabetes Life Cover and Whole of Life, and says of each that it is "Only available through a financial adviser." The Over 50 Life Insurance booklets now sit under existing customers, so this page is mainly for people who already hold a plan or are dealing with someone else's.

Anyone in their fifties or later who wants to know which insurers will take an application can put that to an FCA-authorised broker, who rings back free once this page's form has been completed.

Can you still take out a Royal London over 50s plan?

Royal London's website treats the plan from the existing-customer side. Its life insurance page lists three plans, each sold only through a financial adviser, and no over-50s plan. Its existing-customers area has a heading "Over 50s policy documents" with a policy summary and a terms and conditions booklet, and it says the online service covers a "Life Insurance and Over 50 Life Insurance bought direct from Royal London".

The terms booklet describes the plan as meeting the needs of "someone aged between 50 and 80" and says you must be a UK resident at the time the policy started. It also says an existing holder "may be able to take out further Over 50 Life Insurance policies with Royal London", subject to the terms at that time, which is not the same as saying the plan is open to new customers. Whether Royal London would accept a fresh application today is something only Royal London can confirm; its customer line for these policies is 0345 600 7788.

What Royal London does sell is explained on the Royal London life policy page, and the wider choice for this age group, from any insurer, is compared in best life insurance for over 50s.

What does a Royal London Over 50 plan pay if you die?

The plan pays a fixed sum, called the Payout, on death. The policy schedule sent when the policy started states the amount. The booklet says the plan is designed for someone wanting "a Payout of up to £10,000", and that the most paid across every Over 50 policy held with Royal London is £10,000. The policy summary adds that you cannot pay Royal London more than £100 a month across them.

On acceptance, the policy summary says you are "guaranteed to be accepted if you’re 50 to 80 years old and are a resident in the UK" and "won’t have to tell us about your health".

The Payout is paid to the people legally entitled to it, which the booklet says is often the policyholder's personal representatives. If the policy was placed in trust, it goes to the trustees; if it was assigned, to the person it was assigned to. The booklet says the Payout is free from UK income tax and capital gains tax but may form part of the estate for inheritance tax, and that tax rules may change.

The booklet describes a Funeral Benefit Option that could be added: the Payout then goes straight to a funeral provider, unless death happens in the first year, when it goes to the estate. A policy with that option cannot be placed in trust or assigned unless the option is cancelled, and once removed it cannot be added back.

What happens if the person dies in the first year?

The booklet separates the first year from everything after it. After the first year, it pays "the full Payout if all of the monthly payments have been made". Within the first year the rule depends on how the death happened:

  • Death as a result of an accident: the full Payout. The booklet defines an accident as "an event that causes physical injury which could not have been predicted and was not intentional".
  • Any other death, including death by suicide: Royal London returns all the monthly payments made up to that point. Its worked example is £20 a month and six payments, so £120 back.

So a death from natural causes in year one returns the payments made rather than the Payout. For an accidental death in that year, the booklet gives medical records as an example of what Royal London may ask to see.

How long are premiums paid, and can they add up to more than the Payout?

Yes, they can. The booklet says: "Depending on how long you live, it’s possible you could end up paying more in total for your policy than it pays out when you die." Under the terms booklet, Royal London collects payments monthly by Direct Debit up to the first policy anniversary falling on or after the 95th birthday, or until death if that comes sooner. That date appears on the policy schedule as the Final Payment Date.

Royal London's policy summary gives a different end point: keep paying until the first policy anniversary on or after the 90th birthday. Because the summary and the terms booklet differ, the Final Payment Date printed on your own policy schedule is the date that applies to you, and Royal London's customer line can confirm it.

The Payout does not rise. The booklet says it "doesn’t increase over time – and may be affected by inflation", so the price of things like funeral costs may outgrow it. How a plan like this compares with other ways to pay for a funeral is covered in whether over 50s life insurance is worth it.

Someone deciding whether to hold on to an old over-50s plan can ask the broker to run through alternatives on the free ring-back that follows when this page's form is sent in.

What if payments become hard to keep up?

The booklet sets out several steps before a policy ends:

  • Missed payment: you have 60 days from the missed date to pay it, and the policy is unaffected if you do. A claim in that window is reduced by any unmade payments.
  • Lower payments: Royal London allows reductions to as little as £3.95 a month, which reduces the Payout. The booklet says you cannot increase your payments or Payout on the same policy.
  • Payment holiday: from the second year, Royal London lets you pause payments for up to six months, at most 2 payment holidays in all, with 12 months or more between them. Afterwards the choice is to repay what was missed or to take a Payout reduced in proportion.

If payments stop and are not made up within the 60 days, what follows depends on how many have been made. The booklet says: "If more than half the payments have been made between the start of your policy and your Final Payment Date, your policy will still qualify for a Payout when you die, under our Payout Promise feature." If fewer than half have been made, the policy is cancelled, nothing is paid back and no Payout is due.

The Payout Promise amount is the full Payout multiplied by the payments made, divided by the total number of monthly payments up to the Final Payment Date. Royal London's own example is a policy started on a 75th birthday with a £3,500 Payout: after 180 of the 240 payments, the Payout Promise is £2,625.

Cancelling is possible at any time on 0345 600 7788. Payments are refunded only if you cancel within 30 days of getting the booklet and policy schedule. The steps for ending other Royal London cover are on cancelling Royal London life insurance.

Who do you contact to make a claim or find your papers?

Royal London's claims page for Over 50 plans bought direct gives 0345 646 2094 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm), or 0345 266 1483 for a policy bought through the Post Office between 31st Jan 2017 and 31st Jan 2022. The terms booklet and the policy summary both give 0345 266 5400 to register a claim. If the policy papers are to hand, ring the number printed on them; the claims page adds that if you are unsure which number to ring, you can choose one and Royal London will help from there. A claim form is sent out; the booklet says Royal London may ask for the original death certificate and original birth certificate, and normally pays into a UK bank account within 10 working days of approving a claim.

What to have ready, and what happens after you report a death, are set out in reporting a death to Royal London. If you cannot find the policy number or schedule, finding Royal London policy documents covers where to start.

Frequently asked questions

Does Royal London offer life insurance for over 60s?

The Over 50 booklet describes a plan for people aged 50 to 80 when it started. Royal London's current life insurance page lists plans sold through a financial adviser, with a stated age range of 18 to 89 for term cover and 18 to 90 for whole of life. A broker can say what suits a particular age.

Is Royal London over 50s cover the same as whole of life?

The Over 50 plan is a separate product with a capped Payout. Royal London's Whole of Life cover is, according to its page, "Only available through a financial adviser", and pays a sum you choose up to an unlimited amount, or up to £5 million with an increasing cover option. How the whole of life plan works is on the Royal London life policy page.

Can a relative pay the monthly premiums?

Yes. The booklet says the Direct Debit can be paid by you or by another person on your behalf, though it remains the policyholder's responsibility to make sure payments are made.

What if the date of birth on the policy was wrong?

The booklet says that if an incorrect date of birth was given, or the person was not a UK resident, Royal London may be unable to pay a claim and may cancel the policy. If a different amount would have been offered at the correct age, the Payout is changed to match and any overpayment refunded.

Keeping an older plan, or looking at what is open to you now, could be talked through by phone with an FCA-authorised broker once you have sent in the form on this page, free of charge.

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