Is Legal and General The Best Life Insurance Policy?

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Nishadh Mohammed updated on June 29, 2021

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This is the ultimate review to guide you through the ins and outs of Legal and General life insurance. You might already know that Legal and General has several different contract options.

Some are great. Some are less useful. Some are simply too expensive.

So, if you want to get better value for money from your insurance contract, as well as indicative quotes and tips to lower your insurance premium, then you’ll probably love the following article.

Let’s dive right in!

Is Legal and General the best life insurance for you?

When taking out life insurance, there are so many things to think about. Life insurance is one of the most important insurance plans to have, as it is the best way to protect your loved ones if something happens to you.

Legal and General life insurance has a lot to offer. Here are the main points that you should look at before taking out life insurance with Legal and General.

4 Safe overall rating for Legal and General

Rating CriteriaSafe RatingOur Review
Customer service satisfaction, claims and support

Average rating of 3.4/5 on TrustPilot.
Policy document can easily be accessed.
5 star rating from Defaqto.
No live chat option is provided.
A number of bad reviews as regarding customer care experience was recorded on review websites.
The contacts numbers attached to the services provided are not properly stated

Coverage options

Legal and General provides Over 50s cover.
It is easy to make changes to the policy.
The Critical Illness Cover covers up to 38 medical conditions.
Accidental death benefit and live cover is provided.
Whole-of-life cover is not provided.

Value for money

A £100 voucher is given to customers who buy life insurance policies to spend at either M&S or Amazon.
Cover can be gotten for as low as £6 a month.
Cover of £300,000 is given in the case that the policyholder dies in the process of completing a property purchase.
Free Life Cover and Accidental Death Benefit are included in the cover provided at no extra cost.

Financial strength

Legal and General has been in operation for about 182 years
They were awarded the UK’s No 1 life insurance provider, based on new individual life insurance sales in 2016

Apps and technologies

Quotations can be gotten online.
There is a life insurance calculator on their website
An optional virtual GP service is provided.
No livebot or chatbot option
No use of technological advancements like mobile app

Safe rating for Legal and General Life insurance

Expert and customer satisfaction reviews for Legal and General

Review organisationConsumer satisfaction rates for Legal and General Life insurance
Trustpilot3,4/5 based on 9,824 reviews
Defaqto5
Experts rating for Legal and General

Legal and General insurance in a nutshell

In summary, here are the main features you need to know when taking out life insurance with Legal and General.

CriteriaLegal and General details
Minimum age18 years
Maximum age 77 years
Pay-outNot stated
Life insurance with free giftsA £100 gift voucher is given to policyholders
Extras
  • £95 gift card is given when you take out an Over 50s Life Insurance.
  • Additional benefits like Free Life Cover and Accidental Death Benefit are included for free in the Life Insurance policy
Terminal illnessYes
Legal and General life insurance in a nutshell

What are Legal and General life insurance policy types?

When choosing life insurance, you have to make a lot of important decisions. You have to choose between different policy types to find which one would best cover your needs. As the first big choice, you have to choose between:

  • Term life insurance. Term insurance splits into two types: level term or decreasing insurance. If you choose a term insurance, once again you would have to choose between these two. Sometimes, there is an increasing term insurance option.
  • Whole of life insurance. This insurance will pay out when the policyholders die. Not all insurers offer this type of coverage.

What is Legal and General term life insurance?

There are two term life insurance options:

  • Level cover guarantees that your loved ones get a payment if you die during a specific period of time. You will receive the same amount during a fixed period. Life insurance can be for 5,10, 20 years, etc., depending on your needs.
  • Decreasing cover guarantees that your loved ones get a payment if you die during a specific period of time. The amount decreases over the policy term. It is really useful if you have a loan, as the price tends to decline over time. You can choose an increasing cover as well.
CriteriaLegal and General life insurance
Minimum term1 year
Maximum term50 years
Pay-outNot Stated
Minimum monthly premium£6
Extras or any interesting facts

No

Legal and General term life insurance

Should you take level or decreasing term life insurance?

Legal and General offers two types of term life insurance: one is level life insurance, the other one is decreasing life insurance.

CriteriaProvider Details
Legal and General term life insurance (level)
  • Legal and General provides life insurance for people who are up to 18 years old
  • Cover is provided in the case that the policyholder has been diagnosed with a terminal illness within the duration of the policy.
  • Additional cover options like Free Life Cover and Accidental Death Benefit are provided for free.
  • There is an option to include the Critical Illness cover to an already existing isurance policy.
Legal and General decreasing term life insurance, also known as life insurance for mortgage
  • The Decreasing Life Insurance that Legal and General offers does not have a fixed interest rate.
  • The rate of the insurance policy can be tailored to match the same decrease rate as your repayment mortgage.
  • A minimum of £6 can be paid per month
Level or decreasing life insurance

Some providers also propose increasing life insurance, which is a similar concept as decreasing life insurance, but with the premiums getting higher rather than lower.

Life and General insurance doesn't propose this type of insurance.

Can you take out a Legal & General plan life insurance with someone else?

Yes, you can either have a single or a joint policy at Legal and General.

Taking out a joint policy covers two people that are together under the same policy. In the end, it is cheaper than two single policies. It covers both of your contributions to the family. It only pays out once, and the sum will be given to the other partner if one dies. It leaves the surviving member of the couple without life insurance after the death of the first partner.

Taking out a single policy pays for one person only. It pays out the amount chosen. Taking out two policies is more expensive, but you can choose the level you want, and it’s beneficial if the two partners don’t need to be insured at the same level.

What are Legal and General life insurance extras?

You can add these extras at additional cost to your Legal and General life insurance:

Details Reviews
Accidental Death Benefit

In the case that the policyholder is involved in an accident that leads to death, his/her loved ones will get a payout.

Child Accident Hospitalisation Benefit

Legal and General pays a sum of £5,000 in the case that your child has sustained physical injuries and is in the hospital for up to 28 days.

Family Accommodation Benefit
  • In the case that your child has been diagnosed with a critical illness, after a 3 months period, a sum of £100 is given per hospital stay to cater for any accommodation needs the family may have.
  • A maximum of £1000 is given
Child Funeral Benefit

A sum of up to £4,000 is given to add to the funeral costs if one of the children dies.

Nurse Support Services

Access is provided for a range of services which is provided by qualified nurses in the case that a loved one dies or a claim is made for a critical or terminal illness.

Legal and General life insurance extras

Should you take out Legal and General life insurance critical illness cover?

What is critical illness cover?

It is an extra that can be added to your policy, or can be combined with your standard life insurance. It pays out if you contract a disease. The illness developed must be specified in your policy contract. The most common illnesses covered are cancer and heart attacks, etc. If you become really ill, your insurance will pay out exactly as if you’ve passed away.

Is Legal and General the best critical illness cover?

Here are the main features when you take out Legal and General life insurance with serious illness:

CriteriaOverall life insurance and critical illness cover
Coverage

The Life and Critical illness cover that Legal and General provides offers the following:

  • Accident Hospitalisation Benefit is provided and in the case that the policyholder stays in the hospital for up to 28 days, a sum of £5000 is payed.
  • Children's Critical Illness cover is provided.
  • Additional cover of up to £25,000 is provided for carcinoma to replace breast and low grade prostate cancer.
  • Cover is provided for up to 38 critical conditions
Children's Cover
  • The children cover provided by Legal and General is valid from when the child is 30 days old till when the child is 21 years old.
  • This cover provides up to £25,000 or 50% of the amount of cover in the case that the child is diagnosed with one of the critical conditions.
  • A sum of £5,000 is provided in the case that a child is hospitalised for up to 28 days as a result of an accident.
  • A sum of £1,000 is provided to cater for accommodation for every night an insured child spends in hospital, in the three months after being diagnosed with a critical condition.
  • Only one critical illness is paid per child and a sum of £4,000 in the case that the child dies.
What should you know about Legal and General critical illness cover?
  • The Critical Illness Cover provided by Legal and General can be added to either a Life Insurance or Decreasing Life Insurance for an extra cost.
Legal and General life insurance

How much is Legal and General life insurance?

The big question is knowing how much life insurance you’ll need. Your answer to this question (as well as your age) will mainly determine the price of your life insurance:

However, your life insurance price will also depend on several factors:

  • Your medical conditions
  • Whether or not you are a smoker
  • Which add-ons you add to your life insurance
  • Your salary
  • The coverage you want
  • Whether you take out a joint policy or not

So you must ask yourself the relevant questions for your own situation, for example: Do you have a loan? Do you have savings? Do you have debts? Do you have a family? Does your job offer protection?

How to contact Legal and General life insurance?

Here are all the important phone numbers for contacting Legal and General life insurance:

ServicePhone NumbersOpening Hours
Get a quote at Legal and GeneralNot available Not available
How to claim at Legal and General0800 137 101 Monday to Friday: 9.00am to 5.30pm
How to cancel at Legal and General

03700 600015

Monday to Friday: 9.00am to 5.30pm
Legal and General phone numbers

What are Legal and General general contact details?

You will find in this table all the general contacts that you would need if you want to reach Legal and General life insurance:

General contacts
Mailing address

Legal & General Assurance
Society Limited
City Park
The Droveway
Hove East Sussex
BN3 7PY

Social media

Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YoutTube

Chatbot

No

Legal and General general contacts

scottish widows life insurance contact number

How to claim at Legal and General life insurance?

You will find on this table the different possibilities for reporting a claim on your Legal and General life insurance:

How to claim on your life insurance at Legal and General?
When to claim?

As soon as possible

Claim by mail

Legal & General Assurance
Society Limited
City Park
The Droveway
Hove East Sussex
BN3 7PY

Claim by email[email protected]
Claim online

Not available

Claim by phone0800 137 101
Claim at Legal and General life insurance

Here are all the important Legal and General life insurance contact number!

How to cancel my Legal and General life insurance?

You will find on this table the different ways to cancel your Legal and General life insurance:

How to cancel your life insurance at Legal and General
Fees
  • If you do cancel within the first 30 days, the premium paid would be refunded fully
  • If the cancellation is done after 30 days, no refunds would be made
Cancel by mail

Legal & General Assurance
Society Limited
City Park
The Droveway
Hove East Sussex
BN3 7PY

Cancel by email

[email protected]

Cancel onlineNot available
Cancel by phone

03700 600015

How to cancel my Legal and General life insurance?

How do I get Legal and General life insurance quotes?

Here are the different ways to get a life insurance quote at Legal and General:

How to get a life insurance quote at Legal and General
Quote online
  • Click the "Get a quote" option on the home page of their website
  • Find out what is the best life insurance for you with our 100% anonymous tool.
Quote phoneNot available
Get a quote at Legal and General

How do I log into Legal and General life insurance?

Go to the Legal and General website, and on the Home Page, click on “Login” option and enter your User ID to gain access to your account.

Do we recommend Legal and General life insurance?

Legal & General was founded in 1836 and in 2016,they paid out 92.56% of all life assurance claims made. This attests to their financial capabilities as an insurance company. They also have a 5 star rating from Defaqto and a 3.2/5 rating from TrustPilot. Legal and General offers a range of life insurance policies, including level term and decreasing term cover, as well as critical illness cover and policies designed for policyholders over the age of 50. They also offer Accidental death benefit and life cover. However, no whole of life policy option is offered. The insurance company is recommended as they have high financial capabilities and a wide range of cover options to pick from at an affordable amount.

What is life insurance? 

Life insurance is a contract between an insurance company and the policyholder. In exchange for an annual or monthly premium, the insurance company agrees to give out to a designated beneficiary a lump sum if the policyholder were to pass away. 

Is life insurance worth getting?

Yes, it is worth getting life insurance when people depend on you financially, like your family.

How much is life insurance in the UK? 

How much life insurance in the UK is depends on a lot of factors. However, with our data, we calculate that the average monthly cost of life insurance is £15. Of course, the price will depend on whether you take out joint or single life insurance, and the term of your insurance if you are not taking out  a whole life insurance policy. 

How does life insurance work in the UK?

Like with other types of insurance, it is a standard procedure: the policyholder pays a premium to a provider, with an agreed level of cover. 

What are the best life insurance with free gifts?

Lots of life insurance providers offer free gifts: 
- Royal London
- Legal & General
- Aviva
- Shepherds Friendly 
- OneFamily 
- British Seniors Insurance Agency

What is the best life insurance in UK?

There are lot of life insurance policy that have interesting features. Depending on these features, you can decide if this life insurance suits you. 
To find what is the best life insurance for you, use our tool to compare prices and offers from all the insurers on the market instantly.  

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Nishadh Mohammed
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Nishadh Mohammed is a seasoned news editor and financial writer, working with HelloSafe since May 2023. Nishadh has developed expertise in financial markets, insurance, and investment products, with a deep understanding of the Canadian financial landscape. He has honed his SEO skills and content marketing strategies while writing for Canadian publishing houses. Armed with a master's in Business Analytics and extensive journalistic experience, Nishadh uniquely combines data proficiency and thorough research to deliver comprehensive and accessible information.