Can you have more than
one life insurance policy?

Yes, just as it's possible to have multiple policies in place, it's also possible for your beneficiaries to claim multiple pay outs after you're gone.

If you have multiple policies, your beneficiaries can receive a life insurance pay out from each individual policy leading to a much larger overall sum.

They'll need to claim on each policy individually though and provide the necessary details of each of the policies you have in place.

Provided all the information supplied during the application process is deemed fully disclosed, then each policy will be valid and separate pay outs issued.

However, if any information is deemed to have been falsified on a particular policy, then it will be deemed invalid. Although, this should not affect the other policies you have in place.

In certain circumstances increasing your life insurance cover may be more beneficial than taking out an additional policy.

Certain significant life events can be used to invoke a special events option on your existing life insurance. This includes having more children and moving to a larger property.

When a special events option is invoked, it means that the amount of cover you have in place can be increased without the need for additional underwriting.

Whilst invoking the special events clause will cause your life insurance premiums to increase to cater for the greater level of cover, it's likely to be less significant than the cost of loaded premiums caused by the above circumstances.

Please note, not all insurers/policies offer a special events clause. If this option is important to you, you should check any existing policy or if this is included in any new policy you're considering.

Having more than one life insurance policy in place doesn't affect the terms of cover for each policy.

Each policy exists in its own right.

You'll make monthly payments on each policy and, if term-based, each policy will expire at its own rate.

The sum assured, if set to reduce over time, will also change at the rate attached to that particular policy and won't be affected by any other policies you have in place.

If you were to pass away, all valid policies can be claimed for by your dependants simultaneously.

Although, if held with different providers, multiple claims may need to be filed.

Taking out life insurance and a funeral plan simultaneously can ensure all costs associated with your funeral are covered, whilst also providing your loved ones with extra financial security.

Commonly, people take out a funeral plan when they're either too old or too ill to be accepted for traditional life insurance.

But life insurance and funeral plans actually provide different benefits, suggesting it may be more beneficial to have both in place rather than opting for one or the other.

Funeral plans allow you to lock-in your funeral at today’s prices.

This can be extremely beneficial given the fact that the average cost of a funeral has risen 128% over the past 16 years^[1].

This increase shows no signs of slowing down either and it's expected that the cost of the average funeral will continue to rise.

In contrast, life insurance provides your loved ones with a cash lump sum pay out.

Whilst this lump sum may seem significant at the time of application, once increased living costs and inflation are factored in, it's real terms value could be much less.

One important factor to consider is that most funeral plans cover the cost of funeral director services but not the total cost of third-party services.

Third-party services include a minister or celebrant to hold the ceremony, doctors to sign the medical certificate and the cemetery or crematorium to carry out the burial or cremation.

Some plans provide a contribution to third-party costs but this can’t guarantee to cover the total cost when the time comes. This would leave your loved ones to cover the remainder of the bill.

Therefore, having in place both life insurance and a funeral plan will cover the funeral director costs, whilst locking in today's prices and provide a lump sum large enough to cover all required third-party fees.