Best Funeral Insurance UK [Compare Quotes]

Q: What does funeral insurance cover?

Funeral insurance is designed to help towards funeral costs and other expenses, depending on how much cover you take out and how your family wish to spend the money. Unlike a pre-paid funeral plan, a funeral insurance policy isn’t attached to a nominated funeral director or any specific funeral services. Instead, it pays out a cash lump sum that could help with: Paying for your funeral (for example, helping to cover cremation or burial fees, funeral director fees, a coffin, hearse and flowers) Unpaid debts and bills Living costs for dependents Inheritance tax (if the policy is written in trust) While funeral insurance offers some flexibility for your loved ones, it’s not guaranteed that you can take out the level of cover you need for the full cost of your funeral.

Q: How much does funeral insurance cost?

Funeral insurance monthly premiums are determined by your: Age Smoking status Cover amount Over 50s funeral insurance could start from just £5 a month through Reassured. In the table below, we’ve provided examples of how much cover you could secure for £25 a month as a non-smoker: Age 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 Sum assured £8,743 £7,181 £6,118 £4,978 £3,581 £2,539 £1,829

Home
Life insurance
Funeral planning
Funeral insurance

How does funeral insurance work?
Types of funeral insurance
What does funeral insurance cover?
Compare best funeral insurance UK [top 6]
How much funeral insurance do you need?
How much does funeral insurance cost?
What’s the difference between funeral insurance and a funeral plan?
How to find the best funeral insurance for you
Funeral insurance UK FAQs

We work with some of the UK’s leading insurers:

What is funeral insurance UK?

Funeral insurance typically refers to a life insurance policy that’s taken out to specifically help cover funeral costs.

It’s common to take out funeral insurance in the form of an over 50s plan, but some insurers offer specialised funeral insurance plans, like British Seniors.

At Reassured, we can help you compare funeral insurance from top UK insurers, with prices that could start from just £5 a month⁺.

Our service is fee-free and without obligation - get in touch to see if we can help you save money.

Compare Our Best Funeral Insurance Quotes »

How does funeral insurance work?

Funeral insurance in the form of an over 50s life insurance policy is an affordable way to leave a cash lump sum behind to loved ones when you pass away.

Your loved ones can choose how to spend the lump sum, but it’s commonly used to help cover funeral costs.

Here’s how funeral insurance in the UK typically works:

Guarantees acceptance to UK residents aged over 50, up to the age of 80 or 85 depending on the insurer
Application has no medical or lifestyle questions (except for whether you’re a smoker) and there’s no need for a medical exam
Provides whole of life cover (guarantees a full pay out after the ‘waiting period’ has passed - this is the first one or two years from the start of the policy)
Immediate accidental death cover during the waiting period, providing a full pay out if you pass away due to an accident during this period
Provides a full pay out if you pass away due to an accident from day one
Requires monthly premium payments until you pass away until a specified date (whichever happens soonest). Premium costs are determined by your age, smoking status and cover amount

Other benefits and features:

Add-on the free funeral benefit option to receive an extra contribution (up to £300) towards your funeral costs (available with selected policies)
Write your policy in trust to help protect your pay out from inheritance tax (charged at 40% if your estate is liable) and ensure a faster pay out for your loved ones
Policies are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which means you’re protected in the unlikely event your provider can’t pay a valid claim

Please note: Funeral insurance is different to a pre-paid funeral plan as it doesn’t involve pre-arranging or pre-paying your specific funeral services in advance.

Types of funeral insurance

There are two main types of funeral insurance policies. Here we outline the key differences between both:

Over 50s life insurance

Type of life assurance often taken out to help cover funeral expenses
Offers up to £20,000 of cover depending on your age, lifestyle and the insurer
Can only be taken out as single policy (to cover one person)
Fixed monthly premiums (which must be paid until you pass away or until a specified date, such as your 90th birthday)
Available through Reassured from £5 a month (subject to your age and smoking status)

Funeral insurance plan

Type of insurance to cover funeral expenses
Provides several cover options to choose from depending on the type of funeral you require (typically up to £10,000 depending on your age, lifestyle and the insurer)
Could be taken out as a joint policy (to cover two people)
Fixed monthly premiums (unless you opt for the increasing cover option)
Not available through Reassured

What does funeral insurance cover?

Funeral insurance is designed to help towards funeral costs and other expenses, depending on how much cover you take out and how your family wish to spend the money.

Unlike a pre-paid funeral plan, a funeral insurance policy isn’t attached to a nominated funeral director or any specific funeral services.

Instead, it pays out a cash lump sum that could help with:

Paying for your funeral (for example, helping to cover cremation or burial fees, funeral director fees, a coffin, hearse and flowers)
Unpaid debts and bills
Living costs for dependents
Inheritance tax (if the policy is written in trust)

While funeral insurance offers some flexibility for your loved ones, it’s not guaranteed that you can take out the level of cover you need for the full cost of your funeral.

However, having at least some protection in place can help ease some of the financial burden when the time comes.

Compare best funeral insurance UK [top 6]

In the table below we’ve provided a quick comparison of the top 6 over 50s life insurance policies in the UK.

The shortlist has been chosen based on our own research here at Reassured.

	Maximum sum assured	Waiting period	Free Benefits	Age premiums stop	Pay out for £20 a month
4.8 - 'Excellent' (based on all services)	£18,000	12 months	Funeral benefit option Flexible premiums RedArc Wellbeing Support^¶	95	£4,561
4.5 - 'Excellent' (based on all services)	£20,000	24 months	Funeral benefit option Terminal illness cover Flexible premiums	90	£5,217
4.3 - 'Excellent' (based on all services)	£15,000	24 months	Funeral Benefit Option Flexible premiums Family bereavement services	90	£4,632
3.9 - 'Great' (based on all services)	£15,000	24 months	Smart Health services Protected insurance amount	90	£4,923
4.0 - 'Great' (based on all services)	£10,000	12 months	Funeral benefit option RedArc Wellbeing Support Care Concierge Flexible premiums	90	£4,766
4.9 - 'Excellent' (based on all services)	£10,000	12 months	Funeral Benefit Option Health & Wellbeing services Free Will kit Increasing benefit option	95	N/A

The information in this table is correct as of 02/01/25 and is subject to change at any time. Example payout amounts are for a 60 year old non-smoker, paying £20 a month

We’ve written this best life insurance for over 50s UK guide if you’d like to learn more about each of the policies listed in our top 6.

How much funeral insurance do you need?

When calculating how much cover you may need, you may want to consider the average cost of a basic funeral which is £4,141 in the UK^[1].

The average total cost of dying is currently £9,658, which includes other funeral related costs, including flowers, a memorial and venue hire.

You could take out enough funeral insurance to help cover a basic funeral or you may wish to take out a higher level of cover to help towards the extra costs.

As mentioned, the maximum cover amount available through Reassured is £20,000 depending on your age, smoking status and budget.

Tip: You may also want to factor in rising funeral costs when deciding how much cover you need. Due to inflation, the price of a funeral in the future may be much higher than that of today. According to SunLife, average funeral costs have increased 126% since 2004. Therefore, to ensure that your family have sufficient funds when the time comes, you could take this into account when securing life insurance to help cover funeral costs.

Funeral insurance calculator

Use our handy calculator to add up the costs you’d like your funeral insurance policy to cover and find out your ideal sum assured.

£ -

Your total cover estimate

£ 0

Let us help you find our best quotes

Compare Our Best Funeral Insurance Quotes »

How much does funeral insurance cost?

Funeral insurance monthly premiums are determined by your:

Age
Smoking status
Cover amount

Over 50s funeral insurance could start from just £5 a month through Reassured.

In the table below, we’ve provided examples of how much cover you could secure for £25 a month as a non-smoker:

Age	50	55	60	65	70	75	80
Sum assured	£8,743	£7,181	£6,118	£4,978	£3,581	£2,539	£1,829

Use our award-winning comparison service to get your free, personalised quotes.

What’s the difference between funeral insurance and a pre-paid funeral plan?

There are many differences between funeral insurance and a pre-paid funeral plan.

Here we explain some of the main differences:

Funeral insurance (over 50s life insurance)	Pre-paid funeral plan
You pay a monthly premium until you pass away or until a specified age (such as 90). The cost is calculated using your age, smoking status and the level of cover you choose	Comes at a fixed cost which you need to pay in full upfront or in monthly instalments over a specified term (instalment fees may apply)
The pay out is made to your chosen beneficiary/ies	The pay out goes directly to a nominated funeral director when you pass away
Pay out is not tied to any specific costs, can help towards a funeral or any other expense	Covers the cost of specific funeral services that you choose in advance
Your loved ones will need to plan your funeral when the time comes	You pre-arrange your funeral as per your wishes
Doesn’t guarantee to cover the total cost of your funeral	Guarantees to cover the total cost of services included in the plan

Pre-paid funeral plans tend to cost upwards of £4,000 and can be more expensive than funeral insurance as you’ll need to pay the fixed amount within an agreed time frame.

Funeral insurance can offer a low-cost monthly premium for a potentially larger pay out (depending on your age), making it a simple and affordable option for many.

How to find the best funeral insurance for you

Shopping around and comparing quotes can help you to find the right funeral insurance at the right price for you.

At Reassured, our funeral insurance comes in the form of an over 50s plan, which guarantees acceptance to UK residents aged 50 - 85 and could provide up to £20,000 of cover.

The money could help to cover your funeral expenses or can be used for other things depending on your family’s needs.

We offer an award-winning broker service to help you compare quotes from top UK insurers and secure your perfect policy.

Simply click through to our online form and our expert team will be on hand to provide your free quotes.

Free Funeral Insurance Comparison » Get Our Best deal

Funeral insurance UK FAQs

Can you secure more than one funeral insurance policy?

Yes, it’s possible to take out multiple funeral insurance policies to secure multiple pay outs.

However, while you can have more than one policy, maximum cover limits for each insurer will still apply.

For example, if your cover limit is £10,000 with an insurer due to your age, you wouldn’t be able to secure more than this across all policies you take out with them.

However, you could take out multiple policies from different insurers if this is within your budget.

How much is funeral insurance per week?

Funeral insurance could cost from just 20p-a-day or £1.40 a week through Reassured.

However, exactly how much you’ll pay will depend on your age, lifestyle and how much cover you take out.

Can you get life insurance with funeral cover?

Yes, some over 50s life insurance policies come with optional funeral cover, commonly known as a ‘funeral benefit option’.

If you choose to add the funeral benefit option to your policy, it’s completely free and gives you up to £300 extra to help towards your funeral costs.

When you pass away, your over 50s life insurance pay out will go directly to an appointed funeral director who’ll carry out your funeral as per your wishes.

This could be a good option if you’re torn between taking out a funeral plan or life insurance policy.

What is the difference between life insurance and funeral cover?

Life insurance is a type of policy that pays out if you pass away during a specified term (such as 30 years) and is often taken out to help protect a family or mortgage.

Funeral cover could describe different types of insurance taken out to help cover funeral costs, such as an over 50s plan, a specialised funeral insurance policy or a pre-paid funeral plan.

What is burial insurance?

Burial insurance is simply another term used to describe funeral insurance. It’s not a separate product available in the UK.

If your chosen funeral type is a burial and you want to help cover the cost, you may consider a form of funeral insurance or a pre-paid funeral plan.

Sources:

^¶RedArc is a support service that isn’t regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. These services aren’t part of the terms and conditions of the SunLife Guaranteed Over 50 Plan and may be amended or withdrawn at any time

[1] https://www.sunlife.co.uk/funeral-costs/