What happens if I stop paying my premiums?

If you stop paying your monthly premiums, the Life Company will, after a certain period of time, cancel your insurance. This is called "letting your policy lapse". The length of time between the last payment and lapsing your policy, varies between life insurance companies.

Your life insurance company will provide full details about lapsing policies within their "Key Feature Document" which will be sent to you.

If for some reason you were to miss a payment, then the life insurance company will always write to remind you - so your policy will never be lapsed without your prior knowledge. Furthermore, the insurance company will always give you time to correct a missed payment.

You should also be aware of an optional extra to your policy called "Waiver of Premium". If you include the "Waiver of Premium" option on your policy, then if you are unable to pay your premiums due to illness or accident or compulsory unemployment, the life insurance company will pay the premiums for you until you return to work. There is a small extra charge for this option - usually around 5% of your monthly premium.