Over 50s Insurance vs Funeral Plans

When we reach a significant milestone, such as the age of 50 and beyond, we are more likely to be able to start enjoying the fruits from years of hard work. However, thinking about the wellbeing of our family and planning for when we are no longer around, rightly takes up more of our time as well.

There are several options for the over 50’s to choose from to assist families financially when that time comes, and two of the most popular in the UK are prepaid funeral plans, and life insurance policies.

A prepaid funeral plan is an easy way to pre-arrange the funeral you want. You can leave behind clear instructions regarding your wishes, and the cost for the funeral director’s services are frozen at today's prices. An over 50’s life insurance policy will leave a lump sum to your loved ones when you pass away.

All Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plans protect you from inflation and any price rises. Over 50’s life insurance policies do not.

If we had the choice, we all would want to be able to pay for things we need in the future at today prices, it just makes good financial sense, but rarely is this an option.

However, with any Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plan, that is exactly what you can do. Even if you choose to spread the cost over a number of years, not only are you are covered once the agreed payments have been made, but the price you pay for the services included in your plan are frozen at that point as well, no matter what happens in the future.

This is something an over 50’s fixed life insurance policy is often not able to do. These plans guarantee to leave a lump-sum for your loved ones, but this figure is often fixed when you take it out, never to increase, and often ignoring inflation. This means that over a period of 20 years or more an over 50’s life insurance policy can be devalued by hundreds of pounds, and depending on how long you live, and when you took it out, that could mean you leave behind a fixed sum that is actually worth less than what you paid in.

Funeral Plans for over 50’s are a specialist product, and as a result also help your loved ones with funeral planning and arrangements

With any Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plan, you are guaranteeing the services of a trusted funeral director at today’s prices, and that your wishes will be passed onto your family, so they aren’t left guessing what you would have wanted. Your loved ones will have help from experienced and compassionate professionals, working to a pre-agreed plan so things like limousines, your preferred coffin, pallbearers, and a hearse will have already been arranged.

An over 50’s life insurance policy is not designed to help with the emotional aspects of planning a funeral, it just means your loved ones will not have to meet the full funeral cost.

This means tasks such as finding a reliable and trusted funeral director, and making decisions without structured guidance about the funeral itself will be up to your family during this difficult and emotional time.

You are in control of the overall cost, how you want to pay, and for how long

If you are over 50 and take out a funeral plan with Dignity, you are in complete control of how you want to pay for it. You can choose to pay in one lump sum, or over a period of up to 25 years.* You will know exactly how much it costs, how long your payment plan is for, and most importantly, once the amount due has been paid, your payments will stop.

With an over 50’s life insurance policy, there is often no end to your payment plan while you are still alive, but the amount that is guaranteed to be paid to your loved ones may not increase. This means that once you pass the point of what you have paid in equalling what they will receive, the monthly payments may still continue. 

Should you change your mind, you can get your money back with any Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plan. With an over 50’s life insurance policy, it is locked away

Dignity know that people’s situations and personal preferences can change, particularly over a number of years. As a result, as long as you have kept up with the payments into your plan, you can request your money back at any time, minus a £249 fee, if you cancel your policy after more than 30 days after its start date.

This is often not the case with over 50’s life insurance policies. As these are insurance products, once the ‘cooling off’ period is over, they may commit you for life or to a certain age, meaning if you need access to any additional funds for any reason in the future, or you simply change your mind, often you will not be able to get any of your money back.