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Life insurance with free gift – 2018 review

Which UK life insurance provider is currently offering the best welcome gift? Are you entitled to the free gift and when can you claim it?

Award-winning life insurance broker, Reassured, have carried out an extensive review into the best 3 life insurance and over 50s plans that come with a free gift.

Read on to learn all about the best offers available today and why they may not be quite as good as they first appear.

1) Legal & General – £150 Amazon.co.uk or M&S Gift Card

Letís begin with the UK’s largest insurer, Legal & General, who are offering new customers up to £150 Amazon.co.uk or M&S e-Gift Card.

At first, this appears to be one of the most enticing free gifts we identified and one which would appeal to many prospective customers.

But letís dive into the small print and see if every policyholder is entitled to claim this free gift?

As with all the different policies we researched, the answer is ‘no’.

The size of the gift card you receive is dependent on the cost of your monthly premium.

  • £6 to £10 = £25
  • £10.01 to £20.00 = £50
  • £20.01 to £30.00 = £100
  • £30.01+ = £150

So, in order to receive the £150 gift card, youíll need to be paying £30.01+ a month. If your monthly premium is £10 or less, youíll be offered a £25 gift card.

So be careful when you see an enticing headline, as thereís a good chance youíll not be entitled to the gift. This goes for all insurers and not just Legal & General.

2) Vitality – Apple Watch Series 3 GPS or Apple Watch Nike+ Series 3 GPS or JUST £29!

Vitality is currently offering something very different to the other providers; a choice of Apple watches for just £29. Or are they?

On first impressions, this is an amazing offer, as these Apple products retail from £329. But letís delve into the detail and see who exactly is entitled to this gift.

In order to be eligible for an Apple watch, youíll need to be paying a monthly premium of £30 or more. That excludes the majority of policyholders, who simply don’t require this level of cover.

Youíll also need to add their ‘Wellness’ or ‘Vitality’ optimiser app to your new smartwatch, which will cost you an extra £3.80 a month.

The optimiser app’s track and reward you for improving your health, earning you activity points. We commend Vitality for adding a health initiative to their life insurance, but is it achievable?

In order to receive the Apple watch for £29, youíll need to earn an enormous number of activity points. If you donít acquire the necessary points, the variable direct debit you have to set up for 24 months means youíll end up paying much more.

Finally, youíll need to complete an online health review. Remember Vitality also offer health insurance, so they potentially have the opportunity to cross-sell that product to you.

So, the ëApple Watch from £29′ headline, could be regarded as being slightly misleading. What initially seems like an incredible offer, is actually not that straightforward after all.

3) Direct Line – £75 Gift Card or access to Doctor Care Anywhere (12 months)

We found a slightly different welcome gift being offered by Direct Line; a choice of a £75 gift card (M&S or Amazon) or access to an online GP service for 1 year.

Youíll eligible for the gift card 3 months into the policy, as long as you have paid your premium and not cancelled the policy. Pretty standard.

However, having access to Doctor Care Anywhere is a far less conventional incentive. But is this GP subscription of any use?

Doctor Care Anywhere offers you access to a qualified GP via a secure online consultation. You can use the tool both in the UK and abroad, between 08:00 ñ 22:00, 365 days a year.

On the face of it, this offer sounds pretty appealing. However, remember this is just a 12-month trial and thereafter theyíll upsell you the paid subscription.

Also, please note, this offer is not available through Direct Line for their over 50s plan.

1) SunLife Guaranteed Over 50 Plan – £90 Gift Card (M&S or Argos)

SunLifeís Guaranteed Over 50 Plan currently offers a £90 gift card to new customers, the most generous in monetary terms that we found. Although, being restricted to just M&S and Argos doesnít provide customers too much choice.

It’s important to realise however that youíll not receive the gift until youíre 4 months into the policy. (You have to pay 3 months premiums, SunLife offer the first month for free).

Unlike most standard life insurance gifts, youíre eligible for this gift whether you apply online or over the phone. Strangely though, if you apply by post youíre only entitled to a £75 gift card?

2) Churchill Over 50s Plan- £75 Gift Card (Amazon, Argos or M&S)

Another popular over 50s plan is offered by insurer Churchill. Although they donít offer as valuable a gift card as SunLife, £75, you do get more flexibility because they offer an Amazon option. Which opens you up to virtually every feasible online purchase possible.

As with most free offers we investigated youíre not able to claim the gift until you have paid in 3 consecutive months premiums (and obviously not cancelled).

Can you see a reoccurring theme developing?

3) OneFamily Over 50s Plan – £30 M&S Gift Card or 3 months cashback

Although the £30 free M&S Gift Card is pretty underwhelming, you do have the option of requesting 3 months cashback. The only cashback incentive we identified direct from the insurer.

The mere £30 voucher is bettered by most over 50s plans, however, OneFamily does issue the gift quicker than most. Usually within 28 days of them receiving your 1st monthly premium.

If you choose the cashback option, theyíll return 3 months premiums, after they have received 6 monthsí premiums.

So, as with all these offers, the insurer makes sure youíre committed to them and that they have covered their costs, before issuing the gift.

Secure the RIGHT policy, NOT the best free gift

Sometimes a free gift is enough of an incentive for you to take out a particular policy. Especially if youíve compare quotes and all the rates are similar.

But, we believe the single most important thing is securing the right policy that meets your unique needs, over the whole term.

A free gift is obviously an incentive, offered by the insurer, encouraging you to take out a policy. However, long-term, itís much more cost-effective to ensure you secure the right policy, from the right provider, at the very best price.

At Reassured we use the information you provide to scan the market for you, identifying the best policies available. Then we offer you the choice, (but never charge a fee)!


Sources:

https://www.legalandgeneral.com/life-cover/ + https://www.legalandgeneral.com/life-cover/life-insurance/marks-and-spencers/

https://www.vitality.co.uk/rewards/partners/active-rewards/apple-watch/ + https://www.vitality.co.uk/rewards/partners/active-rewards/apple-watch/apple-watch-terms/

https://www.directline.com/life-cover/

https://www.sunlife.co.uk/life-cover/over-50-life-insurance/ + https://www.sunlife.co.uk/life-cover/over-50-life-insurance/welcome-gift/

https://www.churchill.com/life-insurance/over-50s/

https://www.onefamily.com/insurance/over-50s-life-cover-plus/ + https://www.onefamily.com/gift-terms-and-conditions/over-50s-gift-terms-and-conditions/