Posts Tagged ‘Life Assurance Ireland’

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Income Protection – A Vital Product to Protect Against the Unexpected

Monday, May 17th, 2010

While having Life Assurance for your Mortgage and for personal reasons is extremely important to protect your family and loved ones in the case of the unexpected, Income Protection should be given the same priority when individuals are considering their financial security.
If you were not able to work due to illness or injury you would only receive circa €10k per annum from the state (this drops to zero if you are self employed).

In the average family monthly costs such as mortgage repayments, food, pension payments, school costs, car repayments, car and house insurance would struggle to be met from such a low annum state income. In certain countries it is a requirement when taking out a mortgage with certain lenders to have Income Protection and you can see why.

Income Protection (also known as PHI – Permenant Health Insurance) benefits from tax relief at your marginal (ie higher rate). For as little as circa €25 per month a 30 year old non smoker can protect €40k of their income (assumes tax relief at 49%, deferred period of 26 weeks, Occupation Class 1 – eg Accountant).

SmartQuotes.ie offer Income Protection real time quotes. Why not go online or call us on 01 6853813 to find out more?

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Switch and Save on your Life Cover

Saturday, May 1st, 2010

Life cover may be cheaper than you thought it was. If you took out your current policy a number of years ago, it may be a good time to look at today’s best buy rates. Life Cover rates have come down a lot the last few years as discussed here,

SmartQuotes.ie compare all the market providers to offer you the cheapest life assurance quote available from the main providers in Ireland. In addition we offer a discount on the first year’s premium. SmartQuotes.ie are currently offering up to a 70% discount on the first year’s premium on certain products including life assurance. Unlike other providers we allow individuals on monthly payment plans to benefit from a discount in their first twelve months premiums.

This saving on a €50 a month policy will equate to a €420 saving in the first twelve months as well as any ongoing saving you obtain by shopping around for the lowest monthly rate (this could save as much as €10 per month in certain cases). Savings can also be made where a policy holder has recently stopped smoking or now requires a lower amount of cover due to a change in circumstances (loans repaid etc).

SmartQuotes.ie have agencies with all the main players in the Life Assurance market such as Caledonian Life, New Ireland, Irish Life, Friends First, Zurich, Aviva and Canada Life. Go online today to obtain a quick quote and start saving.

http://www.smartquotes.ie/life-assurance/

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The Economiser

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

The National Consumer Agency have launched an excellent tool to help individuals save on their day to day outgoings. It’s well worth a look and can be done in less than 10 mins.

The website also allows you to sign up for a regular newsletter which outlines money saving tips. SmartQuotes.ie regularly promotes value for money products on our blog. If you have something you wish us to promote please contact us.

SmartQuotes.ie are Ireland’s leading low cost Financial Services and Insurance website.  We provide low cost pensions, cheap life assurance, cheap mortgage protection, cheap income protection and cheap critical illness cover.  Our technology allows users to obtain quick quotes online in just a few simple steps. Go to www.smartquotes.ie for further details

For Protection products SmartQuotes.ie compare all the market providers to offer you  the lowest quote available.  In addition we offer a discount on the first year’s premium. We are currently offering up to a 70% discount on the first year’s premium on certain products. Unlike other providers we allow individuals on monthly payment plans to benefit from a discount in their first years premium. Go to http://www.smartquotes.ie/life-assurance/ for further details on how to avail of this offer or call us on (01) 685 3813.


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The Cost of Life Assurance

Monday, March 22nd, 2010

We thought it would be useful to illustrate the cost of life assurance for a number of different age categories.  We have used a base figure of €150,000 Dual Life Assurance*:

Age Group Monthly Fee Monthly Discounted Yr. 1
Couple aged 30 €18.23 €9.12
Couple Aged 40 €36.23 €10.87
Couple aged 50 €66.61 €19.98
Couple aged 55 €143.62 €43.09

It is interesting to note that none of the policy’s under standard circumstances require a medical to be undertaken. In most cases a PMA (confirmation from your Doctor on the accuracy of your medical questionnaire) is sufficient.

It also illustrates that the cost of life assurance for over 50’s is not as prohibitive as may have been previously thought.

* All based on 20 years cover for a couple non smokers.  Dual Life Quotes. All are subject to underwriting by the insurance companies. Figures correct at time of posting only.

Dual Life Cover is a life insurance policy that provides cover for two people and continues after the first person dies. It pays out benefits on each death. It could potentially pay out twice during the course of the policy.

SmartQuotes.ie compare the market to offer you the lowest life assurance quote in Ireland. We then discount this by up to 70%. We allow people on monthly payment plans to benefit from this discount from Month 1. Go to www.smartquotes.ie/life-assurance or call us on (01) 685 3813

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Review your life assurance and save thousands

Monday, March 1st, 2010

The Financial Regulator has recently published a report (available here) detailing some of the ways that consumers can save money on their life assurance and mortgage protection by reviewing their cover.  A few points worth noting:

-  If you have stopped smoking in the past you should consider reviewing your cover.  For example a 30 year old with €300k life cover will save nearly 40% (€33.09 per month reduces down to €19.94 per month)

-  Review your cover. For example, if you originally on an interest only mortgage and took out level term cover and are now on a capital and interest mortgage, mortgage life assurance (also known as mortgage protection) may be a more suitable and cheaper product.

SmartQuotes.ie offer cheap life assurance and mortgage protection.  SmartQuotes.ie compare all the market providers to you to offer you the lowest quote available.  In addition we offer a discount on the first year’s premium. We are currently offering up to a 70% discount on the first year’s premium on certain products including life assurance and mortgage protection. Unlike other providers we allow individuals on monthly payment plans to benefit from a discount in their first years premium.

Click here to get more information and a quote

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Irish Life Protection Report – 95% of claims paid

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

A recent report from Irish Life identifies a number of key points:

- 95% of claims made paid – Irish Life’s 2009 claims figures revealed that one in four people in Ireland will suffer a serious illness before reaching retirement age

- One in 10 people dying before they reach retirement age.

While these are not the nicest things to think about this report highlights the importance of life assurance and critical illness cover to provide for you family in the event of the unthinkable occuring.

Life Assurance is relatively in-expensive when you are young. For example a 30 year old couple the cost for dual life assurance for €300,000 is as low as €29.91 per month*. Providing the application does not highlight any issues the cover can be put in place in a few days with no requirement for a medical.

SmartQuotes.ie compare all the market providers to offer you the lowest quote available. In addition we offer a discount on the first year’s premium. We are currently offering up to a 70% discount on the first year’s premium on certain products including life assurance. Unlike other providers we allow individuals on monthly payment plans to benefit from a discount in their first years premium.

Click here for a quote

*Both non smokers over 20 years.

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Free Life Assurance for New Parents!

Wednesday, January 27th, 2010

It’s great news for new parents – and a golden opportunity for you! Under a new initiative, Aviva (formerly Hibernian Aviva) will provide €10,000 of FREE life cover for each parent of a baby under 6 months old. The cover will run until the child’s first birthday.

  • There are no hidden catches.
  • No payment is needed.
  • Applications are made on-line.
  • No bank or credit card details required.

Why are Aviva making such a unique offer?

Our offer is designed to help people start thinking about their protection needs, to safeguard the financial future of their families. With 40% of Irish adults* holding no life cover at all, there’s a significant gap in the market – and people are being exposed to unnecessary financial risks.

How do I apply?

Simply complete the Contact Us form here to request an application form.

One of our team will send you out the required paperwork within 24 hours.

www.smartquotes.ie

*Source: Millward Brown Lansdowne – Aviva Brand Tracker 2009.

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How much does life cover cost for over 50’s?

Tuesday, January 26th, 2010

There are a lot of products out in the market aimed at the over 50’s. While some of these are good products there are lower cost alternatives available to individuals with no major health issues.  For illustrative purposes €200,000 life cover for a 50 year old male for 15 years (i.e. until retirement) would cost €57.32 per month.

For individuals over 50’s life assurance may be an important consideration for a number of reasons such as:

  • Children still in full time education
  • Business loans that are not yet paid off
  • Negative equity on an investment property (if the property is sold the amount may not cover the loan)
  • Other loans
  • Drop in accumulated pension funds therefore reducing benefits for a spouse in the event of death

Based on the above details the underwriting requirements are a report from GP on your medical history. In a lot of cases a report from your GP should address these issues without the need for a full medical, providing no major health issues are raised. Obviously due to the nature of the cover each case is different therefore the above should only be considered as being for illustrative purposes.

SmartQuotes.ie are offering up to a 70% discount on the first years premium resulting in the monthly outgoing for the first 12 months reducing to €17.20 per month.  SmartQuotes.ie have agencies with all the major insurers including Aviva, Canada Life, New Ireland, Hibernian and Zurich.

Contact SmartQuotes.ie to obtain a quote on your over 50’s Life Assurance. You can obtain a quote online at our Life Assurance page here or call us on (01) 685 3813.

Assumptions:

  • Male Non Smoker DOB 20/1/1960
  • Cover €200k for 15 years (i.e. to normal retirement age)
  • Non convertible

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Life Assurance Terms Explained

Wednesday, January 13th, 2010

We are often asked to explain the jargon associated with life assurance.

There are two main types of mainstream life cover:

Mortgage Protection (also known as mortgage life cover)

Life Assurance (also known as term assurance)

The difference between a mortgage protection policy and life assurance is that a life assurance policy pays out an agreed lump sum to a surviving spouse or family on the death of the policyholder. A mortgage protection policy pays off the remaining balance on a mortgage loan to the bank if the policyholder dies before the mortgage is paid off.

It is important to realise that with life assurance the sum assured does not decrease, whereas with mortgage protection the sum assured decreases because the sum assured is equal to the balance on the mortgage loan account.

Most people who have a mortgage will have mortgage protection.

Mortgage Protection should not be confused with mortgage repayment protection which pays your mortgage for 12 months if you lose your job etc.

For life assurance there are two main types of cover dual cover and joint cover.  Dual Life Cover is a life insurance policy that provides cover for two people and continues after the first person dies. It pays out benefits on each death.  It could potentially pay out twice during the course of the policy. Joint cover will pay benefits on the first death of either insured person.  As a result joint life cover is usually cheaper.  All mortgage protection cover by nature is joint cover

There are also other options when taking out a life assurance policy:

-         Convertible option

-         Indexation

Convertible option – At the end of the term you have chosen you have the option to continue your life cover without the need for further medical information.

Indexation – This option allows you to increase your life cover in line with inflation. The indexation rates vary between providers and clients should always ask what indexation rate applies to their premium and their benefits.

SmartQuotes.ie compares the market to find the cheapest life assurance/ mortgage protection quote for you.

www.smartquotes.ie

For further jargon translations a useful website is http://www.itsyourmoney.ie/jargonbuster

All text/figures are correct at the time of publishing.  Figures are for illustrative purposes only.  If Financial Advice is required you should contact SmartQuotes (trading name of PFP Financial Services Limited).

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The Reduced Cost of Life Assurance/ Mortgage Protection

Monday, January 11th, 2010

Life assurance costs have reduced in the past few years mainly as a result of increased competition in the market. For illustration purposes we thought it might be worthwhile to examine this for both life assurance and mortgage protection (also known as life assurance for your mortgage)

A mortgage protection policy for a couple (male aged 27 smoker, female aged 28 non smoker) in the amount of €522,500 over 35 years cost €57.24 per month in 2007. Today it costs €54.19 per month. A reduction of 5.3%.

A life assurance policy for the same couple (dual life, convertible term, indexation) over 25 years would have costs €37.87 in 2006. Today it costs €33.73 per month.  A reduction of 11% per month.

The above demonstrates the possible savings to be made by shopping around. Go to our life insurance quote generator to obtain a quote in a few easy steps.

SmartQuotes.ie can provide you with a real time quote for cheap life assurance or cheap mortgage protection.  Why not go on our site and compare against the cost of your existing cover.  In addition to providing the lowest quote by comparing all the market providers we also currently offer up to 70% rebate on the first year’s premium.

Finding based on the comparison on one sample life assurance quote and one sample mortgage protection quote. Different circumstances may obtain different results.

All figures are correct at the time of publishing.  These figures are for illustrative purposes only.  If Financial Advice is required you should contact SmartQuotes (trading name of PFP Financial Services Limited

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