Aviva life insurance review

Founded more than 300 years ago, Aviva now has more than 15 million customers in the UK, making it the nation’s largest insurer.

Its life insurance is designed to give peace of mind that your family will be on firm financial ground should the worst happen.

Who is Aviva?

Aviva can trace its roots back to 1696, with the establishment of the Hand in Hand Fire and Life Insurance Society. Previously operating as Norwich Union, the insurer rebranded to Aviva in 2009. Aviva is now the UK’s biggest insurer and has millions of customers in Europe, Asia and Canada too.

It offers a wide range of insurance products under the Aviva brand, including car, home and travel insurance, alongside life insurance, pensions and investments.

What types of life insurance does Aviva offer?

Aviva has three types of insurance that pay out a lump sum in the event of your death (term life insurance and over-50s life insurance) or diagnosis of a life-changing illness (critical illness insurance). For all types, the full amount of cover is only paid out once, even if you have a joint policy that covers two people.

Aviva term life insurance

With term life insurance you select how long you want cover to last. For example, you could choose a term that lasts until that hard-to-imagine date in the future when you finally pay off your mortgage. If, during the term, you die or are diagnosed with a terminal illness, your loved ones will get a lump sum payment.

Aviva offers three types of term life insurance.

1. Level term life insurance: Both your monthly payments and the cover amount stay the same.
2. Increasing life insurance: The cover amount increases in line with inflation. Your monthly payments also rise in line with inflation multiplied by 1.5.
3. Decreasing life insurance: Your payments stay the same but the level of cover decreases over time.

Aviva critical illness cover

Aviva’s critical illness plans cover you for a maximum of £1 million if you’re diagnosed with a major illness. After you’ve received one payout in full, the cover ends. For some of the comparatively less serious conditions covered, such as low-grade prostate cancer or Crohn’s disease, Aviva pays out either £20,000 or £25,000 (or a percentage of your cover) on diagnosis and full amount of cover remains intact. You can claim for these once per person covered by the policy.

Aviva offers three types of critical illness cover.

1. Level term critical illness cover: Both your monthly payments and the cover amount stay the same.
2. Increasing term critical illness cover: The cover amount increases in line with inflation and your monthly payments may also rise.
3. Decreasing term critical illness cover: Your payments stay the same but the level of cover decreases over time.

Aviva over-50s life insurance

When you take out an Aviva over-50s plan you can start by choosing either the monthly amount you want to pay (between £5 and £100), or the lump sum paid on death, up to the maximum shown in the table below. As with all over-50s life insurance policies, lump sums are typically lower than for standard life insurance policies, and the lump sum may be less than the premiums you’ve paid.

Once you turn 90 or you’ve had cover for 30 years, you stop paying premiums (and perhaps put the savings towards a 100th birthday party to remember).

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Name	Product	Age range at application	Cover range	Term	Pays out	Joint cover	Link
Aviva Term Life Insurance Finder Award		18-89	Up to £5 million	1 to 50 years	If you die or get a terminal illness and aren’t expected to live longer than 12 months	Yes - only pays out for the first member of a couple to become terminally ill or die		Compare	loading Fetching your data...
Aviva Critical Illness Cover		18-64	Up to £1 million	5 to 50 years	If you become critically ill and live for 10 days after diagnosis	Yes - only pays out in full once		Compare	loading Fetching your data...
Aviva Over-50s Life Insurance		50-80	£257 to £32,054 (subject to age and premium)	Lifetime	In the event of death	No		Compare	loading Fetching your data...

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Benefits of Aviva life insurance

• Aviva offers parents of children under 4 a year’s free life insurance, with a cover limit of £15,000. There are a few exclusions – head over to Aviva’s website to find out more.
• If you’re buying a house at the point you apply for Aviva life insurance, it will give you up to 90 days free cover before your policy officially starts, to cover the period between exchange of contracts (or completion of missives in Scotland) and completion on your new home.
• Aviva’s critical illness policies pay up to £25,000 or 50% of the cover amount (whichever is lower) if your child has a critical illness.
• Aviva’s life insurance plan (as bought directly from Aviva) gets a 5-star Defaqto rating.

Drawbacks of Aviva life insurance

• According to the list of critical illnesses it covers, Aviva covers fewer conditions under its critical illness policy than some of its rivals.
• As with most life insurance policies, Aviva’s policies have no cash-in value – if you stop paying your premiums, you won’t get any money back and your cover will stop.

Aviva life insurance exclusions

The specific exclusions will depend on which type of cover you take out, so you’ll need to check the policy documents carefully, but some key exclusions are:
• As with all insurance, if you don’t answer questions truthfully when you apply, this might invalidate your cover.
• You must be a permanent resident of the UK to apply.
• Aviva’s life insurance won’t pay a claim if you die as a result of suicide or “intentional self-inflicted injury” within the first 12 months of your policy.
• You can’t claim under a terminal illness in the last 12 months of Aviva’s life insurance plan.
• Aviva’s critical illness policies only cover you for the conditions named in the policy.
• If you die within the first year after taking out an Aviva over-50s plan, the full cash lump sum is not payable unless you die as the result of an accident.

What’s the claims process for Aviva’s life insurance?

Claims can be made by phone (0800 015 1142), using Aviva’s online form, or in writing to Aviva, Claims Assessment Team, PO Box 520, Norwich, NR1 3WG.

The person claiming will need the policy details and, depending on the claim, may also need to supply medical information (such as a doctor’s contact details) or a death certificate.

If the claim is accepted, payment will be made within five working days of Aviva’s decision.

Frequently asked questions

• How much does Aviva life insurance cost?

  How much you’ll pay will depend on the level of cover you choose and, for term life insurance and critical illness cover, your personal circumstances – including your age, health and lifestyle. Aviva says its term life insurance starts from £5 a month. Things like smoking or pre-existing medical conditions are likely to push your premiums up.

• What if I can't afford to pay my premiums?

  Aviva gives you 60 days from the due date to pay your premium. After this, your cover will be cancelled and you won’t get anything back, so have a good think about what you can afford when you take out your policy.

• Can I make changes to my Aviva policy?

  With Aviva’s term life insurance and critical illness cover, you can change the amount or length of cover. This may involve either updating or replacing your policy, and may require you to provide some medical information. You can’t make changes to Aviva’s over-50s plans.

• Is the lump sum payment taxable?

  Life insurance payments are currently free from income and capital gains tax in the UK but may be subject to inheritance tax, depending on the value of your estate. It’s also worth noting that tax rules could change in the future, which might affect the tax implications on your payout.

• Do I need financial advice before buying life insurance?

  You don’t have to take financial advice before buying life insurance, but it’s an important purchase and you don’t want to make the wrong decision when your family’s financial security is at stake. Unless you’re certain what you need, speaking to an independent financial adviser can ensure you have a proper needs assessment that takes into account your circumstances and any other relevant cover you might have as well as the tax implications.