Moneyextra and MSN to offer new life cover service

MSN, UK portal, and online IFA Moneyextra today launch a brand new financial service, which will give MSN users full access to life insurance policies from across the whole market.

By answering a few simple questions, users will be able to obtain quotes and gain access to expert advice on a variety of life insurance and critical illness cover products, including level term cover, decreasing cover and Family Income Benefit (FIB).

The new service’s first life cover was put in place after just two phone calls in the space of two hours, the first 14 minutes long and the second 35 minutes long. The customer was seeking £80,000-worth of life insurance for 23 years. Cover was offered with immediate effect and policy documents posted out to arrive the following morning.

Moneyextra’s Senior Editor, Robin Amlôt commented “A significant proportion of UK consumers are paying over the odds for their life insurance and many of those with insurance don’t have enough. This new tool could help to save the great British public millions of pounds in premiums, simply by sourcing them a more cost effective and suitable policy for their individual needs.”

Alex Marks, UK Head of Marketing for Microsoft Digital Advertising Solutions, said: “The new tool, launched on MSN with Moneyextra, brings cutting edge technology and exciting new content to MSN UK’s 16.8million users per month and is an example of how we’re continually striving to improve the user experience.”

When seeking life insurance, consumers should consider the following questions as these will all have an impact on the monthly cost of their policy:

Why do you want life insurance? Is the policy to cover the mortgage or to provide an income?

How much do you want to insure? If you want insurance to provide an income, then it might be appropriate to insure your salary, whereas mortgage-linked term assurance will need to be the value of the mortgage taken.

How long do you want your insurance to last for? Mortgage-linked policies will need to have the same term as the mortgage itself, whilst other policies can provide cover for almost any length of time.

Are you happy for your monthly premiums to change over time? If not, then you should opt for a policy with a guaranteed premium.

How often should I review my life insurance? As life insurance premiums and your own circumstances can change regularly, it is advisable to review your situation every 12 to 24 months.

In addition to the above, the following will also have an effect on the monthly premium:

The age of the insured person

Their gender

If they’re a smoker (n.b. to be classed as a non-smoker you cannot have smoked any tobacco products in the last 12 months)

If they have any serious medical conditions (such as high blood pressure, diabetes, heart condition)

If they have any hazardous hobbies / employment (such as working offshore, the armed forces, steeplejacks and hobbies such as sailing, flying, climbing or parachuting)

Moneyextra’s new life insurance service on MSN can be accessed on moneycentral.moneyextra.com/protectionquote/.