Risky attitudes to life insurance

Less than half the adult population have life insurance cover, and that even fewer have ever switched their life insurance provider, meaning that as a nation we are under-insured and could well be over-paying for inadequate cover, according to research from Confused.com.

60% of people don't have a life insurance policy;

Of those without life insurance, 69% are married or in a relationship and 35% have children;

Only 30% of people have ever switched life insurance providers;

Men are more likely to switch provider than women - 35% of men had switched provider compared to 29% of women;

Regionally, the people in the East Midlands were the best with 53% having cover, compared to Northern Ireland, the worst region with just 35% choosing to protect their loved ones;

In terms of switching, the savviest region is the South East where 36% of people have switched, but at just over a third of people it's not an outstanding performance. The North East is the worst region for switching where just one in four have made a change;

Commenting on the findings, Matthew Lloyd, head of life Insurance at Confused.com, said: "It's worrying that so few people have a life insurance policy, and equally worrying that so few have switched provider. Any change in life circumstances, like getting married, buying a new house, starting a family or even getting divorced should be a trigger for reviewing your life cover and ensuring you have the right level for your needs. The fact that so few people with life insurance have ever switched provider suggests that they may not be reviewing it either, making regularly monthly payments and forgetting about it.

"Having the wrong level of cover could make a huge difference in the event that something did happen to the policy holder. The mortgage might not be fully paid, income needed to support children as well as a spouse may no longer be at a sufficient level or a new partner might have been overlooked.

"It's important to revisit the policies whenever a life change happens or every 2 years as a minimum, and that customers shop around for the best deal for their needs, comparing prices and levels of cover rather than blindly continuing with their existing policy. Reviewing your policy doesn't have to mean an increase in payments, changing provider may enable customers to get greater cover for decreased premiums, or the review might bring to light that not as much cover is needed."