Tesco is one of the leading and most popular supermarkets in the UK and has its own Tesco bank, which offers a wide variety of financial products and services ranging from loans and mortgages to life insurance.

Tesco Life policies on offer include:

• Life insurance
• Over 50s life insurance
• Critical illness insurance

Policy providers include Friends Life Limited and Aviva Life & Pensions UK Limited and offer level and decreasing term life insurance policies for consumers to choose from.
Level coverage is subject to a maximum age of 84, where a cash sum is paid out if the insured dies or is diagnosed with a terminal illness during the term. It can range from five to up to forty years, and the coverage and monthly premiums are fixed during this policy term. Customers benefit from repayments, which are designed for an interest-only mortgage, and the plan provides for beneficiaries, allowing them to maintain their quality of life.

Recognising new families, new parents can also benefit from free life insurance with Tesco, receiving up to £10,000 worth of life cover up until their child's first birthday should the worst happen.

You can purchase both single or joint policies; however, joint policies only pay out one lump sum on the first successful claim. Once this has been paid out, your plan will then end. Tesco also ensures that your monthly premium will never go up, even if there should be a change to your health after taking the policy.

More reasons to consider Tesco Life insurance includes:

• They offer premiums for all ages consistently compared to other insurers
• There are a smaller number of exclusions compared to other competitors
• Favourable rates for smokers and vapers
• Great quotes for shared cover
• Exceptional testimonials and reviews from consumers regarding their customer care

How much does it cost?

The minimum premium is £5 a month, but the cost of Tesco life insurance will vary greatly depending on the policy that you take out. Factors such as your age, gender, general health, if you are a smoker, and even where you live all come under consideration during the application process.

To qualify for Tesco life insurance, you need to be a UK resident between the ages of 18 to 85, and you must be 100% honest when filling out the application form. An application with incorrect information will affect your ability to make a claim later down the line. It is also worth mentioning that you should contact your insurers as soon as possible should there be any change in personal information or circumstance.

The types of life insurance on offer include:

Critical illness insurance

- The life part of the policy pays out a lump sum only once if the policyholder should die and can be added to either a level or decreasing term life insurance plan or purchased separately. It will also cover you if you are diagnosed with a terminal illness and covers up to 35 of them, including strokes, heart attacks, advanced stages of cancer, and comas, to name but a few.
With the critical illness policy, premiums are fixed for the first five years and then reviewed annually, where they are subject to a potential increase or decrease.

If selected, the cash sum benefit for this plan can be put towards many things, including mortgage repayments, adapting the home to accommodate medical conditions, and paying household bills. Special events and options for a mortgage increase and extensions are available together with the critical illness insurance; however, should premium payments stop, the coverage will end without a refund. Please note that age, personal medical history, gender, occupation, and lifestyle are all taken into consideration for premiums based upon this plan.

Over 50's

- Designed for UK residents specifically between the ages of 50 to 80, the over 50's life insurance policy doesn't require you to answer any questions relating to your health, nor any medical tests. Premiums are based on coverage level as well as gender and age and start at £7 per month. There is a limit up to £100 for 30 years, or until the policy holder's 90th birthday when the policy anniversary comes into force. The cash benefit will be paid upon the death of the insured once the policy is in effect for two years.
This plan will pay for accidental death within the first two years and pay one and a half times the premiums for any other cause of death.

Level and Decreasing term life insurance

- Level and decreasing term policies are based on age, gender, lifestyle, occupation, smoking status, and personal and medical history. They do not have a cash-in value; therefore, failing to pay the agreed premiums will cancel coverage without a refund.

The policy includes a terminal illness provision that can be set up to insure a single-life or two. It pays the cash payout if the insured is diagnosed with a terminal illness at least 18 months before the term end date. Once this is paid, the policy then ends, which is also the same for joint plans.

Decreasing term life insurance also covers a standard repayment mortgage, also called mortgage life insurance, and decreases each year in line with a repayment mortgage. The policy term may range from 10 to 40 years, subject to a maximum age of 84 and fixed for the term. Mortgage increase and extension options are also available with the plan allowing the insured the flexibility to make adjustments to the coverage level or policy term.

Reviews

While there are very few reviews of Tesco life insurance as a whole, the financial services review site has awarded the insurance a bronze ribbon, awarding a ranking of 9 out of 24 providers. Both Tesco's life insurance and life insurance with critical illness have been rated 5 stars by independent financial researcher Defaqto, confirming that it is an 'excellent product.'
Tesco Bank has an easy online process making the procedure and financial planning more straightforward and accessible.

Please note that Tesco banks are no longer offering life insurance, but if you have already taken out a policy, this will continue as originally agreed. Tesco Bank is there for you should you need to make a claim, have any questions, or need to make a change to your current policy.