Pension Term Assurance In The Independent
Monday, July 10th, 2006The Independent has written an article on pension term assurance, largely concentrating on the things to be wary of, rather than the savings that can be made.
…there are drawbacks to PTA. Above all, the cover you get will be of the most basic kind. For example, many people who buy conventional-term assurance also pay a small additional premium that allows them to keep their policy but stop paying premiums in the event that they are unable to work. This is known as “waiver of premium” cover, but is rarely available with PTA. Legal & General is the exception - offering it as a free add-on with its PTA policies - but as a result, the basic premiums are more expensive. Similarly, you cannot combine PTA with critical illness (CI) cover - which pays out a lump sum in the event that you contract any of a number of serious illnesses. Conventional life assurance is often sold with critical illness built in. A third restriction of PTA is that you cannot opt for an income to be paid to your dependants if you die. Unlike conventional life assurance, PTA can only pay out a lump sum on death. Liverpool Victoria is the only insurer that currently sells PTA on a joint basis - many couples prefer to buy cover this way.