Life insurance
Joint life insurance or two single policies
Enter both ages and the term. The calculator gives the chance each policy design pays out, from the ONS life tables.
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Joint policy or two single ones
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A joint first-death policy pays out in
17%
| First person’s own policy pays | 12% |
| Second person’s own policy pays | 6.4% |
| Two single policies both pay | 0.75% |
A joint policy pays once, at the first death, then ends. Two single policies can both pay.
A joint life policy covers two people and pays once, normally at the first death within the term, after which the cover ends. Two single policies cover each person separately, so both can pay, and the survivor still has cover after the first claim. For a man of 40 and a woman of 38 over 25 years, the ONS life tables for 2022 to 2024 give a 17% chance that at least one of them dies within the term, which is when a joint first-death policy pays. His own policy would pay with a 12% chance, hers with 6.4%, and the chance that both single policies pay is 0.75%. A joint policy usually costs less than two single ones of the same sum, because it can pay only once; the second death in the term goes uncovered.
Rates read and sums checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How the figures are worked out
The odds for couples of different ages
The table gives, for a man and a woman over 20 years, the chance that a joint first-death policy pays, the chance that each single policy pays, and the chance both singles pay. The joint figure is always higher than either single one, because it covers two lives, and lower than their sum, because it can only pay once. The ONS national life tables are applied to each person independently.
| Ages | Joint first death pays | His single policy | Her single policy | Both singles pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 and 30 | 5.4% | 3.4% | 2.0% | 0.07% |
| 35 and 33 | 7.6% | 5.1% | 2.6% | 0.13% |
| 40 and 38 | 11% | 7.4% | 4.0% | 0.30% |
| 45 and 45 | 17% | 11% | 7.0% | 0.76% |
| 50 and 48 | 24% | 16% | 9.1% | 1.5% |
What the survivor is left with
After a joint policy pays, the survivor has no cover. If they still have children at home or debts of their own, they would have to buy a new policy at their new age, and any change in health since the first purchase counts against them. Two single policies leave the survivor with their own cover intact. That matters most for younger couples with long terms; for a couple whose only concern is clearing the mortgage at the first death, a joint policy does the job for less.
Equal or unequal sums
A joint policy pays the same sum whoever dies first. Two single policies can be sized to each person: more on the higher earner, enough on the partner who does most of the childcare to pay for it. The life cover calculator can be run twice, once for each death, to see the two amounts.
What the state and the tax rules add
A married survivor with a child for whom Child Benefit is paid can claim Bereavement Support Payment at the higher rate after either death. A spouse or civil partner inherits free of inheritance tax; an unmarried partner does not, which is one reason to put either kind of policy in trust. Those rules apply in the same way to a joint or a single policy, so they do not decide between them. The choice comes down to cost against the cover the survivor keeps.
When a joint policy ends early
A joint policy is a single contract for two people. If the couple separate, it cannot usually be split into two single policies, so the choice is to keep it going, with both still covered and one claim between them, or to cancel it and apply again, each at an older age and with any change in health since the start. Some insurers offer a separation option that lets each person take out a new single policy without fresh medical questions within a set time; it is worth asking whether one exists before buying. Two single policies avoid the question altogether, because each one belongs to the person it covers and continues whatever happens to the relationship.