Funeral Insurance Plan FAQs

The death of a loved one can be a stressful time for anyone. The last thing you would want your loved ones to have to worry about would be the finances. Getting the finances together for a funeral at short notice can often introduce stress and pressure into an emotional situation. Having a Funeral Insurance Plan in place could potentially help relieve this pressure and give you peace of mind that your family will have some financial support when you pass away.

Yes, you can have more than one Funeral Insurance Plan. However, you should bear in mind if you have more than one whole of life insurance policy with British Seniors, they cannot exceed the maximum amount available for your age. This will be highlighted to you during the application process. These amounts break down as follows:

• £10,000 (aged 50-69 at start date)
• £9,000 (aged 70-74 at start date)
• £6,000 (aged 75-80 at start date)

This means that if you are aged 75-80 at the time of the application, the maximum you can be insured for across your policies with British Seniors would be limited to a total of £6,000.

With British Seniors, you have the option to take out a joint Funeral Insurance Plan. This can only be done with a spouse, civil partner and/or common law partner. If you wanted to take out a Funeral Insurance Plan on someone else’s behalf, you would need power of attorney over their affairs.

Once you’ve bought your Funeral Insurance Plan you should receive a welcome pack a few working days after. In this welcome pack you’ll find all the important documents such as the Key Facts and Policy Terms and Conditions. It is vital that you keep all these documents in a safe place. You might also consider letting your family know that you’ve bought a Funeral Insurance Plan. The Funeral Insurance Plan offers you whole-of-life cover. This means that as long as you continue to pay your monthly premiums your loved ones are guaranteed to receive a lump sum when you pass away.

Yes, you can use your life insurance to help towards the cost of your funeral. The lump sum benefit amount from a Funeral Insurance Plan will be paid to your legal beneficiary and they can choose to use it towards the cost of your funeral.

We've partnered with Golden Charter to offer you a free £300 contribution towards the cost of your funeral. Golden Charter appoint a funeral director in your local area to take care of your funeral arrangements. Any excess benefit amount not used for your funeral will be paid to your estate or next of kin. If you choose an unattended cremation, the £300 contribution will not apply.¹

You have the option of placing your plan into trust. Please note that only single policies can be put into trust using our form. If you put your plan into an appropriate trust, you may be able to avoid inheritance tax. Before deciding to put your policy in Trust, you may wish to speak to a financial adviser or a solicitor. If you are interested in setting up a Trust, we’ve put together our Flexible Trust Form and our Guide to Trusts. Please note that if you put your policy into trust, the Funeral Benefit Option will be no longer available to you.

With a British Seniors Funeral Insurance Plan you are only covered for accidental death in the first 12 months of your policy. You are covered if you pass away after this 12-month waiting period from Coronavirus or any other cause. You should also note that if you pass away within the first 12 months of a non-accidental death, all premiums you have paid will be refunded.

Additional costs for a funeral will ultimately depend on your personal wishes and the choices of your family. If you choose to have a simple funeral, there will be fewer costs. It is important for you to sit down and consider some of the costs involved with a funeral. You can find more information on the average costs of a funeral in our guide.

We understand life is unpredictable, so we provide flexible policies. If needed, you can apply to increase or decrease your monthly premium - If you do this, your payout amount will also increase or decrease, depending on what you have decided to do.

With a British Seniors Funeral Insurance Plan, your benefit amount and premium will automatically increase every year on the anniversary of your policy. This can offer you a way to help offset the impact of inflation on your payout amount. Your benefit amount will increase by 3.5% and your monthly premium will increase by 5% each year. You can choose to opt out of these increases in which case your benefit amount and premium will remain fixed for that year. If you opt out of three increases in a row, your benefit and premium will remain permanently fixed for the policy duration.

In order to have personal requests about your Funeral you will need to sit down and discuss your wishes with your loved ones. When you pass away a lump sum payout will be made to your legal beneficiary. From there it is up to them to fulfil any personal requests you might have. With your Funeral Insurance Plan you will receive a free, legally approved Will Kit worth £100 that can help you plan for when you pass away. If you select Funeral Benefit Option with Golden Charter, you'll also get a personal wishes form in which you can specify any requests for your funeral.

In 2023, British Seniors conducted research into the average cost of a funeral over the last 5 years. This research looked at the different elements that make up the cost of a funeral. It also considered other elements that have an impact on the overall cost such as location. You can find the full report here.

With a British Seniors Funeral Insurance Plan, the money is paid directly to your loved ones when you pass away. We do not deal with any funeral providers, instead payment is made to your legal beneficiary or if you have placed your Funeral Insurance Plan in a trust, your nominated beneficiary. It is then up to your legal beneficiary to decide how this money is used. If you decide to go with the Funeral Benefit Option, Golden Charter will appoint a funeral director in your local area to take care of your funeral arrangements. The funeral director will receive the money from your Funeral Insurance Plan to help take care of your funeral arrangements.

With British Seniors, there are three different cover options available. They are:

• Gold  
• Silver  
• Bronze  

In terms of how they work, these are largely the same; you agree a payout amount and if you continue to pay your premiums your loved ones will receive that money when you pass away. The main difference between them is in the payout amounts you can apply for. Each one of these cover options offers guaranteed acceptance to UK residents aged 50-80.

Securing your very own Funeral Insurance Plan is straightforward. Our UK based team can provide you with a quote and help you explore your options. You can contact us on 0800 803 0052. Our UK Sales team is available Monday to Friday from 8am to 9pm, Saturday from 9am to 6pm and Sunday from 9am to 5pm (excluding bank holidays).

No, there is no guarantee that your Funeral Insurance Plan will cover the cost of your funeral. Unfortunately, inflation could influence the cost of your funeral in the future. As a way of helping to offset inflation, your Funeral Insurance Plan premium and benefit amount are automatically set to increase. Your benefit amount will increase by 3.5% each year and your monthly premium will increase by 5%.

The payout from a Funeral Insurance Plan can be used to help cover some of the costs associated with a funeral or other expenses. In the last number of years there has been a steady increase in the cost of a funeral in the UK. This means that a funeral could potentially put your loved ones under financial pressure. A Funeral Insurance Plan can provide support and help relieve some of the financial stress associated with funeral planning. You also have immediate cover from day one for accidental death, plus death by any cause after 12 months.

For the first 12 months of the policy, a Funeral Insurance Plan only covers death as a result of an accident. After this 12-month period you will be covered for death by any cause. If you pass away from natural causes in the first 12 months of the plan, all premiums paid will be refunded.

British Seniors Funeral Insurance Plan is a life insurance policy designed to provide a lump sum to your loved ones to help with funeral costs and/or other expenses when the time comes. It is not a pre-paid funeral or a funeral plan.

You have three options with the British Seniors Funeral Insurance Plan: Gold, Silver and Bronze. The difference between these cover options is in the amount of money paid out. With a Gold cover option, we pay out up to £5,500, with a Silver cover option we pay out up to £4,000, and with a Bronze cover option, we pay out up to £2,000. Alongside these amounts, you also have the option of an additional cash sum depending on your age. These break down as follows:

• Up to a maximum of £10,000 if you are aged 50-69 at start date of the policy.
• Up to a maximum of £9,000 of additional cover aged 70-74 at start date of the policy.
• Up to a maximum of £6,000 of additional cover aged 75-80 at start date of the policy.

So, for example, if you choose a Gold cover options and are aged 50-69 you can choose an additional cash sum of up to £4,500. Please bear in mind that this will affect the cost of your monthly premiums. You will also have accidental death cover, where 2 times the benefit amount will be paid should you die of accidental causes.

To make a claim, follow our simple 3 step process:

Step 1: Get in touch

Call us on 0800 542 7618 or email claims@britishseniors.co.uk to get the claims process started.

Step 2: Review

Depending on the type of policy you hold with us, we may be able to collect the claim information over the phone. The person making the claim can also get in contact via email, and we will send out a claim form to be completed and returned to us. They might be contacted if more information is needed.

Step 3: Payout

When the claim is accepted, we pay the benefit amount to the person legally entitled to it. We also refund any premiums paid after the death.

If you have misplaced your paperwork you can get in contact with our UK customer care team on 0800 542 7618. We are available Monday to Friday from 9am to 7pm (excluding bank holidays). Alternatively, you can get in contact with us via email on service@britishseniors.co.uk. From there our specialist team will help you get things sorted out.

With British Seniors, you are immediately covered for death as a result of an accident. Not only this but we will pay 2x the benefit amount if you pass away as a result of an accident. After 12 months, you are then covered for death by any cause.

Yes, you have the option of having a joint Funeral Insurance Plan. It must be with a legal spouse, civil partner or common law partner of the policy holder. In the case of a joint Funeral Insurance Plan there will be two payments made, one when the first person passes away and the second when the other person passes away.

Yes, with a British Seniors Funeral Insurance Plan you are guaranteed acceptance if you are a UK resident aged 50-80. This means that no matter what pre-existing medical condition you might have, you will be eligible for cover. However, you should bear in mind that there will only be a payout in the event of an accidental death for the first 12 months of the policy.

Yes, you can apply to make changes at any stage during your policy. In order to apply to make these changes you need to get in contact with us and we can help you through the process. You can call us on 0800 542 7618. Our customer service centre is open from 9am to 7pm (excluding bank holidays).

With British Seniors you are covered worldwide, 24/7. However, the costs of repatriation of a body can be high. While a Funeral Insurance Plan could help towards the costs of a funeral, repatriation might exceed the payout amount of the plan. If you intend to travel abroad at any point it is important to consider travel insurance. This kind of insurance can help cover the costs of repatriation of your body. Once your body has been returned to the UK, the funeral can be planned.

With a British Seniors Funeral Insurance Plan, your benefit amount and premium will automatically increase every year on the anniversary of your policy. This can offer you a way to help offset the impact of inflation on your payout amount. Your benefit amount will increase by 3.5% and your monthly premium will increase by 5% each year. You can choose to opt out of these increases in which case your benefit amount and premium will remain fixed for that year. If you opt out of three increases in a row, your benefit and premium will remain permanently fixed for the policy duration.

The cost of your Funeral Insurance Plan will depend on four factors: how much you would like your payout to be, your smoker status, your age, and whether you choose a single or joint policy. We understand that no two families are the same, which is why we offer three different levels of cover to suit different needs; Gold, Silver, and Bronze. This means you can get some financial support for your loved ones even on a budget. Call our life insurance specialists to get your free, no-obligation quote. 

If you miss two consecutive payments on your policy, it will come to an end and you won’t get any of the premiums you have paid back. You will be given plenty of notification before it gets to this point.

A Funeral Insurance Plan with British Seniors is a whole-of-life policy. That means that if you continue to pay your premiums your policy will be in place for the rest of your life. However, on the policy anniversary after the 95th birthday of the person who is insured the premiums will come to an end. Your cover will still be in place, but you will no longer have to pay the monthly premium.

There is no cash-in value of the policy at any point.

If you cancel your policy within the first 30 days you will be entitled to a full refund of any premiums paid. After this 30 day period if you decide to cancel you will not receive any money back as the policy will have no cash in value.

You can make updates to a plan for someone only if you have power of attorney over their affairs. If this is not the case, we need to speak with the policy holder.

If you pass away in the first 12 months due to natural causes, we will refund all premiums paid. With British Seniors, for the first 12 months of your policy, you are only covered for death as a result of an accident. If you pass away as a result of an accident during your policy, you will receive two times the benefit amount. After that 12-month period, you are covered for death as a result of any cause.