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NEOSYou can get cheap life insurance and provide your family with financial security without breaking the bank. To get the most affordable life insurance, you must understand your requirements, then compare similar policies from major insurance brands using an online quote tool. After that, review the product disclosure statement (PDS) and make sure you know what is and what is not covered.
Discover which factors influence your premium price and what you can do to keep your premiums affordable without compromising on value. Find cheap life insurance quotes online and save big on premiums.
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Compare cheap life insurance premiums
| Policy | Average monthly premium | Expire age |
 Accelerated Protection with Health Sense – Life Insurance | $37.68 | 99 |
 Priority Protection – Life Cover | $42.53 | 99 |
 Insurance with On Track – Life Cover | $43.52 | 100 |
 Protection Preferred – Life Cover | $39.85 | 99 |
 Protection Plans with My Wellbeing Option – Term Life | $29.75 | 99 |
 Wealth Protection – Death cover | $41.99 | 99 |
 Life Solutions – Life Cover | $39.07 | 99 |
 OneCare – Life Cover | $44.09 | 130 |
Source: Lifeinsurancedirect.com.au (24 February 2020).
Take note: The stepped premiums above were calculated on $1 million worth of life insurance for a 35-year non-smoking male, living in Queensland (February 2020).
Get quotes directly from our life insurance partners
| Policy | Maximum Cover | Maximum Entry Age | Expiry Age | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Real Life Insurance | ||||
| | Maximum Cover $1,000,000 | Maximum Entry Age 64 | Expiry Age No expiry age if policy remains in force | Get Quotes |
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Award-winning Life Insurance with an insurer you can trust. Call 1300 352 904 to speak with a sales specialist | ||||
| Guardian Life Insurance | ||||
| | Maximum Cover $1,500,000 | Maximum Entry Age 64 | Expiry Age No expiry age if policy remains in force | Get Quotes |
| Get Quotes | ||||
Guardian Life Insurance gives you peace of mind knowing there are plans in place to ensure the financial security of your loved ones. Call 1300 736 092 to speak with a sales specialist | ||||
| Zurich Ezicover Life Insurance | ||||
| | Maximum Cover $1,500,000 | Maximum Entry Age 69 | Expiry Age 99 | Get Quotes |
| Get Quotes | ||||
Get your first month’s premium waived. Plus, receive a 10% discount on the second life insured when two applications are submitted at the same time, and both policies are issued. Ts & Cs apply. Consider the PDS. | ||||
8 factors that affect your life insurance cost
- Your level of cover
A higher cover amount usually equals a more expensive premium. However, generally, if you purchase a significant amount of cover you’ll pay less per $1,000 of the total amount.It’s important to choose a level of cover that is appropriate for your requirements and budget. You might want to speak with your broker to help you determine the right amount of life insurance you need based on your current income, family structure, and other financial commitments.
- Premium Type
Your insurer will generally provide you with a choice between stepped, level, and hybrid premiums.- Stepped premiums: Your premiums start out more affordable, but will increase as you age. This premium style is cheaper in the short-term as you only pay for the level of risk associated with your current age. Keep in mind that your premiums will increase as you get older and could become unaffordable in the long-run.
- Level premiums: Premiums start more expensive than stepped premiums but won’t increase annually with your age. Level premiums generally only increase due to the automatic Consumer Price Index (CPI) increases.
- Hybrid premiums: Select insurers will offer you this premium option, which gives you the best of both worlds. Your premiums start out slightly higher than stepped premiums and usually increase annually until your policy reaches a pre-agreed upon age. Your premiums then convert to level premiums and generally only incur CPI increases. Some insurers may convert your premiums back to stepped premiums and continue with annual increases when you reach the age of 65+ years old.
- Your Age
The younger you are, the cheaper your premiums will usually be because you’ll generally be healthier and more active and thus a lower risk of possibly claiming in future. If you’re young, single and without dependents, a good place to start might be in purchasing income protection and critical illness cover, so you can cover your day to day expenses should you become ill or injured for a specified period. - Overall health, including smoking status and BMI
Your overall health indicates how big of a risk you are to insure and in turn influences your premium rate. Typically, an insurer will ask whether you are a smoker. Smoking increases your risk of getting lung cancer, stroke, and heart disease, and as a smoker, your premium could cost double that of a non-smoker.The insurer will likely also ask your height and weight so they can calculate your Body Mass Index (BMI). A BMI also increases your health risks, including high blood pressure, and coronary heart disease. Typically, a BMI of 25 to 29.9 means you are overweight, while a BMI of over 30 indicates obesity.
- Family history
Certain diseases are considered to have a hereditary component. For instance, if you have a history of breast cancer in your family, it will usually be taken into consideration when calculating your overall risk.If you have such a family medical history, the insurer might add an exclusion or loading to your policy depending on the insurer and their underwriting guidelines. The insurer may also request that you go for a medical exam.
- Lifestyle (high-risk activities)
Individuals participating in high-risk activities, like rock climbing or skydiving, might be rated as a higher risk. Thus you could pay a higher premium or have an exclusion on your policy, depending on the insurer. The same applies to your occupation, all things being equal, a person working a desk job might not pay as much as a person working in a mine.It’s important to check with your insurer and fully disclose your hobbies. What one insurer considers high risk, another may not.
- Your location
The state you live in may affect your life insurance premiums. If your area is statistically proven to be dangerous and reflects a higher mortality rate, then you are more likely to incur higher premiums. - Built-in benefits vs paid options
Generally, a life insurance company which has included a variety of built-in benefits with their life cover might charge higher premiums because they are seen as offering more value. It might be more affordable to find a basic life insurance policy without all the bells and whistles and only pay for the additional features and benefits you want.
How to find cheap life insurance quotes online
This best way to find affordable life insurance quotes online is to fill in the quote form above and compare similar policies from 9 major insurance brand. Be sure to keep in mind:
- Your insurance requirements: Decide how much cover your family would need, should you suddenly pass away.
- Benefits provided: For example, do they pay a funeral advancement benefit to help your loved ones pay your final expenses?
- Exclusions: Which events will the insurer not cover? For example, most companies will not pay if death was due to suicide within the first 13 months of your policy commencing.
- Discounts: Does the policy offer you a discount when paying your premiums annually?
- Health rewards program: Find out if the life insurance company offers discounts and rewards when living a healthy life.
- The company’s financial strength: Determine who owns the company and look at its reputation for paying out claims.
- Customer reviews can tell you a lot about a company’s trustworthiness and customer service.
11 Ways you can keep your premiums affordable
- Ask your insurer to remove the Benefit Indexation, which is generally automatically applied to insurance policies. Take note; once removed, your policy will no longer keep up with inflation.
- Choose level premiums, or ask your insurer whether you can switch to a level premium structure and whether they offer hybrid premiums.
- Lower you cover amount: If you’ve reached retirement age and no longer have dependents or a mortgage to pay off, decreasing the amount of cover you have might be an option.
- Make lifestyle changes, like aiming for a healthy BMI range and quitting smoking. After you’ve stopped smoking for 12 months, life insurance companies will generally rate you as a non-smoker.
- Remove optional extras: Review your policies annually to make sure you’re cover is still relevant to your current requirements and remove unnecessary paid-for options.
- Compare quotes from Australia’s 9 major life insurance brands to find the one that best fits your budget.
- Look for insurers that have removed policy fees from their premiums, like ClearView Life Solutions and MLC Insurance.
- Bundle policies: Combined policies generally cost less than taking out separate stand-alone policies.
- Purchase cover when you’re still young because you might pay lower premiums due to your good health.
- Pay your premiums annually and save between 5% and 8%.
- Ask whether an insurer offers discounts when purchasing multiple policies (for you and your spouse) or multiple types of cover (for example life cover and income protection) from the same insurer.
Cheap life insurance isn’t always better
It’s important that you don’t confuse affordability with value. A cheap life insurance policy won’t necessarily offer you what you require regarding coverage and could end up costing you more when your claim payout is not sufficient. Of course, you do need to ensure that your cover is affordable, especially in the long-run, but you also need to remember that the cheapest policy may prove insufficient, leaving your family financially vulnerable.
Hi, Ms. Anneke,
I am thinking of taking whole life insurance. I’m a single male, non-smoker with no dependents. Does any AU insurer offer policies that can be traded later for an annuity ? I believe that such products are common in USA.
Also, what is the market share of NobleOak Life. They have been awarded with multi recognitions from what I have read.
Hi Sridhar.
Only term life insurance policies are available in Australia. For an online quote comparison, please complete the form at the top of this page.
The majority of the life insurance market share (95.5%) is owned by Australia’s 10 major insurance brands, so it’s very difficult to estimate how much of the remaining 4.5% is owned by Nobleoak. Please feel free to contact them directly.
Hi,
Who is better to own the life insurance policy, the insured or the beneficiary? And why?
Thanks
Hi Rotana.
The policy owner is generally the person responsible for paying the premiums and is the only one authorised to make changes to the policy. The beneficiary is the person nominated to receive the benefit should a valid claim be made.
To determine which person should own your policy depends on your specific requirements. Please have a read of the two below articles to help you with your decision making process. You can also give us a call on 1300 743 254.
1. Who should your policy owner be?
2. How to choose a beneficiary.