Relevant Life Insurance Comparison 2026: 7 UK Insurers Compared

There is no single best relevant life insurance provider — of the seven UK insurers writing relevant life cover, LV and Aviva are typically the cheapest, but the cheapest insurer changes with the director's age and smoker status. This relevant life insurance comparison covers all seven UK insurers currently writing relevant life cover — Aviva, Legal & General, Vitality, Royal London, Zurich, LV and Scottish Widows — so you can compare relevant life insurance side by side rather than taking the first quote you're given, because as the tables below show, the cheapest insurer changes depending on how old the director is.

This guide is built as a full relevant life insurance comparison: real premium quotes for £500,000 of cover across all seven insurers at three ages, 30, 40 and 50, for both non-smokers and smokers, showing relevant life insurance premiums by age so you can see exactly how much the cheapest option changes as a director gets older, and how differently insurers price smoker cover. We then compare claims paid and customer ratings, and the core benefits each insurer offers, so price, reliability and features can all be weighed together rather than looking at cost alone.

Key facts

• Relevant life insurance is currently written by seven UK insurers: Aviva, Legal & General, Vitality, Royal London, Zurich, LV and Scottish Widows.
• For a company director taking out £500,000 of non-smoker cover, the cheapest and most expensive insurer we quoted were between 17% and 21% apart across the three age bands we compared, for identical cover.
• The same £500,000 of cover can cost anywhere from around 50% to just over 100% more for every ten years older the director is, depending on the insurer, based on quotes obtained in September 2026.
• The insurer that's cheapest at age 30 isn't always the insurer that's cheapest at age 50, so it's worth re-quoting rather than assuming.
• Aviva was the cheapest insurer for smokers at every age we compared, even though it isn't always the cheapest for non-smokers.
• Claims-paid rates across the seven insurers we compare range from 94% to 99%, based on Executive Life's own insurer database.
• Maximum entry age for life-only cover ranges from 69 (LV) to 75 (Vitality) across the seven insurers we compare.

How does this relevant life insurance comparison work?

This relevant life insurance comparison is based on real quotes for £500,000 of cover, obtained in September 2026 for a company director in good health, at ages 30, 40 and 50, for both non-smokers and smokers, across all seven UK insurers currently writing relevant life cover.

Which insurers actually offer relevant life insurance?

Seven insurers currently write relevant life cover in the UK market: Aviva, Legal & General, Vitality, Royal London, Zurich, LV and Scottish Widows. Each has a different appetite and process, so the table below is a straightforward side-by-side, not a ranking.

This is the complete panel of UK insurers writing relevant life cover as of September 2026. Insurer appetite can still change over time, so it's worth rechecking periodically.

Do all insurers accept sole directors in the same way?

No. Some insurers ask for an additional employee on the company payroll before they'll write relevant life cover for a sole director, while others accept the director alone provided they're paid through PAYE. This is one of the biggest practical differences between insurers, and it's covered in full in our relevant life insurance pillar guide.

Which relevant life insurer is cheapest in this comparison?

Finding the cheapest relevant life insurance means comparing quotes at the director's actual age and smoker status, since the cheapest insurer changes even for identical cover. The tables below show real monthly premiums for £500,000 of relevant life cover for a company director in good health, quoted in September 2026 for both non-smokers and smokers aged 30, 40 and 50. The cheapest non-smoker insurer at each age is highlighted in green, and the cheapest smoker insurer is highlighted in blue.

Assumptions: £500,000 sum assured, good health, company director.

Age 30: monthly premium for £500,000 of cover

Cheapest at age 30 (non-smoker): Zurich, at £17.74 a month. The gap between the cheapest (Zurich, £17.74) and most expensive (Royal London, £21.28) is £3.54 a month, or about 20%, for the exact same cover. For smokers, Aviva was cheapest at £31.09, almost £2 a month ahead of the next-cheapest insurer, Zurich, at £33.08.

Age 40: monthly premium for £500,000 of cover

Cheapest at age 40 (non-smoker): LV, at £30.10 a month. Notice LV moves from sixth cheapest at age 30 to cheapest at age 40, which is exactly why re-quoting by age matters rather than assuming last year's cheapest insurer is still the cheapest one. For smokers, Aviva was again cheapest at £61.54, over £4 a month ahead of Zurich, the next-cheapest insurer.

Age 50: monthly premium for £500,000 of cover

Cheapest at age 50 (non-smoker): LV, at £56.32 a month. The gap between the cheapest (LV, £56.32) and most expensive (Royal London, £66.04) is £9.72 a month, or about 17%, again for identical cover. For smokers, Aviva narrowly took the lead at £138.73, just 18p a month ahead of LV at £138.91, despite not being the cheapest non-smoker option at this age.

Which insurer is cheapest for smokers?

Aviva was the cheapest insurer for smokers at every age we compared, 30, 40 and 50, even though it's never the single cheapest option for non-smokers at any of those three ages. That makes it worth quoting specifically for relevant life insurance for smokers, rather than assuming the insurer that's cheapest for non-smokers is automatically the cheapest choice across the board.

Smoker premiums also run considerably higher than non-smoker premiums for identical cover, roughly 1.75 to 2.75 times higher across the ages we compared, which is worth factoring in early rather than being a surprise once medical underwriting is complete.

How do these insurers compare on claims paid?

All seven insurers pay out the large majority of relevant life claims, between 94% and 99% based on Executive Life's most recently reviewed data. Where they differ more is in the total value of claims paid and how existing customers rate their service, both shown below.

Source: Executive Life's insurer database (Webflow CMS, Insurers collection), reviewed 19 September 2026.

*4.4/5 is Legal & General's life-insurance-specific Trustpilot score; its overall company score across all products is 4.3/5 from around 34,000 reviews.

Zurich's claims-paid rate is among the highest of the seven at 99%, but its Trustpilot score of 3.1/5 is noticeably lower than the rest, which is worth being aware of if a director weighs review scores alongside claims data rather than looking at claims figures alone.

Which insurers offer the most relevant life benefits?

Price and claims data are only part of the picture. Each insurer also builds its own set of benefits and support services into a relevant life policy, and these vary more than the headline cover suggests. Here's what each insurer offers, and the maximum entry age for life-only cover in each case.

Aviva: key benefits

Aviva's relevant life policy is backed by Aviva DigiCare+, a wellbeing package that covers annual health checks, a 24/7 Bupa helpline, mental health support, nutrition advice, bereavement support and legal support, on top of its cover-increase and continuation options.

• Life Change Benefit: cover can be increased after certain life events without further health and lifestyle questions.
• Business Protection Promise: complimentary cover of up to £1 million may be provided while Aviva finalises an underwriting decision.
• Continuation Benefit: the policy can potentially move to the individual or their new employer if they leave the business, without further medical underwriting.
• Aviva DigiCare+: annual health checks, a 24/7 Bupa helpline, mental health support, nutrition advice, bereavement support and legal support.

Level or increasing cover available. Maximum entry age: 73, for life-only cover.

Legal & General: key benefits

Legal & General pairs its relevant life cover with RedArc support, giving policyholders access to mental health support, rehabilitation and dietary advice, alongside its guaranteed insurability and continuation benefits.

• Guaranteed Insurability: cover may be increased following qualifying changes in circumstances without providing further medical evidence.
• Accidental Death Benefit: a cash payment for accidental death during the initial application period, subject to policy conditions.
• Continuation Benefit: cover may be transferred to the individual or a new employer after leaving the business, without further medical underwriting.
• RedArc support: mental health support, rehabilitation and recovery assistance, dietary and lifestyle advice, and support relating to pre-existing conditions.

Level or increasing cover available. Maximum entry age: 73.

LV: key benefits

LV's relevant life policy stands out for LV Doctor Services, unlimited 24/7 virtual GP consultations plus remote physiotherapy and mental health therapy, alongside its usual continuation and cover-increase options.

• Guaranteed Increase Options: cover can potentially be increased following certain changes in circumstances without additional medical evidence, subject to limits.
• LV Business Care: practical business support including legal, tax and VAT guidance.
• Continuation Option: the policy can potentially continue personally, or through a new employer, if the insured employee leaves the business, without further medical underwriting.
• LV Doctor Services: unlimited 24/7 virtual GP consultations, private prescriptions, remote physiotherapy, second medical opinions, mental health therapy and discounted health MOTs.

Level or inflation-linked cover available. Maximum entry age: 69, the lowest of the insurers covered here.

Royal London: key benefits

Royal London can potentially start cover immediately via Underwrite Later while it waits on further medical evidence, and backs that with Helping Hand support for the policyholder and their family.

• Underwrite Later: immediate cover may be possible while further medical evidence is gathered, following an initial assessment by an underwriter.
• Cover Increase Options: cover may be increased following certain changes in circumstances without completing further health and lifestyle questions.
• Helping Hand: available through advisers, giving access to dedicated nurses, second medical opinions, bereavement counselling and other support.
• Family support: Helping Hand can also extend certain support services to the insured person's partner and children.

Level, increasing or decreasing cover available. Maximum entry age: 73.

Unlike the other insurers covered here, Royal London's product literature doesn't set out an equivalent continuation option, so this is worth checking directly if portability matters to the director.

Scottish Widows: key benefits

Scottish Widows includes Terminal Illness Cover and Accidental Death Cover as standard, with RedArc providing wellbeing support alongside its cover-increase and continuation options.

• Terminal Illness Cover: included as part of the policy at no additional cost, subject to the policy definition.
• Accidental Death Cover: additional protection for accidental death is included.
• Cover Increase Options: employees may be able to increase their cover following certain changes in circumstances without further medical evidence, subject to limits.
• Continuation Option: cover may potentially be transferred to the individual or their new employer without further medical underwriting.
• RedArc support: mental health support, rehabilitation and recovery assistance, dietary and lifestyle advice, and support for pre-existing conditions.

Level or increasing cover available. Maximum entry age: 73.

Vitality: key benefits

Vitality links its relevant life cover to its healthy-living programme through the Optimiser option, which can lower the starting premium in exchange for an ongoing premium that moves with health engagement over time.

• Guaranteed Insurability Options: cover may be increased following certain changes in circumstances without further medical evidence.
• Optimiser option: can provide a lower starting premium compared with standard fixed-term cover, with the ongoing premium influenced by engagement with Vitality's healthy-living programme.
• Continuation Option: the policy may be transferred to the individual or a new employer after leaving the business, without further medical underwriting.
• Vitality Rewards: access to its rewards programme and discounts from participating brands.

Level or indexed cover available. Maximum entry age: 75, the highest of the insurers covered here.

Zurich: key benefits

Zurich's relevant life policy includes a continuation option, so cover can port with the director rather than being lost, alongside Zurich Support Services, a free and confidential wellbeing service the life assured and their family can use throughout the life of the policy, not just at claims stage.

• Continuation option: allows an employee or company director to port their relevant life policy when leaving service, transferring either to a new employer or converting into a personal policy, without further medical underwriting.
• Cover Increase Options: employees may be able to increase their cover following certain changes in circumstances without further medical evidence, subject to limits.
• Zurich Support Services: an independent team of counsellors, advisers and legal experts, provided through Zurich's partner, Workplace Options, offering impartial help and support across a wide range of issues, including up to six sessions of professional counselling, available from the moment the policy is taken out and throughout its lifetime, to the life assured and their family, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Maximum entry age: 73.

A continuation option, or something close to it, is common to every insurer covered here, so cover can usually follow a director if they leave the business. Where they differ more is the wellbeing package bundled in, from Aviva's DigiCare+ and LV's Doctor Services to Vitality's rewards-based Optimiser and Zurich's round-the-clock Support Services, and the maximum entry age, which ranges from 69 (LV) up to 75 (Vitality).

How do you get quotes from this relevant life insurance comparison?

The most efficient route is a single application compared across the market, rather than approaching several insurers separately. Our team can book a call with you and submit quote requests from multiple insurers at the same time, so you can compare premiums, underwriting terms, and discretionary trust support fairly. This also avoids the risk of duplicate medical disclosures landing with different insurers at different times.

Is the cheapest quote always the best value?

Not necessarily. A lower premium is only good value if the insurer behind it has a strong claims record and the corporation tax relief and cover terms are genuinely comparable to the alternative. At age 50, the gap between the cheapest and priciest quote we obtained was £9.72 a month, or £116.64 a year, for the exact same £500,000 of cover. Over a policy term that can run for twenty years or more, that gap matters far less than the insurer's ability to pay the claim when it's needed.

What actually makes one relevant life insurer “better” than another?

Five things separate a strong relevant life insurer from a mediocre one: financial strength, claims-paying record, underwriting approach, trust and admin support, and price for like-for-like cover. None of these should be judged in isolation, and as the tables earlier in this guide show, the cheapest headline premium changes by age, so it's rarely as simple as picking one insurer and sticking with it for every director.

Frequently asked questions

How do relevant life insurance providers compare?

The seven UK insurers writing relevant life cover, Aviva, Legal & General, Vitality, Royal London, Zurich, LV and Scottish Widows, compare differently depending on what you're measuring: LV and Aviva tend to be cheapest on price (at the time of writing), Aviva was cheapest for smokers at every age we checked, and claims-paid rates across all seven sit between 94% and 99%, so it's worth comparing on more than premium alone.

Is relevant life insurance only available from one insurer?

No. Relevant life insurance is currently written by seven mainstream UK insurers — Aviva, Legal & General, Vitality, Royal London, Zurich, LV and Scottish Widows — so businesses have real choice rather than being tied to a single provider. Each insurer prices and underwrites relevant life cover differently, which is why comparing quotes across the whole panel, rather than approaching just one, typically gets a director the most competitive terms.

How do I check that a relevant life insurer is properly authorised?

Search the insurer's name on the FCA Register at register.fca.org.uk, which shows their permissions and regulatory status directly. Every UK insurer writing relevant life insurance must be FCA-authorised, and the register confirms this along with the specific activities each insurer is permitted to carry out, giving directors an independent way to verify authorisation before taking out cover.

Does a cheaper premium mean better value from the insurer?

Not automatically. Financial strength and claims-paying record matter more over the life of the policy than a small difference in monthly premium. A cheaper insurer that struggles to pay claims decades from now, when most relevant life claims are actually made, is a worse outcome than paying slightly more for an insurer with a consistently strong claims-paid percentage.

Can I move my relevant life cover to a different insurer later?

Cover doesn't transfer automatically between insurers. Moving to a new insurer normally means a fresh application and new underwriting, including fresh medical questions, so it's worth choosing carefully at the outset rather than planning to switch. Directors who want portability without new underwriting should check an insurer's continuation option before taking out cover, since this varies between the seven insurers compared here.

Do all insurers offer the same maximum level of relevant life cover?

No. Maximum sum assured varies by insurer and typically falls within a range of 15 to 25 times total remuneration, reducing with age, so it's insurer-dependent rather than fixed. The exact multiple offered also depends on the director's age and how their remuneration is structured between salary and dividends, which is why it's worth confirming the maximum available figure with each insurer directly.

Why use Executive Life instead of contacting an insurer directly?

Executive Life compares terms across the whole relevant life market from a single application, rather than a business having to approach each insurer separately and repeat medical disclosures each time. This also means underwriting terms, discretionary trust support and continuation options can be weighed against each other consistently, rather than comparing headline price alone across separate, inconsistent applications.

Does the cheapest relevant life insurer stay the cheapest at every age?

No. Our September 2026 comparison for £500,000 of cover shows the cheapest insurer changes between age 30, 40 and 50, so it's worth re-quoting at the director's actual age rather than assuming one insurer is always cheapest. LV, for example, moves from sixth cheapest at age 30 to the single cheapest insurer by age 40 in our comparison.

Do all relevant life policies include the same benefits?

Core features such as terminal illness benefit are common across most UK relevant life insurers, but the exact wording, optional extras and cost of those benefits vary, so always check the policy document for the specific insurer. Wellbeing extras such as virtual GP access, rehabilitation support and continuation options also differ noticeably between insurers, even where the core life cover is broadly similar.

Is there a clear best insurer for smokers?

Based on our September 2026 comparison, Aviva was the cheapest insurer for smokers at every age quoted, 30, 40 and 50, even though it wasn't always the cheapest for non-smokers, so it's worth quoting specifically if the director smokes. Smoker premiums also run roughly 1.75 to 2.75 times higher than non-smoker premiums for identical cover across the insurers compared here.

Do all relevant life insurers pay out a similar proportion of claims?

Broadly yes. The seven insurers we compare all pay out the large majority of claims, between 94% and 99%, so claims-paid rate alone rarely rules an insurer out. Total value of claims paid and independent customer review scores, such as Trustpilot ratings, provide useful additional context alongside the claims-paid percentage when comparing insurers on reliability.

Alex Ogden DipFA | Director | Executive Life

Alex Ogden DipFA holds the Level 4 Diploma for Financial Advisers (DipFA) awarded by the London Institute of Banking & Finance (LIBF), the FCA's benchmark qualification for retail investment advisers. He is authorised by the FCA — Ref: AJO01072.

Last reviewed: September 2026 | Next review: April 2027 | Reading time: 7 minutes

This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Premiums shown are illustrative of quotes obtained in September 2026 for a specific example director and will vary based on individual health, occupation and circumstances. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change. Always seek professional advice before making financial decisions.