No impact on your credit score
Directors’ Life Insurance (Relevant Life Cover)
Protect your family with life cover paid for through your limited company
If you are an eligible company director or employee, a Relevant Life Policy can allow your company to arrange and pay for personal life cover. If you die or get terminally ill during the policy term, the benefit is intended for your family or other chosen beneficiaries, rather than the business. Our protection specialists can check your eligibility, assess how much cover you may need and compare suitable options before explaining the company, trust and tax considerations.
What Is Directors’ Life Insurance?
Directors’ life insurance is individual term life cover arranged through an employer. For most limited company directors, this takes the form of a Relevant Life Plan.
Your company arranges the policy and pays the premiums. You are the person insured. The policy is normally written in trust from the outset, with the trust set up to benefit you in the event of an eligible terminal illness claim and the people you want to protect if you die.
A Relevant Life Plan is not designed to compensate your company for losing you. That is the job of separate business-protection policies such as Key Person Insurance. The purpose here is to give you a way to put personal life cover in place for your family through the company.
Get a Directors’ Life Insurance QuoteFree
Advice and guidance on what you needAlmost 50%
potential saving compared with paying for life cover personallyWhy Directors’ Life Insurance Is Worth Considering
Company-funded life cover can offer significant potential tax advantages while putting meaningful financial protection in place for the people who depend on you.
up to 49%
Potential Cost Saving
For a higher-rate taxpayer, arranging eligible life cover through a Relevant Life Plan could reduce the effective cost by up to 49% compared with equivalent personal life cover (Legal and General).
£83,892
Average life insurance claim
The average UK life insurance claim paid during 2025 was £83,892, showing the substantial financial support life cover can provide when a family loses someone. (ABI and Group Risk Development Data).
£96.7%
Of new life claims were paid
UK insurers paid 96.7% of new life insurance claims in 2025, providing more than £4 billion in life insurance benefits during the year. (ABI and Group Risk Development Data).
We work with UK Wide Insurance Providers
Access The Most Suitable Cover For Your Needs
Our protection specialists can scan our providers, once we understand your requirements and find you the right insurance that fits your needs.
Request a call backHow the Application and Trust Process Works
The process starts with suitability, not an application form. The adviser should first establish what you want to protect and whether Relevant Life is the appropriate policy.
Step 1: Review your needs and eligibility
We discuss your company, employment and remuneration, the people and commitments you want to protect, your existing cover and your budget. If Relevant Life is unlikely to fit, we explain the alternatives.
Step 2: Compare policies and costs
We compare suitable options from the insurers we work with, including premiums, policy terms, terminal illness definitions, cover-change options and trust requirements. We then explain the recommendation and any important limitations.
Step 3: Complete underwriting
The application asks about health, medical history, lifestyle, occupation and other risk factors. Depending on the amount of cover and the information supplied, the insurer may request a GP report, medical screening or financial evidence. Questions should be answered accurately and in full.
Step 4: Put the policy and trust arrangements in place
Once terms are offered and accepted, the company arranges payment and the provider’s Relevant Life trust documents are completed. Trustees and intended beneficiaries should be considered carefully. We guide you through the insurer’s paperwork and recommend legal, accounting or tax input where it is needed.
Who May Be Eligible for Relevant Life Cover?
Relevant Life cover is intended for employees. This can include a UK-resident director employed by a UK-resident company, provided the insurer’s eligibility rules are met.
You may be eligible if you are:
- A director or employee of a UK limited company and paid through PAYE
- An owner-director of a small limited company
- A contractor working through your own limited company, where you are also an employee
- An employee whose employer does not offer group life cover, or who needs individual cover above an existing group scheme
A different arrangement will usually be needed for a sole trader or partner who is not an employee, a shareholder who is not employed by the company, or anyone who wants the policy benefit to be paid to the business. Personal life insurance may be more suitable where company-funded cover is unavailable. Key Person Insurance may be appropriate when the business needs the payout, while Critical Illness Cover or Income Protection may be needed if the priority is serious illness or loss of earnings rather than death.When Another Type Of Cover May Be More Appropriate
What Does Directors’ Life Insurance Cover?
A Relevant Life Plan pays a lump sum if the insured person dies while the policy is in force and the claim meets the policy terms. Cover applies around the clock; death does not need to happen at work or be connected to your job.
Many plans also include terminal illness cover. This may allow a claim if you are diagnosed with an illness that meets the insurer’s definition, often where life expectancy is less than 12 months. Definitions, exclusions and any restrictions near the end of the policy term vary by insurer.
Arrange A Free Protection Review
What Could The Payout Help Your Family With?
- Paying off or reducing a mortgage and other debts
- Replacing some of the income your household relies on
- Everyday bills and living costs
- Childcare, school or university costs
- Giving your family time and financial breathing room
The money is not restricted to these uses. The trustees distribute the claim proceeds in line with the trust, taking your nomination into account.
Request a Tailored Cover Review How Much Does Directors’ Life Insurance Cost?
There is no standard price for Directors’ Life Insurance. The premium is based on the cover requested and the risk assessed by the insurer. Pricing commonly reflects:
- your age and medical history;
- smoking or nicotine use;
- occupation, travel and higher-risk hobbies;
- the amount and type of cover;
- the length of the policy; and
- any options that increase the cover over time.
The company structure does not determine the insurer’s headline premium, although potential tax treatment may affect the eventual cost to the business. Compare policies on their terms and suitability as well as price, and ask your accountant to confirm any tax assumptions.
Get a Directors’ Life Insurance Quote What Happens If You Leave the Company?
Leaving the employer does not always mean the cover has to end. Depending on the insurer and policy terms, a new employer may be able to take over the premiums, or the trustees may be able to assign the policy to you so it can continue as personal cover.
The ownership, trust and tax position may change, and providers do not all follow the same process. Speak to your adviser and insurer before the company stops paying premiums, changes ownership or closes. It is also sensible to review the policy after a change to your employment, salary, dividends, mortgage, family, trustees or intended beneficiaries.
Review Your Cover Options Directors’ Life Insurance vs Personal Life Insurance
Both types of policies can provide financial support for the people you leave behind. The main difference is how the cover is arranged and paid for.
Comparison Point |
Directors’ Life Insurance (Relevant Life) |
Personal Life Insurance |
| Who arranges and pays | The company arranges the policy and pays the premiums. | You arrange the policy and pay from your personal income. |
| Who is insured | One named director or employee. | One person, or sometimes two people under a joint policy. |
| Who the cover is for | Your chosen beneficiaries, usually through a discretionary trust. | Your chosen beneficiaries, either through your estate or a trust, depending on how the policy is set up. |
| Eligibility | Linked to an employer-employee relationship and the insurer’s Relevant Life criteria. | Available more widely and not dependent on being employed by a company. |
| Tax position | Potentially favourable when the policy meets the Relevant Life rules and is set up correctly. | Premiums are normally paid from income that has already been taxed. |
The right route depends on your employment status, protection needs and the policy terms available to you.
Relevant Life can offer tax advantages compared with paying for personal life insurance from post-tax income, where the relevant conditions are met. Whether premiums qualify as an allowable business expense and the tax treatment of the policy and trust depend on the circumstances, policy structure and current legislation. Your accountant or tax adviser should confirm the tax treatment for your business. Your accountant or tax adviser should confirm the treatment for your business. Tax rules and individual circumstances can change, and neither the adviser nor the insurer can guarantee a particular tax outcome. Our protection advisers can explain the insurance structure, eligibility, available policies and trust documentation. Where the decision depends on your company’s tax position, you should confirm the tax treatment with your accountant or tax adviser. Speak to a Business Protection AdviserHow Does the Tax Treatment Usually Work?
Why Company Directors Choose The Mortgage Broker
When life cover is funded by a limited company, the details matter. Your employment position, income, existing cover and the people you want to protect can all affect the options available. Our protection advisers can check whether Relevant Life may be suitable, compare policies from the insurers we work with and guide you through the application.
Advice Without The Jargon
We will explain how Relevant Life works, what it can cover and how it differs from personal life insurance or business protection.
Eligibility Checked At The Start
Your adviser will look at your role in the company, how you take your income and the cover you need before approaching an insurer.
Cover Based Around Your Needs
We will discuss the amount and length of cover that may suit your family commitments, existing policies and budget.
Policies Compared For You
We compare suitable policies from the insurers we work with, looking at cost, policy terms and underwriting requirements.
Help With The Trust Process
Relevant Life policies are commonly placed in trust. We can explain the insurer’s paperwork and what needs to be completed.
Support Throughout The Application
We will handle communication with the insurer, help with any follow-up questions and keep you updated until the policy is in place.
Find out whether company-funded life insurance could be suitable for you and your business.
Meet Our Protection Advisers
Our protection advisers can review the cover you already have and check whether it still fits your life today. They will look at what has changed, whether anything is missing and whether you are paying for cover you no longer need.
Matt Cotter
Senior Protection Adviser
Request A Directors Life Insurance Quote
Start by telling us about the business, how you take your income and who you want the policy to protect. It is also useful to know about any life cover you already have.
Your adviser can check whether Relevant Life may be an option and talk you through policies from the insurers we work with. If it is not the right fit, they can explain why and discuss other ways to protect you, your family or the business.