Whole of Life Insurance is a type of policy which is designed to leave a lump sum payment for your loved ones when you eventually pass away. There are a number of reasons why you might choose to take out this type of policy:

Whole of Life Insurance can also be viewed effectively as a long term investment which will eventually pay out after the policy holder passes away, leaving a legacy for those left behind.

Where it is intended that one or more particular children will inherit a business, this type of policy can be used to provide legacies for the other children. This ensures fairness and avoids splitting up the business.

If you have built up a considerable amount of assets throughout your lifetime your family may be burdened with a large inheritance tax bill when you pass away. This may result in a family business or assets having to be sold off or broken up in order to pay the tax.
Revenue allows for inheritance tax bills to be settled by the tax exempt proceeds of a particular type of Whole of Life insurance policy plan, greatly easing the burden on your family and preventing a large slice of your life’s work going to the Taxman.

It is important to note that a Whole of Life insurance policy only remains valid as long as premium payments are kept up while the policy holder is still alive, so it should be viewed cautiously to ensure that payments can continue to be made.

There are also two types of premium payments, one where the premiums remain fixed throughout the life of the policy and the other where the payments are index linked.