Legal and General was founded in 1836 and has since grown to be one of Europe’s biggest insurance and asset management companies, with over 10 million customers around the world. The company’s mission is ‘to improve the lives of customers, build a better society for the long term, and create value for shareholders’.

If you buy your income protection policy through Legal & General, your policy is likely to come with the features outlined below. Here we'll explain what the feature is, what it means for you, and how it compares to other insurers on the market.

Back-to-work benefit If you become able to work while making an income protection claim, but can only go back part time (or to a different job with a lower salary), you’ll continue to receive a proportion of your income protection benefit. L&G’s back-to-work benefit is in line with other insurers in the market. This is a handy benefit to have, as it gives you some flexibility and security as you make your return to work.
Benefit guarantee Your income protection benefit will never fall below £1,500/month – as long as you bought at least that amount when you took out your policy. You normally need to be working a minimum number of hours to qualify for this benefit. L&G’s benefit guarantee on income protection policies is good. The amount is on par with other insurers who offer this benefit. Meanwhile, other insurers offer lower benefit guarantee amounts, or don’t offer the feature at all.
Death benefit If you die during the term of your income protection policy, your family will receive a lump sum of 12x your monthly income protection benefit. Some insurers don’t offer death benefit at all, so this is a good feature to have on your income protection policy. However, the amount paid out by L&G is low among those that do offer this feature. Other insurers pay out more – e.g. a multiple of your monthly benefit or a fixed lump sum.
Guaranteed insurability You’ll have the opportunity to increase your income protection cover after certain life changes. In an L&G policy, this includes:

  • Getting a significant pay rise
  • Taking out a new mortgage
  • Increasing your existing mortgage amount
  • Increasing your existing mortgage term
  • Being able to review your cover at regular intervals
 For the life changes it covers, L&G’s guaranteed insurability feature is good. It allows you to increase your cover by up to 50% (though as with other insurers, there's usually a cap placed on the total amount of cover you can increase to). Other insurers offer less flexible versions of this feature, don’t offer it for these life changes, or don’t offer it all.

The downside to L&G’s guaranteed insurability feature is that it doesn't cover some of the circumstances covered by other insurers. Namely:

  • Getting married
  • Becoming a parent
  • Changing the term of your mortgage
Hospitalisation benefit Get 1/30th of your income protection benefit per night if you’re hospitalised for any reason during the waiting period of a claim (up to a maximum of £150 per night). This benefit is usually subject to a minimum and maximum number of consecutive nights spent in hospital. Again, some insurers don’t offer hospitalisation benefit at all, so this is a good feature to have on your income protection policy. The amount paid out by L&G is good – on par with (or more than) other insurers who offer this feature.
Waiver of premium This handy add-on means that you won't keep paying your monthly premiums if you're off work for medical reasons. You usually need to be off for a certain amount of time before you can claim this benefit. L&G’s waiver of premium benefit is in line with other insurers in the market. Having this benefit gives you peace of mind in case you can’t work for health reasons.

Income protection policies often come with a number of extra benefits, which we’ve listed below. These features are ‘non-contractual’, which means they’re not related to the contractual conditions of your own policy, and are usually provided by a third party. Everyone is eligible for them – though they’re only made available if you buy your L&G policy through an adviser.

Nurse support services This service, provided by RedArc, gives you access to advice and support from trained nurses. This include bereavement support; mental health support; second medical opinions; carer support; help at home after hospital stays; and elderly care.
Rehabilitation support service Access to a specialist rehabilitation team who help you build a structured return-to-work programme. The service includes, triage, full rehab assessment, ongoing reviews, and file reviews – and is only available to L&G income protection customers.
Second medical opinion This service, provided by Healix Health Services Ltd., entitles you to a face-to-face or phone-based consultations with a consultant specialist for a second medical opinion, as well as a supporting report to be shared with your GP.
Advance payments for funeral costs An advanced payment of up to £10,000 to help cover your funeral costs if needed. The money goes straight to the funeral home/director. Only eligible if making a claim via your income protection policy’s death benefit.

In 2020, Legal & General paid out 93% of new and existing income protection claims. The most common causes of claim were musculoskeletal (32%), cancer (17%) and mental health (12%). Income protection claims not being paid out are usually due to not meeting the insurer’s definition of incapacity or misrepresentation (i.e. providing inaccurate information during the application process).

Source: L&G

The following prices are based on:

  • Healthy 25-year old male or female office worker
  • £1,500 of level income protection cover
Product Waiting period Non-smoker Smoker
Long-term 13 weeks £22 £27
26 weeks £19 £24
Short-term 13 weeks £10 £12
26 weeks £7 £9
  • Healthy 25-year old male or female plumber
  • £1,500 of level income protection cover
Product Waiting period Non-smoker Smoker
Long-term 13 weeks £41 £54
26 weeks £36 £44
Short-term 13 weeks £15 £20
26 weeks £12 £18
  • Healthy 35-year old male or female office worker
  • £1,500 of level income protection cover
Product Waiting period Non-smoker Smoker
Long-term 13 weeks £28 £40
26 weeks £26 £35
Short-term 13 weeks £12 £15
26 weeks £9 £12
  • Healthy 35-year old male or female plumber
  • £1,500 of level income protection cover
Product Waiting period Non-smoker Smoker
Long-term 13 weeks £54 £73
26 weeks £52 £58
Short-term 13 weeks £22 £32
26 weeks £18 £24

Long-term: Legal & General Income Protection
Short-term: Legal & General Income Protection 24-month
Quoted on 06/03/2020

Need income protection? Let's work out which insurer is right for you, starting with your age:
18-24
25-34
35-44
45+
Income protection: Anorak's complete guide What does income protection cover? Do I need income protection? Glossary of income protection terms