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Life insurance for couples

You’ve found your life partner, and together you’re ready to face whatever the future holds. While life can be full of wonder, it can also bring challenges. With your someone special by your side, it makes sense to consider what you can do to safeguard your short and long-term plans. Which is why life insurance, a financial safety net, is something couples can consider to help protect themselves and the life they build together financially from the unexpected.

Life insurance can provide you with peace of mind knowing your partner – whether you call them your husband, wife, girlfriend, boyfriend, significant other, or better half – are protected from financial distress if you were no longer around or became terminally ill. The benefit payout you or your partner could receive if you each have life insurance can be used to help cover medical bills, day-to-day living expenses, a mortgage or any other personal debts, like loans, school or university fees, credit card, or car repayments.

Whether you’re married or in a de facto relationship, have kids, or want some in the future – life insurance can help provide financial protection for the future.

The great thing is that both you and your partner can take out cover under separate policies with Real Life Insurance, which not only means twice the peace of mind, but it can also offer the following: 

  1. Customisation: You and your partner can tailor your individual policies to your specific needs and financial situation. 
  2. Flexibility: Individual policies offer great flexibility. If your circumstances change, such as a change in relationship, it won’t affect your partner’s cover (and vice versa).
  3. Beneficiary control: You can both choose your own beneficiaries, which can be especially helpful for blended families, where partners have children from previous relationships. It can also be useful if you both want to nominate other family members, like parents or siblings.
  4. Policy continuity: If you or your partner pass away, the survivor’s individual policy continues without any changes. 
  5. Independence: You both have admin control over your own policy, offering you both a layer of independence and financial control.

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Is life insurance worth it?

If you have a loved one who depends on you and your income, then life insurance may be worth considering. If you fall seriously sick or get severely injured and can’t work, or something worse happens and you pass away suddenly – it’s important to consider how they would cope. Life insurance can help ease the financial strain your loss could cause your partner, helping to protect them financially.

When would my partner and I need life insurance?

There are many stages of life when you and your partner may consider getting life insurance.

  • Start living together

    If you’re a couple that’s just started living together, you must be on top of the world! Now you can share costs. But what would happen if life went sideways and one of you isn't able to contribute? Life insurance is a financial safety net that could help when you’re abruptly left on your own.

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  • Buy a home together

    Buying a home is a large financial commitment. Not only are there mortgage repayments to consider, but there are also council rates, the cost of repairs or renovations, wear-and-tear, and home maintenance. If something were to happen to one of you, consider whether the other would be left to manage the costs on their own. Life insurance provides financial protection which may offer peace of mind for couples who own a home together.

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  • Get married

    If you’ve gotten married or are considering getting married – it’s a time to celebrate, and hopefully the honeymoon period never ends! While weddings are expensive, making a lifelong commitment to another person is priceless. Protecting the love of your life against challenges the future holds can be an important consideration. Life insurance is one way to financially protect your spouse if the unexpected happens.

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  • Start a family

    Starting a family and having a baby is a joyous time for so many, as well as a massive responsibility. The Real Struggle Report 2024 highlights the financial difficulties being experienced by everyday Australians, with over 80% of parents trying to shield their children from financial issues. Life insurance is one way to protect your baby financially, if you’re no longer there.

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What are the benefits of life insurance?

There are many benefits of life insurance, with the main being the financial benefit payment you or your partner may receive if diagnosed with a terminal illness or either of you pass away. 

With Real Life Insurance, you can apply for cover from $100,000 up to $2 million, depending on your age and underwriting outcome. Your loved ones could receive a 20% advance funeral payout, subject to approval, up to a maximum of $20,000 to help cover your funeral expenses or any other expenses they may need immediate help with, while we assess the claim.

What’s more is that Real Insurance pays 100% of the benefit amount to you if you're diagnosed with a terminal illness with 24 months or less to live. So, you can focus on your loved ones and not worrying about your finances. Plus, it’s simple to apply over the phone with no medical or blood test needed and you can choose to pay your premiums monthly, yearly or annually at no extra cost.

How can I make sure my partner receives my life insurance?

When you take out your policy, you will choose your beneficiaries – these are the people in your life who you want to receive a percentage of the benefit payment if you pass away. You can list up to five beneficiaries, so you can choose your partner, children, siblings, parents (or anyone else!), and decide who gets what percentage of the benefit amount. Or you may decide to only name your partner as your sole beneficiary, so they get the entire lump sum upon your passing. Once they receive the payment, they can spend it on anything that needs taking care of.

My partner and I have children – do we need life insurance?

If you have children or plan on starting a family you may sleep easier having financial protection in place for your children, if the worst happens and you’re no longer around to care for them. Each person’s situation is different though, so you need to consider your own requirements.

You and your partner may already have a will in place, but when you take out your life insurance policy, you can name your children as your beneficiaries so they receive the lump sum payment if you pass away. 

With Real Life Insurance, you can choose to add optional Children’s Insurance cover if you have kids between 2 and 17 years of age. You can choose cover between $20,000 and $50,000 for each child, which expires on the policy anniversary following their 21st birthday.

How much life insurance do my partner and I need?

Everyone lives a unique life and as such, the level of cover will differ for everyone. Only you and your partner can decide what level of cover might be best to protect your lifestyle and life goals. 

Deciding how much life insurance you or your partner need may seem challenging, but it just takes a little research. Here are some considerations to keep in mind:

  1. Debts and liabilities: Consider whether you want any payout to cover any outstanding debts like mortgages, car loans, or credit card balances that may need to be paid off.
  2. Future expenses: Consider future costs such as your children’s education, ongoing living expenses, or any other significant expenses, like medical bills.
  3. Final expenses: Account for your funeral and other end-of-life expenses.
  4. Superannuation and savings: How much money you have available to your family in savings or a superannuation fund or even whether you have any life cover through your super fund.
  5. Investments and assets: Whether you have an investment property or any other investments that your family can use to fund costs or any other assets such as a car, caravan, artwork or jewellery, etc. that they may sell.

Calculate how much life insurance you may need with the Real Life Insurance calculator.

Know your options

On top of life cover there may be optional cover offered that you could add to your life insurance policy, for an additional premium, to cover for even more life-related events. For example, with Real Life Insurance, as well as optional Children’s Insurance, depending on your underwriting outcome, there are  two other optional covers available:

  1. Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) Insurance: You can have cover in case you become permanently disabled or can’t work due to a permanent illness or injury. This can help lighten the load for you and your partner at a very difficult time. Learn more
  2. Serious Illness Insurance: Cover for some common serious illnesses like cancer, stroke or heart attack. If you are diagnosed with a defined serious illness, you are paid your benefit amount as a lump sum. You and your partner can use this money for whatever you need.  Learn more

It's important to be aware that there are limits on the benefit amount for the optional covers and that they expire.  Any payment on optional TPD or Serious Illness Insurance will reduce your life cover benefit amount.

What happens to my life insurance if we get divorced?

It may not be a fun thing to think about, but separation or divorce is a possibility for couples, and like any other major life event, it requires some forethought to make sure you are protected. Separation is difficult to prepare for, and according to our Real Cost of a Separation Report, the majority of people who’ve gone through a separation or divorce say that they weren’t prepared financially (73%), or logistically (57%) for the events that unfolded. If you do get a divorce or separate from your spouse, then you may need to review your life insurance policy. 

You may want to adjust your address and contact details, the cover amount, any authorised person listed on the policy and update any beneficiaries. The same applies to de facto couples who are no longer together.

With a Real Life Insurance policy, as it is not a joint policy, you won’t have to go through the hassle of filling out forms and doing extra paperwork to remove an insured partner if life doesn’t go as planned.

Some things you should know about Real Life Insurance

  • The benefit amount you can be covered for and ability to add optional Serious Illness Insurance or Total & Permanent Disability Insurance are dependent on your age and underwriting outcome. Optional covers may expire.
  • Terminal illness diagnosis of 24 months or less to live.
  • Cover excludes claims as a result of a self-inflicted injury in the first 13 months.
  • Depending on your underwriting outcome your life cover may expire, and exclusions may apply.
  • For full details, read our Product Disclosure Statement

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