Children's cover is an optional add-on to Post Office Life Insurance that provides financial assistance if a child is diagnosed with a specified condition or suffers a defined injury
Between £10,000 and £30,000 per child available
There to help you navigate challenging moments
Just 54p extra on your monthly premium per child for maximum cover
If a child becomes seriously ill, the impact on a family can go beyond the medical. Parents may need to reduce their hours or change their working arrangements to provide care. There may be hospital visits, home adaptations or additional childcare to arrange.
Children's cover is designed to help with this. It’s an optional add-on to Post Office Life Insurance that pays out if an insured child is diagnosed with one of a defined list of serious conditions or suffers a specified injury. It also provides cover in the event of a child's accidental death, offering a financial cushion for families during a devastating period.
The payout is yours to use however you need it most, whether that's covering lost income, taking care of certain bills or simply taking some time away together.
Children's cover pays out a cash lump sum if an insured child is diagnosed with one of the following conditions or suffers one of the following injuries whilst covered under the policy. You choose the amount of cover you want, with a minimum of £10,000 and a maximum of £30,000 available:
| Condition | Detail |
| Cancer | Except less advanced cases |
| Bacterial meningitis | Resulting in permanent symptoms |
| Blindness | Permanent and irreversible |
| Deafness | Permanent and irreversible |
| Encephalitis | Resulting in permanent symptoms |
| Loss of hands or feet | Permanent physical severance |
| Paralysis | Total and irreversible |
| Traumatic head injury | Resulting in permanent symptoms |
| Accidental death | Where death occurs within 90 days of an accident after the cover start date |
Children’s cover with Post Office Life Insurance is a very small additional cost to your monthly premium. The exact amount will depend on how much cover you want and the age of your child/children, but in all cases it will only add a matter of pence to your monthly payment.
The maximum you can pay is an additional 54p per child on top of your monthly premium. That’s for £30,000 of cover for a term of 21 years or more (note that children are only covered up to the age of 21, so if your policy term is 40 years, your child or children won’t be insured for the entire policy duration).
If you get a life insurance quote, you’ll be able to add children’s cover at the end and see how it would impact your monthly premiums.
Children's cover is added to your Post Office Life Insurance policy for an additional monthly premium. Here are the key things to know:
Children's cover can be added to your Post Office Life Insurance policy alongside critical illness cover for yourself. Critical illness cover pays out if you are diagnosed with one of four specified serious conditions: cancer, heart attack, stroke or coronary artery bypass grafts.
Both are optional add-ons to your life insurance policy, each with a separate additional premium. You can add one or both, either when you first take out your policy or at a later date. To add children's cover, your child/children must reside in the UK and be under 21.
If you’re still deciding how much life insurance to take out, there are no quick and easy answers. It will depend on each person’s situation. Here are some things to consider which might help you come to your decision:
Thinking about these things and making some calculations can bring you a number which feels right for your situation.
No. A children's cover payout is entirely separate from your life insurance policy. After a successful claim, the children's cover for that child ends and your monthly premium reduces accordingly, but your main life insurance cash sum remains in place in full for the rest of the policy term, as long as you continue making your payments.
Yes. You can add children's cover to your Post Office Life Insurance at any time, not just when you first apply, providing that the child is under 21 and and a UK resident at the point of applying.
Children's cover is an add-on to your life insurance policy and cannot exist independently. If you cancel your life insurance policy, children's cover will also end. If you are thinking about cancelling your policy, it is worth considering what cover your family would lose, and whether an alternative policy might be a better option.
A joint policy covers two people and pays out on the first death, after which the policy ends. Two single policies mean each of you has your own cover that pays out independently, giving your family two separate payouts if the worst were to happen to both of you. For parents, two single policies often provide more comprehensive protection, though they may cost more than a single joint policy. Our guide on joint vs single life insurance goes into more detail.