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Keeping up with your premium payments it's crucial to prevent your policy from lapsing. Unfortunately, circumstances do change, new expenses arise and it’s not always possible to keep up with premiums.
A premium freeze lets you stop your premiums from increasing as you age. It's only available with stepped premium life insurance policies because the cost rises with age.
Typically it can last until you choose to cancel it, or make a claim or adjust your level of cover in some other way. You will still have to pay premiums but the price won't increase with time, as long as it's active – however, your level of cover will drop.
Here are some of the brands on Finder that offer premium freezes.
| Brand | What age is this available? | More info |
|---|---|---|
 | Request a premium freeze at any time. This means your future premiums will be fixed at the amount you were paying on the date you notified the provider. amount. | |
 | 35 | |
 | Request a premium freeze or policy cancellation at any time. This takes effect from the next extension date of the plan. | |
 | If you're paying premiums on a stepped basis, you can request a premium freeze on your life, TDP or trauma cover at any time. This excludes policy fees and government charges. | |
 | 30 | |
 | Not specified | |
 | 30 |
Note that premium freeze options will reduce your sum insured amount and might not be available in super policies. Data taken from brand product disclosure statements, June 2021. Benefits, conditions and amounts are subject to change at anytime.
Unlike a premium freeze which merely stops premiums from increasing, this option means you stop paying premiums entirely. However, you will typically lose all your cover, and cannot make claims for anything that occurs while your cover is suspended. Not all life insurance policies will include a suspended cover benefit, and where they do it may be variously known as a premium holiday, premium pause or other variation.
Life insurance policies are often more complex and multifaceted than others. This can make it more difficult to navigate, but also means there are many ways to reduce costs.
An adviser can help you find cover from trusted life insurance brands.
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I am between jobs and would like to know if it is possible to not pay my premium this month and then resume the following month, but still be covered.
Hi Sharmane,
Thanks for your question. Life insurance policies usually allow you to pause premiums during financial hardship. Your case sounds a little different – so you may need to get in touch with your insurer to find out what your options are.
I hope this helps,
Maurice