Joint life insurance

A question about : Joint life insurance

To briefly set out the narrative;

My ex wife and I had joint life insurance (divorced last year) with Royal London. Taken out when I was 43 (now 50).

I contacted Royal London by telephone on a couple of occasions to ask about removing her from the policy and telling them that I wanted to continue the policy. They told me that it was not possible to remove her from the plan without receiving instructions from her (we have no contact). The life insurance was taken out as a stipulation of our joint mortgage and I have been paying the life insurance solely since our separation 4 years ago.

I was advised by Royal London to cancel the direct debit and allow the plan to lapse. I've done this but now realise that, given I will be looking for a new mortgage fairly soon, I would be better keeping the plan active. However, now Royal London are telling me that I can't reinstate the plan without, again, receiving instruction from her.

I was paying a premium of Ј50.20 per month for a policy of Ј250k and have paid this for 7 1/2 years (so Ј4,518.00 paid in premiums since the plan started).

It occurs to me that at 50 years old, any comparable life insurance premium is likely to be considerably higher.

I can't shake the feeling/belief that it was their intention to advise me to let the plan lapse because at 50 I was a higher risk of loss to them and they simply wanted to take the money and run.

So, is there anything I can do or should I just let it go?

A note; the no contact is entirely by my ex wife's choice, any attempt to contact is met by cries of stalking, harassment and calls to the police (yes, she's totally unreasonable, uncooperative and just a little bit bonkers).

Best answers:

• Well, it was presented as an option in terms of "this is your only option".
• Although we do not know your exact situation, it is unlikely that the existing policy would remain suitable for your new circumstances.
  It covers an ex spouse unnecessarily, is unlikely to have a term that matches your new mortgage and almost certainly has a level of cover that matches the amount you will be borrowing.
  Even if it does, the insurer will now know that you are not going to die in your forties and not need to factor the risk that you might into the premium.
  In addition, you are under no obligation to stick with Royal London and can search the market for the cheapest policy that meets your needs.
• Thanks all
• Best to go to a financial adviser and get a new plan
• Hi Mushisushi,
  Royal London has asked me to pass on that it would be happy to chat to you about your query. You can speak to someone directly on 01625 605583, so do feel free to give them a call.
  MSE Wendy
• The Royal London group is a mutual insurer so should be looking to make sure the client does not lose out financially.
  Hope all goes well