Holistic Wealth & Family Protection

Securing what matters most against life's uncertainties

Acquiring property is only half the financial journey. Without robust risk management protecting against critical illness, long-term incapacity, or untimely death, a family home can quickly become an unmanageable burden. We structure transparent policies written into trust to protect your estate and loved ones.

Trust Writing Included
Zero Inflated Markups
Comprehensive Underwriting
Family relaxing safely in their protected UK home
FCA Consumer Duty Protected Suitability guaranteed by certified advisers
Personal & Family Security

Family Protection Solutions

Tailored policies designed to settle debts, replace lost earned income, and provide surviving family members with financial independence.

Level Term Assurance

Guarantees an unchanging, tax-free lump sum payout upon death within a chosen policy duration (e.g., 20 to 30 years). Premiums are locked and guaranteed throughout. Ideal for interest-only mortgages, family dependency periods, or inheritance planning.

  • Guaranteed fixed premiums
  • Terminal illness benefit included
  • Optional inflation indexation
Enquire About Level Term

Decreasing Term Assurance

Specifically formulated to protect a capital-and-interest repayment mortgage. The sum assured decreases in line with your amortizing mortgage balance, making it the most cost-effective life insurance structure available in the UK.

  • Tied directly to repayment mortgage
  • Substantially lower monthly premiums
  • Guaranteed debt elimination on death
Enquire About Decreasing Cover

Family Income Benefit

Instead of paying a confusing single lump sum, this policy provides an ongoing, regular monthly or annual tax-free income stream to surviving dependents for the remaining duration of the policy term, simplifying day-to-day household budgeting.

  • Replaces monthly salary for dependents
  • Avoids lump sum investment anxiety
  • Highly cost-effective family cover
Enquire About Family Income

Critical Illness Cover

Pays a tax-free lump sum upon formal diagnosis of a covered severe medical condition (such as invasive cancer, stroke, heart attack, or MS). Includes Child Critical Illness Cover at no extra charge on comprehensive plans and partial payment severity tiers.

  • Pays upon medical diagnosis, not death
  • Automatic child critical illness cover
  • Funds private care, adaptation & mortgage
Enquire About Critical Illness

Whole of Life Assurance

Guaranteed lifelong cover that does not expire after a set term. Whenever death occurs, the tax-free sum assured pays out. When written into trust, it serves as the ultimate estate planning mechanism to settle HMRC Inheritance Tax (IHT) liabilities.

  • Guaranteed payout whenever death occurs
  • Essential Inheritance Tax (IHT) mitigation
  • Eliminates forced property liquidation
Enquire About Whole of Life

Over 50 Guaranteed Plan

Guaranteed-acceptance life assurance for UK residents aged 50 to 85. No medical questions, health underwriting, or doctor examinations required. Designed to cover funeral expenses and modest legacy gifts for family members.

  • Guaranteed acceptance (ages 50–85)
  • No medical exams or GP questionnaires
  • Fixed monthly contributions for life
Enquire About Over 50
Earnings Continuity

Income Protection & Incapacity Safeguards

Your ability to earn an income is your greatest financial asset. If accident or prolonged illness halts your work, statutory sick pay (£116.75/wk) is rarely sufficient to maintain mortgage repayments.

Full Income Protection (Own Occupation)

The gold standard of incapacity cover. Assesses claims on your ability to perform your specific, individual occupation ('Own Occupation' definition). Pays up to 50%–70% of your gross earned salary tax-free every month until you recover, return to work, or reach your scheduled retirement age.

Key Features: Customizable deferment waiting periods (4, 8, 13, 26, or 52 weeks), index-linked benefit options, and comprehensive mental health and musculoskeletal coverage.

Budget Income Protection & ASU

A cost-effective alternative that limits the payout window to 1, 2, or 5 years per continuous claim. Accident, Sickness & Unemployment (ASU) and Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance (MPPI) offer short-term emergency coverage, safeguarding household stability during acute redundancy or medical leave.

PPI Contrast Note: Unlike legacy, mis-sold payment protection products from high-street banks, modern Income Protection contracts are medically underwritten upfront for complete claim certainty.
Corporate Continuity

Business Protection & Director Solutions

Preserve enterprise value, protect commercial loan covenants, and ensure smooth succession planning for UK limited company directors and partnerships.

Relevant Life Cover

Highly tax-efficient death-in-service life assurance for small business directors and key employees. Paid directly by the limited company as an allowable business expense, reducing Corporation Tax.

  • Eligible for Corporation Tax relief
  • No National Insurance or P11D tax
  • Written into trust free of Inheritance Tax
Explore Relevant Life

Key Person Protection

Insures your business against financial fallout, revenue contraction, and emergency recruitment costs caused by the premature death or critical illness of key revenue generators.

  • Safeguards enterprise cash flow
  • Covers executive replacement costs
  • Protects lender confidence and credit
Explore Key Person

Shareholder Protection

Provides liquidity for surviving shareholders to purchase equity shares from the estate of a deceased business partner via Cross-Option Agreements, maintaining uninterrupted company control.

  • Cross-option agreement execution
  • Prevents unwanted third-party intervention
  • Provides fair cash value to partner's estate
Explore Shareholder Cover
Estate Planning

Tax, Trusts & Estate Structuring

Arranging an insurance policy without placing it into trust is one of the most widespread financial oversights in the UK. We ensure your wealth passes to your chosen heirs without 40% Inheritance Tax deductions.

Writing Policies into Trust

When a policy is written into trust, the proceeds bypass your legal estate. This eliminates statutory probate delays, allowing trustees to disburse funds to your family within days of bereavement rather than waiting six to twelve months for probate court sign-off.

Mitigating 40% Inheritance Tax (IHT)

UK estates exceeding the £325,000 Nil-Rate Band (plus £175,000 Residence Nil-Rate Band) incur a 40% Inheritance Tax liability. Proceeds inside trust do not form part of your estate for IHT purposes, legally preserving the entire payout for your beneficiaries.

Wills & Dangers of Intestacy

Dying intestate (without a valid will) subjects your assets to rigid statutory rules. Your spouse may not automatically inherit everything, and unmarried partners receive zero statutory entitlement. We coordinate will structuring and legal guardian appointments.

Consumer Education

Important Facts You Must Know Before Buying Protection

Financial protection is riddled with complex exclusions and marketing half-truths. Here are critical facts every UK policyholder must understand.

Under the FCA Consumer Duty, an advised recommendation from Austin Friars carries full legal and regulatory backing. We audit your circumstances and take responsibility for policy suitability. On non-advised online aggregator sites, you carry 100% legal liability if you select an inappropriate policy or overlook crucial medical exclusions.
Do not confuse the two. Terminal Illness Benefit only pays out if a medical consultant confirms you have fewer than 12 months to live. Critical Illness Cover pays a full lump sum upon diagnosis of a covered condition (e.g. cancer, stroke, heart attack) even if you make a 100% full recovery and live a long, healthy life.
Cheap policies advertised on direct mail or daytime television are often 'Accidental Death' only. These pay out exclusively if you die as a direct result of an external physical accident—excluding death from heart attacks, cancer, COVID, or any disease. Full life assurance covers death from any cause (illness or accident).
Full disclosure of your medical history is vital. Withholding minor details (like smoking habits, blood pressure readings, or family medical histories) can invalidate your policy at claim stage. Austin Friars works with specialist underwriters who offer fair terms even for applicants with pre-existing conditions.
Some bank branches and tied insurance sales forces add arbitrary markups ('inflated premiums') onto insurer base rates to increase internal profit margins. Austin Friars gives you direct access to pristine insurer base rates with full, transparent fee disclosures.
Income protection provides comprehensive, long-term replacement of your salary under an 'Own Occupation' definition right through until retirement. Payment protection (PPI/ASU) is a generic short-term policy tied to a specific debt that typically expires after 12 or 24 months.
Engaging in private aviation, offshore working, scuba diving, mountaineering, or motorsports requires tailored underwriting. Standard off-the-shelf policies usually exclude claims arising from hazardous hobbies. We source policies with bespoke underwriting riders that keep you covered during your passions.

Need a Confidential Protection Review?

Speak directly with an Austin Friars protection consultant to audit your current family, income, and business cover. We verify suitability, optimize premiums, and draft trust deeds without administrative delays.

Book Free Protection Audit