Shepherds Friendly review: Over 50s life insurance

Shepherds Friendly is a well known mutual society insurer who offer a variety of products, including over 50s life insurance.

Shepherds Friendly are a highly rated provider, being awarded 5 stars by Defaqto in 2023, as well as rating 4 stars and above on popular customer reviewing sites.

Shepherds Friendly logo

In this in-depth review, we explore what Shepherds Friendly’s over 50s life insurance has to offer, including which benefits are included and how much a policy costs.

Please note, Shepherds Friendly over 50 life insurance is not available through Reassured. However, we can compare quotes from a variety of leading insurers, which could help you to save money and time on securing yourself a policy.

Is Shepherds Friendly a reliable life insurance company? Continue reading our 2024 review to find out…

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Shepherds Friendly reviews

Reading customer and professional reviews can be a good insight as to see how popular and reliable an insurer really is.

Whilst customer reviews from the main platforms, such as Trustpilot, have rated Shepherds Friendly 4 stars and above overall, this is based on all their products (a mixture of ISAs & investments, income protection and over 50s life insurance).

We gathered the top expert reviewing sites to find honest ratings of the Shepherds Friendly over 50s policy:

Review siteStar rating (out of 5 stars)
Defaqto logo Defaqto 4 stars
Fairer Finance logo Defaqto 5 stars

(Accurate as of 29/08/23)

Reassured provides quotes from highly rated insurers, including SunLife and One Family who have been awarded 4.5-4.8 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot.

Our award-winning broker service is also rated ‘Excellent’ on Trustpilot from more than 70,000 customer reviews.

Who are Shepherds Friendly?

Shepherds Friendly Limited, a Cheshire based company, was established on Christmas Day in 1826.

Multiple groups formed together as a mutual society, which means Shepherds Friendly has no shareholders and their profits are reinvested in the business to improve their services. It is run for the benefit of its members.

Their main goal was to provide financial security and protection to those unable to work due to falling ill with sickness or injury.

Now just under 200 years later, more financial products have been sold by Shepherds Friendly, such as over 50s life insurance and ISAs.

Shepherds Friendly’s over 50s life insurance

What is over 50s life insurance?

Over 50s life insurance (or an over 50s plan) is a suitable and affordable option if you want to be covered for the rest of your life, with guaranteed acceptance if you’re a UK resident aged 50 - 80 (with Shepherds Friendly).

It’s usually a popular option for people in this age group as you don’t have to provide your medical information. This means your premiums won’t be affected by any health factors.

Your loved ones will be provided with a cash lump sum pay out after your passing.

An over 50s plan could be ideal for those who have struggled to secure standard cover due to poor health or who have been declined previously, or those who have minimal financial commitments.

At Reassured, we can help to compare quotes for over 50 life insurance, which guarantees acceptance to UK residents aged 50 - 85.

Quotes start from just £5 a month + and you can secure up to £20,000 depending on your personal circumstances and budget.

What can Shepherds Friendly life insurance cover?

Typically, once in your 50s or over, your financial circumstances may not be the same as they once were.

You may have paid off your mortgage or your children may have grown up, so over 50s life insurance could help to contribute towards other costs, such as:

  • Funeral costs
  • A small inheritance for loved ones
  • Any remaining financial debts
  • Household bills and medical bills for a remaining partner
  • Donating to a charity of choice
  • Simply taking the pressure off loved ones after your passing

Shepherds Friendly’s policy key features

Here are the main facts to know about Shepherds Friendly over 50s policies:

  • You can choose your monthly premium, from £10 - £50 per month
  • 5 star rating on Defaqto and 3 star rating on Fairer Finance
  • UK residents aged 50 to 80 years old will be accepted for cover
  • No medical information required on application
  • You are able to amend your quote and change the level of cover as many times as you like before you apply
  • You can secure a guaranteed cash lump sum up to £20,000 depending on your age and budget
  • You can choose to add a funeral support option
  • The full pay out can be claimed 24 months after the policy starts for any cause of death
  • Full immediate cover for accidental death (an unnatural death that is caused by an accident in the time you wouldn’t have life cover for)

How much over 50s life insurance do I need?

How much life insurance you need will be based on what you want your policy to cover, as well as your personal circumstances and budget.

It is important to think about financial burdens you do not want to leave behind, such as funeral costs.

Work out how much cover you may need by filling out our over 50s life insurance calculator with your current financial commitments:

Over 50 life insurance calculator

How much over 50 life insurance do you need? Fill in the fields below with the costs you would like your policy to cover and calculate your ideal cover amount.

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According to Uswitch, it’s estimated that 23,000 people in the UK will still be paying off their mortgage by age 75.

Although an over 50s plan can’t cover the full cost of a mortgage (as cover is capped at £20,000), it could help to contribute some funds towards keeping your family in their home.
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Research by Saga shows that nearly 6 million over 50s owe money on credit cards and loans, with average debt amongst this age group totalling £12,000.

Depending on your personal circumstances, an over 50s plan may not be able to cover all debts (as cover is capped at £20,000) but it could allow you to cover some debts in your name.
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SunLife’s Cost of Dying 2023 report found that the average cost of a basic funeral is £3,953, with the overall cost of dying totalling £9,200.

A pay out from life insurance can help to cover all or some of these costs.
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Age UK have found that many over 50s and 60s will be reliant on their pension to get by.

Life insurance can provide your partner with a helping hand on top of their pension.
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An inheritance can provide your loved ones with a cash gift to spend as they wish.

Alternatively, you could leave a portion of your pay out to a charity that’s close to your heart.
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If you already have a life insurance (or other financial protection) policy in place, and/or you have your own savings, factoring these into your sum assured could reduce the level of cover you require - helping you to save money.
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Your total cover estimate

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How much is a policy?

Shepherds Friendly over 50s plans start from £10 per month and you can choose to pay up to £50, depending on how much cover you are looking to secure.

Your life insurance premiums are guaranteed which means they will never rise or reduce, regardless of your future health.

The table below shows some example premium prices for Shepherds Friendly over 50 life insurance. Quotes are based on a non-smoker taking out around £4,000 of cover:

AgeMonthly premiumSum assured
50£11£4,268
60£14£4,150
70£25£4,103
80£49£4,058


At Reassured, we can compare quotes starting from just £5 a month from some of the UK’s leading insurers.

Get in touch with our friendly team to secure your free, personalised quotes.

Benefits of Shepherds Friendly over 50s policy

Opt-in to additional funeral support option. Shepherds Friendly include an opt-in to additional funeral support option on all over 50s policies, where you can nominate Co-op Funeralcare to receive your cash lump sum when you pass away.

By selecting this Funeral Benefit Option, Co-op Funeral care will offer a discount, helping you save up to £250 on your funeral costs.

(However, a disclaimer about this benefit is that the £250 funeral benefit will only apply to ‘Tailored’ funerals through Co-op and any funeral benefit will only be applicable for UK residents. If your family opt for an ‘Essential’ funeral then you’ll only be eligible for a benefit of £100, and if they opt for direct cremation or burial then the benefit will be £50).

National Bereavement Service. Your friends and family of choice will also receive access to the National Bereavement Service.

A National Bereavement Service is a ‘not for profit’ organisation that can offer counselling and guidance to those who are grieving after a loved one passes away, an extra benefit to help support those during a tough time.

Free cover after age 90. Once you’ve paid 30 years of premiums or you have turned 90 (whichever comes first) you then will never have to pay premiums again for your policy, regardless of when you took out your plan.

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Is Shepherds Friendly life insurance reliable?

Yes, they’re an ethical company regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority which means that you’re protected when securing a policy through Shepherds Friendly.

With over 100,000 members, the company has an all over good reputation with the limited amount of products they do offer.

Like all other insurers, Shepherds Friendly are also reliable when it comes to policy pay outs.

100% of valid claims for over 50s policies are paid out (within the terms and conditions) and 96.2% of new claims made by income protection customers were accepted.

Policy comparisons

Here is a table that compares Shepherds Friendly over 50 life insurance with other over 50s policies from some of the UKs leading insurers:

InsurerGuaranteed acceptance ageMaximum cover amountFuneral benefit optionWaiting periodDefaqto rating (out of 5 stars)
Shepherds Friendly logo 50 - 80£20,000 Icon green tick 24 months Defaqto 5 stars
SunLife logo 50 - 85£18,000 Icon green tick 12 months Defaqto 3 stars
Aviva 50 - 80Not specified Icon ruby cross 12 months Defaqto 5 stars
OneFamily logo 50 - 80£20,000 Icon green tick 24 months Defaqto 5 stars

Correct as of 20/11/24


SunLife and One Family over 50s life insurance quotes can be secured with Reassured from just £5 a month.

Shepherds Friendly free gift

When directly purchasing an over 50s policy with Shepherds Friendly, you will receive a £125 Love2Shop voucher.

This voucher can be used online or in store at a variety of retailers including Amazon, Marks & Spencer, John Lewis, iTunes and more.

You will receive your free gift once you have paid your sixth monthly premium, via email.

Free gifts are a method used by insurers to entice customers into securing a policy with them.

Correct as of 20/11/24 Offers are subject to change or withdrawal by the provider without notice.

Reassured have written a full guide reviewing the best life insurance with free gift offers available in 2024 »

Shepherds Friendly income protection

Another popular product sold by Shepherds Friendly is income protection insurance.

Income protection is a type of insurance policy that makes sure you get a regular income if you’ve had to stop working due to certain circumstances, such as illness or injury. The income can last until you retire or can return to work.

Starting from £5 a month directly from their website, up to 70% of your income can be covered when you are unable to work. The percentage of your monthly income you want to cover will depend on how much you pay in monthly premiums.

This pay out replaces some of your regular income in the form of a tax-free payments, which can help pay for the usual things your income would cover. For example: household bills, childcare, medical bills, mortgage/ housing payments.

When looking to secure income protection it is important to compare quotes.

At Reassured, we compare a range of income protection policies and quotes from the whole of the market, including Shepherds Friendly.

Compare free life insurance quotes

In summary, Shepherds Friendly is a reliable and popular insurer best known for their over 50s life insurance policies.

However, the only life insurance cover available is for over 50s and the premiums start at £10 which can be slightly more expensive compared to other insurers.

Although we can’t offer Shepherds Friendly quotes, here at Reassured we can provide quotes from a variety of other leading insurers, to help you find our best deal.

Why not get in touch with one of our friendly professionals today to help you find our best deal?


The information used in this article has been taken from the Shepherd Friendly website and is correct as of 20/11/24. This information may be subject to change at the discretion of the insurer.

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