Penny policies

Penny policies don't exist today but it’s estimated that there are millions of unclaimed penny policies still around.

How can you find an old penny policy and how much could it be worth?

What is a penny policy?

A penny policy is an old and nearly forgotten form of life insurance. It was commonly sold door to door between the 1920s and 1960s. Although some policies were sold up until 1997.

Premiums were cheap, often costing just a few pennies, and were collected in person with handwritten receipts.

The aim was for the policy to help cover funeral costs, but it was also possible to get savings or endowments policies.

Eventually door to door collections stopped and it became hard to keep track of who had a policy. Most people stopped paying in and forgot about the policy.

In 2019, Royal London reported that they had reunited 36,000 customers with lost penny policies worth more than £14 million.

Do I have a penny policy?

Recently, providers have been trying to contact those with penny policies so they can claim the pay out.

However, as policy records were written on paper and some policyholders may have died, it’s hard for insurers to contact everyone.

If you haven’t been contacted by an insurer, but any of the following sounds familiar, there could be a penny policy for you to claim:

• You remember a family member paying a person who came to collect premiums at your home
• You have a paper policy document or premium receipt book
• You remember ‘the man from the Pru’ (a common slogan used around the time penny policies were sold)

How much is a penny policy worth today?

There’s no clearcut answer on how much a penny policy would be worth today.

It would depend on the type of policy, when it matured and how long premiums were paid for.

A few years ago, many newspapers and news sites started reporting on unpaid penny policies, including stories of those who claimed on a policy. Most reports state that policies could be worth around £500.

The policy would need to be fully paid up, or at least premiums paid for a specified time, in order for it to pay out today.

Which insurers offered penny policies?

Some of the providers that offered penny policies may have rebranded or may have been bought out by other companies.

Here's a list of insurers that offered penny policies and what they are known as today:

• Britannic Assurance, Pearl Assurance, Swiss life (now known as Phoenix Life)
• Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society (now known as LV=)
• United Friendly, Refuge Assurance and Royal Liver Life (now known as Royal London)
• Prudential
• Aviva

How to find a penny policy

If this guide has jogged your memory, look out for any old paperwork around the house. This could help you work out who the policy was with.

Once you know the name of the insurer, you can start by contacting them and they can provide you with your next steps.

If you have a feeling there’s a penny policy you could claim and you don't have the paperwork, you have a couple of options:

• The Association of British Insurers (ABI) have a policy tracing service. If this service doesn’t help, you could contact them directly.
• The National Association of Insurance Commissioners have a free life insurance policy locator service.
• Gretal can be used to find lost or inactive life insurance policies, bank accounts, pensions and more.
• You could also contact any financial advisors family members have used in the past. They could have details on who the policy was with.

How do I claim a penny policy?

To claim a penny policy, you'll need to contact the insurer and they will be able to provide you with the next steps.

When claiming it's likely you'll need the policy number and the death certificate if the policyholder has died.