An endowment policy is a life insurance contract designed to pay a lump sum after a specific term (on its ‘maturity’) or on death. Typical maturities are ten, fifteen or twenty years up to a certain age limit. Some policies also pay out in the case of critical illness.

Policies are typically traditional with-profits or unit-linked (including those with unitised with-profits funds the holder then receives the surrender value which is determined by the insurance company depending on how long the policy has been running and how much has been paid into it.

Pension insurance provides many benefits. They can be used as a low-risk way to save. Policyholders can choose how much to pay each month and how long they want to stay, usually for 10 or 20 years.