Mortgage Protection Insurance in Kenya

Your lender can require cover, but the Insurance Act says the bank must tell you in writing that you can choose your own licensed insurer or broker. It can assign one only if you waive that right in writing, so check the clause before you sign.

Each policy lists its own exclusions. The usual ones on Kenyan plans are:

• Suicide in the first two years (some plans list it with no time limit)
• Death from a health condition you did not disclose when you applied
• Death while committing a crime, or from deliberate drug or alcohol abuse
• War, terrorism or riot when you take an active part
• Hazardous sports and private flying, unless the insurer agreed to cover them
• Natural-cause death during a waiting period, where the plan has one
• Any death after the policy has lapsed for unpaid premiums

Read the exclusions page of your policy, and tell us about any risky job or hobby before you apply.

Mortgage protection pays the lender the outstanding balance. Your own term policy pays your family a fixed sum they can use as they choose, and can be assigned to the lender for the loan. Compare both: a term plan can cost less and covers more than the loan.

With credit life the insurer pays whatever balance is left, so the payout shrinks as you repay. Some insurers' designs pay the family the difference between the original loan and the balance.

It depends on how the premium was paid. With a single premium paid upfront, ask the lender and the insurer whether the unused part is refunded; with yearly premiums the cover simply stops. Ask for the policy terms in writing when you take the loan.

Yes. ICEA LION's Mortgage Protection Assurance can be taken jointly, so the loan is cleared if either of you dies.