Life insurance should be used for more than mortgages.

Individuals need to make sure their life insurance covers more than just their mortgages, as this could leave their loved ones exposed.

Financial advisors are imploring people to remember the true benefit of life insurance - the ability to provide your family with long term financial security should the worst happen.

Research reveals that only 16% of people with life cover said they had bought it to protect their family, while 44% of people said they took out a policy to cover a property or remortgage.

Advisors believe that many people are taking out life insurance purely to cover their debts, rather than considering how much money their family would need to be financially secure in the event of their death.

A premature death in the family could leave one parent or a guardian needing to find enough income to cover all the family expenditure while, if they work, potentially also having to spend extra money on child care during the working week.

While that might be a reasonable assumption for those without dependents, families should remember that over and above paying off debts, the real benefit of life insurance is that it is there to make sure your family is left financially secure in the long term should something happen to you.

AND with premiums currently so competitive, now is a really good time for families to top up their insurance or to buy additional policies.

Simply taking a little time now to arrange enough cover could provide you and your family with peace of mind for the future.