How to future-proof your family’s finances

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Updated 11 September 2024

by Co-op team

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As a parent, you want to give your child the best start in life as well as making sure their future is just as rosy. Luckily there are lots of simple ways to make your family financially secure for years to come.

Having a financial plan for your family not only gives you peace of mind, it also means you can give your child a helping hand with those milestone moments as they grow older.

From setting budgets to investing in life insurance and pensions, here are seven things you can do today to build up your family’s financial resilience.

Understand your spending

A great way to protect your family finances is by getting to grips with how much money is coming in each month and how much is going out. A quick and easy way to do this is by going through your bank statements.

Write down all your earnings and any benefits you claim, along with all your outgoings. This will help you spot any areas where you’re spending lots of money and where you can make long-term savings.

Work out your family budget

Once you’ve crunched the numbers, set yourself a weekly or monthly family budget. This will help future-proof your finances by making sure you’re not spending more each month than you’ve got coming in.

It’s also a good time to overhaul your outgoings by shopping around for utilities suppliers to get cheaper rates and cancelling any memberships or subscriptions that you’re no longer using.

Take out life insurance

It’s something we all avoid thinking about. However, if you or your partner should pass away, you’ll want to make sure your family is financially secure. Give yourself added peace of mind by taking out life insurance.

Set your family goals

It’s easier to save for your family’s future when you know what you want it to look like. So, whether it’s retiring early to help care for your grandchildren or paying for your child’s wedding, work out what your long-term goals are. This then gives you something tangible to look forward to and makes it easier to set some money aside each month.

Save for your child’s future

Want to give your child a helping hand with their finances, maybe to buy their first car or get on the property ladder? Then why not open a children’s savings account. There are lots of different options to choose from, including instant access accounts or tax-free Junior ISAs. You’d be surprised how quickly it builds up!

Pay into a pension

Another way to future-proof your family finances is by paying into a pension. It’s up to you how much you save for your retirement and which type of pension you go for.

A good tip to work out what to pay is to take your age when you start your pension and halve it. Then put this percent of your pre-tax salary into your pension every year until you retire. For example, if you start your pension when you’re 30, you’d put 15 percent of your salary aside until you finish work.

Make a will

No matter whether you’ve just had a baby or if your children are older, there’s a simple piece of financial future-proofing you can do right away: make a will.

Even though it’s probably the last thing you want to think about, it is a key part of your financial planning. Writing a will not only means you can decide who will look after your child if you pass away, it’s a way of putting financial arrangements in place for your little one when they are older.

Exclusive offers for Co-op Members

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£140 welcome gift

Life insurance

Members get a welcome gift worth £140 when they take out a new life insurance policy. Members also get 5% off the cost of their life cover for the duration of the policy.

You will receive your gift after 6 months of regular payments. Offer ends 30 November. Terms and conditions apply.

Get a life insurance quote
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£140 welcome gift

Over 50 life insurance

Members get a welcome gift worth £140 when they take out a new over 50 life insurance policy. Members also get an extra 1% added to their over 50 payout.

You will receive your gift after 6 months of regular payments. Offer ends 30 November. Terms and conditions apply.

Get an over 50 life insurance quote
Welcome gift terms and conditions

The offer

If you are a new life or over 50 life insurance customer through Co-op, you will get a welcome gift. 

Your policy needs to run for at least 6 months, and your payments must be up to date. 

This offer is for new customers only. 

You cannot get this offer if you already have a life or over 50 life insurance policy of the same type, or if you cancelled one in the last 18 months.

What you’ll get

  • £100 welcome gift for all new customers, or 
  • £140 welcome gift for matched Co-op Members who buy during our exclusive member offer events. This replaces the £100 gift.

Exclusive member offer events dates:

  • 1 October to 30 November 2025 
  • 31 December 2025 to 28 February 2026
  • 1 September 2026 to 30 November 2026

Your welcome gift options

If you buy over 50 life insurance through Co-op, you can pick one of these:

  • Amazon.co.uk Gift Card (restrictions apply, see amazon.co.uk/gc-legal)
  • Argos eGift Card
  • Cheque

If you buy life insurance through Co-op, you can pick one of these:

  • Amazon.co.uk Gift Card (restrictions apply, see amazon.co.uk/gc-legal)
  • Love2shop eGift Card
  • Cheque 

Promoter

The promoter is Co-op Insurance, a trading name of Co-op Insurance services Limited; registered in England and Wales with registration number 4390. Registered office: 1 Angel Square, Manchester, M60 0AG. Co-op Insurance Services Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under register number 779364 

This promotion is provided and managed on the Promoter’s behalf by The Marketing Lounge Partnership Limited ('MLP'), (Company number 06467245) of The Cow Shed, Walnut Tree Farm, Lower Stretton, Cheshire, United Kingdom, WA4 4PG 

Member data matching criteria

To establish you as a Co-op Member, the information on the purchase date of your new life insurance policy direct with Co-op, must match the information on your Co-op membership account. It is your responsibility to ensure that these records match and are up to date. We accept no responsibility or liability for the non-application of the offer where inaccurate or incorrect information is provided. The matching process uses the following data: 

  • your date of birth, and
  • your surname and
  • your first initial of your first name 

You can become a Co-op Member before or on the same day that you buy your new policy.  A £1 membership joining fee and Membership terms and conditions apply.

Notification and application of the offer

  • There is no requirement to enter a promotional code when purchasing a life insurance policy. 
  • Only one welcome gift per eligible policy bought, which will be subject to their own terms and conditions. You will be given access to their website with all the relevant details once you become eligible and are offered the option to choose your gift. 
  • Eligible policies bought in conjunction with other Co-op Insurance member discounts or exclusive offers will still be eligible for this Offer. 

How to redeem

  • If you're eligible, you'll receive a 'How to claim' email within 15 days after your policy has been active for 6 months. It will include details about the offer, how to choose and claim it, and the terms and conditions. We will send it by email or letter, depending on the information you provided when you took out your policy. 
  • You will have 30 days from the date you receive the message to choose which offer you would like. If you haven’t made your choice within the first 15 days, we will send a reminder message by email or letter to let you know you have 15 days left. 
  • If you are eligible for the welcome gift, the message will direct you to a website run by MLP, where you can choose your offer. 
  • After you’ve made your choice, if you choose a gift card, you will see a page with your digital gift card and details on how to use it, including expiry information. If you choose the cheque option, it will be sent to you by post. Cheques are usually delivered within 15 working days. Sometimes due to postal delays this can take longer.

Additional terms

  • The Offer has no cash value and cannot be exchanged for cash, or an alternative choice. 
  • The terms and conditions of this Offer do not alter or vary the terms and conditions of any eligible policy bought. 
  • Any applications for an eligible policy are subject to normal terms and conditions including underwriting criteria. 
  • Fraud and abuse relating to the Offer may result in the forfeiture of the welcome gift and termination of your insurance policy. 
  • The sourcing and delivery of the offer will be fulfilled by The Marketing Lounge Partnership Limited (MLP) of The Cow Shed, Walnut Tree Farm, Lower Stretton, Cheshire WA4 4PG on behalf of Co-op Insurance. MLP are, as defined in the General Data Protection Regulation ((EU) 2016/679), the Data Processor and Co-op Insurance will be required to pass some of your personal information to The Marketing Lounge Partnership to fulfil the Offer. By accepting the Offer, you agree to give consent for this information to be shared. 

You must notify us if there are any issues with receiving your offer within 12 months of your policy start date. Where you fail to contact us within this time, we may in our absolute discretion refuse to fulfil the offer without liability to you.

Exclusions

  • This Offer is for new life or over 50 life insurance customers bought through Co-op only. 
  • Policies bought via price comparison websites or cashback sites are not eligible for this offer. 
  • Temporary Co-op Membership cardholders are excluded from the £140 offer 
  • If your policy is cancelled within 6 months of the policy start date, for any reason, you will not be eligible to receive the Offer. 
  • The underwriter reserves the right to decline any application for any insurance policy at its absolute discretion and is not obliged to disclose any reason for rejection. 

Cancellation or withdrawal

Co-op Insurance reserves the right to withdraw, modify or end this Offer, without notice, in whole or in part in the event that it is necessary to do so, or if the uptake of the Offer exceeds expectations. 

Changes to these terms and conditions

  • We reserve the right to amend these terms and conditions at any time. Revised terms and conditions will be available at coop.co.uk/life-offer. It is your responsibility to keep up to date with any such changes. 
  • If any paragraph in these terms and conditions is found by any court or administrative body of competent jurisdiction to be invalid or unenforceable, such invalidity or unenforceability shall not affect the other paragraphs of these terms and conditions, which shall remain in full force and effect. 

Relevant law

  • These terms and conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. 
  • The Courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction in connection with these terms and conditions.