MetLife UK has expanded access to its Life and Legacy services to include employees’ parents and in-laws under its group life policies.
The move is in partnership with funeral planning provider Everest, which now offers funeral planning and support to a broader group of family members, expanding beyond insured employees, their spouses, partners, and dependents to now include parents and in-laws. The service includes 24/7 access to funeral planning advisers, independent research on over 8,000 funeral providers, and tools for organising and documenting end-of-life preferences.
Employees and their families can also use Everest’s digital services at no additional cost. These include Will writing (Comprehensive, Mirror, and Living Wills), drafting Power of Attorney, and a secure digital vault for storing documents, financial records, digital passwords, and other personal information.
The platform’s planning tools, such as the “10 Key Decisions” guide and video function, allow individuals to record and communicate their funeral preferences in advance.
MetLife says the expanded access reflects a focus on supporting multigenerational families and evolving employee needs in the group life market.
MetLife UK head of employee benefits Charlotte O’Brien says: “Protection is not just about financial wellbeing. Continuous innovation is vital to help people feel looked after and supported. That’s never truer than when suffering a bereavement, and in extending our Group Life and Legacy proposition to the parents and in-laws of the insured employee, we aim to provide more family members peace of mind. Those older family members will now know that they can access independent support and guidance if they need to leave their affairs in order, plan for the future, or arrange a funeral.
“This unique benefit should also help encourage people to talk about and plan for the future in a way that’s convenient and practical, rather than in highly emotive or emergency moments. In doing so, we are trying to remove some of the strain that comes with bereavement so individuals can focus on themselves and their families.”
Everest executive chairman Mark Wood says: “Our collaboration with MetLife has delivered valuable support at their time of grief to employees of MetLife’s Group Life clients. The extent to which our services are valued is reflected in MetLife’s new business and renewal performance. Today we announce the extension of our services to encompass employees’ parents and parents in law.”