64% of people who have moved up the property ladder in the past five years, and have a bigger mortgage as a result, did not review their life insurance, according to research from Sainsbury’s Bank Life Insurance.

Reasons homeowners with mortgages gave for not reviewing their life insurance include thinking it wasn’t necessary (39%) and that they could not afford it (37%).

The findings also reveal that 44% of homeowners who have a mortgage do not have any life insurance at all, and 10% of these people had life insurance but no longer do. A further 3% said they didn’t know if they had cover.

Sainsbury’s Bank Life Insurance is encouraging homeowners to ensure they understand what cover they have and decide if it suits their needs, especially in light of large house price rises over the past year.

Scott Gorman, head of Sainsbury’s Bank Life Insurance said: “Moving home can be an exciting but stressful experience and with such a long checklist of things to do, it appears that life insurance is often forgotten about.

“We would encourage anyone who is moving home or may have just moved to take some time to check their policy and the level of cover they have and make sure it’s suitable for their change in circumstances.”

The research also suggests that of those who do not have life insurance, 53% live with a partner and 20% live with children.