Yes, someone over 50 can obtain a loan without standard borrower insurance. No French law requires the cover; the bank asks for it as a condition of lending. When insurers refuse or demand an unreasonable loading, the lender may accept an alternative guarantee instead, such as a personal guarantee, a charge on another property or a pledge over a life-insurance policy.
This is not a favour. Lenders that have signed the AERAS convention, the French agreement on borrowing with an aggravated health risk, have committed to examine a substitute guarantee when no insurance could be found, or when the cover obtained is too partial to protect the borrower and their family. After 50, that situation becomes common, particularly after a cancer, heart condition or diabetes diagnosis.
Which guarantees will a bank accept in place of insurance?
The information sheet on alternative guarantees shared by French banks, published by Société Générale and Crédit Mutuel among others, lists four families. What they have in common is that they must retain, at all times, a value able to cover part of the repayments or all or part of the outstanding balance, and they must be quick to call upon if needed.
- A guarantee from one or more individuals: a relative undertakes to repay if you cannot, and the bank checks they can carry that burden on top of their own.
- A charge on another property: a second home, a buy-to-let flat, or a property owned by someone else who agrees to it.
- A pledge over an assurance-vie policy or a securities portfolio, including shares, bonds, funds and a PEA share savings plan.
- Assignment of individual protection policies you already hold, provided they stay in force for the whole loan.
Comparing the options before you propose one
Each guarantee has a different cost and a different effect on your wealth. The table sums up what to know before meeting the adviser. The figures for a mortgage charge and mutual guarantee are the orders of magnitude given by Crédit Agricole in its guide to loan guarantees; they vary with the amount and the notary.
| Guarantee | What it protects | Indicative cost | Watch point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pledged assurance-vie | Outstanding balance, up to the policy value | Simple deed, low fees | Withdrawals blocked during the loan |
| Pledged securities or PEA | Capital, after a discount for volatility | Modest set-up fees | Top-up call if the value falls |
| Charge on another property | Capital, through sale of the property | About 1.5% of the amount, plus release | Notarised deed required |
| Personal guarantee | Repayments and capital | No direct fees | Guarantor commits their own assets |
| Assigned individual protection policy | Death, sometimes disability | Premiums already being paid | Employer group schemes rarely sufficient |
Worked case: pledging a life policy at 58
Sylvie, 58, a salaried manager earning €3,100 net, wants to borrow €120,000 over 12 years for a flat. She was treated for cancer three years ago and does not yet qualify for the right to be forgotten, which applies five years after the end of treatment. Two insurers refuse; a third excludes any risk linked to her illness.
She offers a pledge over her €90,000 assurance-vie held in a euro fund. At 3.6%, below the 4.68% usury ceiling for loans of 10 to 20 years in the fourth quarter of 2026, the repayment is about €1,027 a month, a debt ratio of 33%, within the 35% limit set by the HCSF (France's financial stability council).
Why a euro fund reassures the bank more
The capital in a euro fund cannot fall, whereas a unit-linked policy can lose 20% in a few months. Faced with volatile funds, the lender counts only a fraction of the value or asks for more. If you want to keep unit-linked investments, allow a generous margin between the pledged value and the amount borrowed.
Mistakes that sink an application without insurance
Most refusals stem not from the lack of insurance itself but from a guarantee that is poorly presented or the wrong size. The adviser must be able to see, with figures, that the bank's risk is covered. These errors come up repeatedly in files from applicants over 50.
- Leaving a condition off the health questionnaire: a deliberately false statement voids the policy under article L113-8 of the Insurance Code, and the whole file becomes suspect.
- Proposing a guarantee without a written refusal from the insurer stating which AERAS review level was reached.
- Pledging the savings meant to top up your future retirement income, leaving nothing available.
- Asking a child whose income cannot bear the commitment to act as guarantor.
What the lender checks about your guarantee
It looks at three things: the real value of the asset on the day of the offer, how stable that value is over time, and how easily it can be realised. A mortgage-free rental flat valued at €180,000 works very well to secure €100,000. A share in a family property company or a property co-owned with siblings raises serious legal difficulties. A house you own in the UK or elsewhere abroad is rarely accepted, because a French bank cannot easily register or enforce a charge on it.
A relative as guarantor: the special case
A personal guarantee costs nothing, but it shifts the risk onto your family. If Paul, 62, borrows €40,000 and his daughter stands as guarantor, she will have to pay the balance if he dies uninsured. Since 2022, article 2300 of the Civil Code reduces any guarantee that is manifestly out of proportion to the guarantor's income and assets, which pushes the bank to check her finances.
A mutual guarantee does not replace insurance
Guarantee companies such as Crédit Logement cover payment default, not death. If an uninsured borrower dies, the company pays the bank and then claims against the estate. According to Crédit Agricole, this guarantee costs around 0.8 to 1.2% of the loan, with a partial refund possible at the end. It complements an alternative guarantee; it does not replace one.
Putting the file together, step by step
Work through the process in order, ideally before signing a preliminary sale agreement. Allow two to three months, since a third-level AERAS review and the drafting of a pledge deed take time.
- Approach several insurers specialising in aggravated risks, in addition to the bank's group policy.
- Keep every refusal or loaded offer, and ask in writing which AERAS level was reached.
- List the assets you could pledge: assurance-vie, PEA, securities account, unencumbered property.
- Put a specific guarantee to the adviser, with recent valuations and a calculation of how much capital it covers.
- Have the pledge or charge deed drawn up, then check that the life insurer has received notice of the pledge.
- Keep looking for insurance: if you obtain cover later, you can ask for the guarantee to be released.
Options if no guarantee is available
Without savings or a second property, other levers remain. A healthy co-borrower can be insured at 100% while you remain uninsured. A shorter term reduces the capital at risk. And the AERAS mediation commission can be approached when a refusal seems unjustified.
From 60, borrowing against your home
The Foncier Reversimmo lifetime mortgage, distributed by Banque Populaire and Caisse d'Épargne from age 60, requires no death cover and ignores your health. It is repaid on death or when the property is sold. For a one-off need, a pawn loan from the Crédit Municipal also works without insurance.
Frequently asked questions about alternative guarantees
Can the bank refuse every alternative guarantee? Yes. AERAS obliges it to examine your proposal, not to accept it. A refusal must be explained, and another lender may find the same guarantee sufficient.
Does a pledged life policy keep earning interest? Yes, it stays invested. Only withdrawals and policy advances are blocked without the lender's consent until the loan is repaid in full.
What happens for my heirs if I die? The bank recovers its money from the guarantee: the pledged policy, the sale of the charged property or a call on the guarantor. Any surplus goes to the beneficiaries or the estate.
Can I combine partial insurance with an alternative guarantee? Yes, and it is the most common arrangement: death-only cover with exclusions, topped up by a pledge covering the remaining risk.
Organisations and offers to contact
- Société Générale : The bank's information sheet on AERAS alternative guarantees: personal guarantee, property charge, pledge of securities or life insurance, and assigned protection policies.
- Crédit Mutuel : Crédit Mutuel guide explaining when and how to propose a substitute guarantee once borrower insurance has been refused or priced out of reach.
- Crédit Agricole, e-immobilier : Crédit Agricole's explanation of property charges, mutual guarantees and pledges, with indicative fees for each type of loan security.