A Cumbrian man has been jailed for life after murdering his wife for her life insurance policy, it has been revealed.

Farmer, Robert Wilson, 41 ran over his wife with a tractor with the intension of receiving cash from her life insurer after being in severe debt.

Mr Wilson was found guilty for the murder of his wife and sentenced with a minimum of 22 years at Carlisle Crown Court after a three-week long trial.

Wilson told the trial that his wife had died accidentally yet Mrs Wilson’s children had raised concerns after they discovered the evidence of Mr Wilson’s affair with a secret mistress.

The farmer is believed to have planned to cash in his wife’s life insurance policy that is said to be worth around £400,000, for a new life with his mistress.

Meanwhile, according to research by Barclays Financial Planning, 52 per cent of people in the UK have not taken out a life insurance policy, 45 percent of those people are between 35 and 54.

Alison Tattersall, head of customer and proposition of the firm said: "People must consider the financial consequences of what would happen if they were unable to work, or their dependents' situation if they died, it would be far worse than any concerns they currently have over struggling to meet their outgoings."