20 Year Term Life Insurance

Posted on in Life Insurance

A 20 year term life insurance policy is one that is for providing a death benefit if the insured passes with in that time frame.  Who may be served well with this type of coverage?  How about those that want to cover (in the event of death) money borrowed or loan for that time period ie mortgage or to ensure their kids can pay for college (if the bread winer parent passes).  Generally as far as premiums go they can remain level (or in other words the same over the life of term of policy) or can be subject to change.  For instance annual renewable which be subject to adjustment each year.

For more useful information on life insurance see the video below.

comments: 0 » tags:

Life Insurance in the News: Policy Holders Owed, Earnings and More

Posted on in Life Insurance

Life Insurance News:

In New York it has been found that some life insurance companies (which ones are unknown) owed some big money to beneficiaries of policy holders some of which have passed a while ago.  The state government has revealed that over $52 million, an astonishing amount was being held by insurers.  It seems that some companies weren’t using all available resources (like Social Security records) to check on benefits that should have been paid.  In the end several thousand benes got what they were owed.  To see more on this story check this out.

Metlife is looking at 2012 as a good year for the company as it projects earnings will likley move higher.  There has been some realignment in management and its stock has felt some pressure this year so far.  Some of this companies investments have done well and it will be focused on keeping risk in check especially on some its products.  More details here.

Northwestern Mutual who has received accolades from publications like Fortune and is doing very well in the individual life insurance market.  In fact they have a serious lead on everyone else especially on what they receive on payments from underwriting policies.  Dividends have been another brighspot for them and their clients.  See more click here.

Below is a video on life insurance tips.

 

comments: 0 »

Life Insurance in the News: Sales, HIV, IPOs and Apps

Posted on in Life Insurance

Some interesting tidbits regarding life insurance:

The organization known as LIMRA indicates that for the last quarter (3rd) sales of life insurance policies for individuals in the United State of America were robust.  In fact they went up a healthy 6% mostly due to tick up in whole life policies.

Over in South Africa more than 5 million people suffer from AIDS/Human immunodeficiency virus (or HIV).  Carriers in this market are starting to underwrite more life insurance for those infected though premiums are not cheap.  Often folks in SA neeed a policy in order to borrow money from a bank.

Applications (apps) are used for everything these days which would include helping us with our unhealthy habits.  Can they lead to getting life insurance for less? A contributor for Forbes thinks so as they highlight 5 applications out there they can be most useful with addressing difficult personal issues.  Click here for more.

Most are aware of the growth potential of India.  A couple years in the making 3 life insurance companies are preparing for their initial public offerings.  There are concerns regarding how the regulators have hold on how much shares can be deluted and of course the stomach churning nature of the current stock market.

 

 

 

comments: 0 »

Mortgage Term Life Insurance

Posted on in Life Insurance

Mortgage term life insurance is a product that is specifically designed to pay a death benefit equal to the insured’s mortgage if they pass away.  Most often the premium is level over the term of the policy and the death benefit decreases as the amount owed on the mortgage goes down.  As one may have already figured out premiums would be less than for a policy that is the same benefit over the whole term.

A mortgage term life insurance policy may be appropriate for someone that just wants to protect the beneficiary in the event of death for the mortgage obligation.  If the insured has other obligations they want to cover beyond the mortgage than other term life policies (or permanent options) should be considered.

 

comments: 0 » tags:

Term Life Insurance for Smokers

Posted on in Life Insurance

When buying term life insurance or any for that matter for smokers will be more difficult because of the health ramifications that go along with smoking.   The insurance company is taking on more risk by covering one that smokes because of the associated diseases and sicknesses.  Here are some related notes that should help in this regards:

  • Find an insurance company that specializes in insuring smokers.  It is more likely that because of their specialty that their actuaries have a good handle on calculating the risk of covering one that likes tobacco.  Here is a > useful list of companies that may help find this coverage
  • Look for policies that are advantageous for those that may quit smoking later.  Insurers will differ in this regard in how long one has to not smoke before being eligible for a better rate.  When looking for a policy ask specifically for this detail and understand that if quitting another medical exam will have to be produced to prove that quitting has occurred.
  • Using an agent can be useful if they can understand one’s smoking habits well.  Armed with this information if they are knowledgeable with how how insurer’s are classifying smokers they can go out and hunt for the most appropriate policy.  Don’t forget the internet either as their many sites that can give multiple quotes at once.
  • Never lie about the habit or it will come back to haunt.  Lying about smoking as the insurance company will surely find out could make a policy invalid.
  • Compare different face value levels for term life insurance for smokers as there could be discounts for higher levels of coverage.
  • Getting a policy when one is young and in good health (outside of using tobacco) is going to be cheaper than being old plus smoking and then trying to get covered.
comments: 0 » tags: ,

Convertible Term Life Insurance

Posted on in Life Insurance

A convertible term life insurance policy is one in which allows for the modification of the policy from a term structure to a permanent one.  There is a clause in the contract that allows this if the insured meets the requirements.

This type of coverage may be beneficial to one that is young, healthy and wants the low premiums with that come with term life but may want permanent coverage later.  Another attractive aspect of convertible term life insurance is that it can help one retain coverage when they aren’t necessarily insurable.  As an example if the insured gets the policy when they are young and health and then become ill later and the term runs out the insurer may not want to renew.  But with the convertible policy they may still be able to keep coverage by converting to a permanent policy.  Often there is no additional health check required to switch the policy to permanent one.

comments: 0 » tags:

Buying Term Life Insurance: 5 Important Notes

Posted on in Life Insurance

Here are 5 ideas to keep in mind when buying or examining term life insurance policies.  Before making a purchase be sure to thoroughly examine the policy all the way through and understand all the details especially if there are exclusions.  This is not an exhaustive list but just a few notes to help start a search.  Remember that choosing the right policy can save headaches later.

  • Buy term life insurance from a reputable financially strong  company.  This will help the beneficiary of the insured get their payment quicker in the event that the policy holder passes.  The likely hood of getting superior coverage is greater when choosing an insurance entity that has their financial house in order.  In other words don’t waste your time with financially weak companies.  Its good to check their ratings through AM Best, Moodys, S&P etc.   Also ask your states insurance office if there have been complaints.
  • The cheapest policy is not always the best and there is probably a good reason why it is so cheap.  Be skeptical of offers that have big face values for minuscule premiums.
  • Consider how long you’ll need the policy for.  You don’t want to be short on this because renewing the policy later could be very costly.
  • Learn about riders and clauses.  For instance the waiver of premium rider that can pay premiums if one becomes disabled.  Some of these add-ons may be worth while other may not but its worth it to educate yourself on them.
  • Buying  term life insurance from an agent (instead of directly) is ok but you’ll want to make sure that they are reputable. There have been cases where agents have stolen premiums from clients.  Check with your state department of banking and insurance to make sure they are licensed.  Be suspicious if the agent asks you to make your checks payable to them or their agency instead of the company they represent.  Understand that agents usually get a commission so they may have a motive to sell you a policy that is not the best for you. With that said their are some very upstanding insurance agents out there but its vital to make your buying from one of them.
comments: 0 » tags:

No Exam Term Life Insurance

Posted on in Life Insurance

No exam (or often referred to as instant) term life insurance is coverage where the insured is not required to be medically checked before hand.  So there is no requirement to set up a medical exam and all the other tests that go along with it like urine samples.  Expect to answer a medical questionnaire instead.  This makes no physical or no exam term life insurance convenient.

Many insurance companies offer this coverage option but usually not for large face value policies.  It can be a very costly premium wise for folks that are in their older years.  No exam therm life insurance may not be the best value (even expensive) premium wise.  This is because the insurance company is taking on more risk by covering someone that hasn’t had their medical condition verified by a health professional.

*People should be skeptical to how good the life coverage being offered is when getting an advertisement in the mail offering no exam term life insurance for very low premiums.

 

comments: 0 » tags: , ,

Disadvantages of Term Life Insurance

Posted on in Life Insurance

Term life insurance is nothing but a death benefit payout to a beneficiary in the event that the insured passes away.  There is no cash value buildup and /or investment.  That in itself is a disadvantage of term term life coverage because if one doesn’t die there is no payment.  So the premiums paid went towards nothing other than hedging against the possibility of death and paying the insured’s responsibilities. See below for some more disadvantages:

  • Another negative or con regarding term life insruance is the fact that it is temporary and will expire after the given time period.  It may be renewable or convertible to a permanent policy.  The issues with renewing are if the insured will still be insurable later (if their health has declined this could be a problem).  If so how much higher are the premiums going to be?  The policy holder may be able to convert to a permanent policy if there  is a clause allowing it and if the insured meets the criteria to do so.
  • A third potential disadvantage of term life insurance is their is no cash value or investment component.  Depending on how good the insurance company’s investments are (after all fees) this could be good or bad.

*Life insurance is vital to protecting one and their family’s financial future in the event of death.  See advantages of term life insurance here.

comments: 0 » tags: , ,

Advantages of Term Life Insurance

Posted on in Life Insurance

Term life insurance is pure insurance whose purpose is to protect the beneficiary in the event that the insured passes away.  There is no cash or investment component like there are with permanent policies such whole life, variable and universal.   Check out the advantages of choosing term life insurance:

  • The premiums with term life insurance are much less money than those with permanent policies as one won’t incur the additional charges and  premiums for putting money into the investment or cash component of a policy.
  • The amount of death benefit for the dollar amount expended is greater and another advantage of choosing term life insurance.
  • Investment savvy individuals are more likely to benefit from term because they can get the most death benefit for their dollar and instead of paying extra money for a permanent policy they can invest the difference themselves.  They would also not be limited by what investments are offered by the insurance company in a variable, universal etc. type policy.
  • Often the amount of that a policy holder would have to expend up front is less especially if choosing annual renewable term.  A big reason for this is that term life insurance is limited to specific amount of time where  permanent as its name indicates is meant to be such.
  • It is much easier to understand what one is purchasing because what is being purchased is just a death benefit and there is no investment (which can be very complex depending) to understand.  As such it will be a simpler process when shopping around for policies making it yet another advantage of term life insurance.
comments: 0 » tags: ,
« Previous Next »