Life Insurance
About Life Insurance
Life insurance is an essential part of financial planning. One reason most people buy life insurance is to replace income that would be lost with the death of a wage earner. The cash provided by life insurance also can help ensure that your dependents are not burdened with significant debt when you die. Life insurance proceeds could mean your dependents will not have to sell assets to pay outstanding bills or taxes. An important feature of life insurance is that no income tax is payable on proceeds paid to beneficiaries.
Choosing A Plan
Buying life insurance is not like any other purchase you will make. When you pay your premiums, you’re buying the future financial security of your family that only life insurance can provide. Among its many uses, life insurance helps ensure that, when you die, your dependents will have the financial resources needed to protect their home and the income needed to run a household. Choosing a life insurance product is an important decision, but it often can be complicated. As with any other major purchase, it is important that you understand your needs and the options available to you. The main types of life insurance available are term and permanent.
Permanent Insurance
Permanent life insurance provides lifelong protection.
Term Life Insurance
Term life insurance provides protection for a specified period of time.
How Much Insurance Do I Need?
Although there is no substitute for a careful evaluation of the amount of coverage needed to meet your needs, one rule of thumb used is, buy life insurance that is equal to five to ten times annual gross income at a minimum.
If you want to be more precise, take the time and complete the Needs Analyzer.
Life Events
Take a moment to think about how your life has changed just in the last year. Chances are, your life is not the same as it was last year, and neither are your insurance needs. Let us help you make the most of the present and prepare for what lies ahead.
Getting Married
Buying a Home
Planning for Retirement
Having a Baby
Planning of College
Starting a Business
Getting Married
Buying a Home
Having a Baby
Planning for Retirement
Planning of College
Starting a Business
Types of Life Insurance
Permanent Insurance
Permanent Insurance is Life insurance that is kept in force for a person's whole life as long as the scheduled premiums are maintained. All Whole Life policies build up cash values. Most Whole Life policies are guaranteed* as long as the scheduled premiums are maintained. The variable in a whole life policy is the dividend which could vary depending on how well the investments and other business criteria of the insurance company are doing. If the company is doing well and the policies are not experiencing a higher mortality than projected, values are paid back to the policyholder in the form of dividends. Policyholders can use the cash from dividends in many ways. It can be used in three main areas: to lower premiums, to purchase more insurance or to pay for term insurance.
Term Life Insurance
Term life insurance provides protection for a specific period of time. It pays a benefit only if you die during the term. Level term products are the most popular plans purchased today. The level term can be from 10 years to 40 years. The premium and death benefit are designed to stay level during the term of the contract. The premiums can be either guaranteed* or not guaranteed. When purchasing a level term life insurance policy be sure you are aware of the guaranteed* premium period. Once you have been approved and placed the policy in force with the first payment, the insurance company is obligated to keep the policy in force as long as you keep paying the premiums. You are not obligated to pay, but once you stop paying, the policy will lapse after usually a 30 day grace period. Some term insurance policies can be renewed when you reach the end of a specific period which can be from one to 40 years. The premium rates increase at each renewal date. Most policies require that evidence of insurability be furnished at renewal for you to qualify for the lowest available rates.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
If you miss a premium payment, you typically have a 30- or 31-day grace period during which you can pay the premium. After that, the policy will lapse. You may be able to reinstate with evidence of insurability depending on your policy's provisions. If your policy has sufficient cash value, the company can, with your authorization, draw from a permanent policy's cash surrender value to keep that policy in force. This does not apply to term insurance because there is no cash value to draw from. In some flexible premium policies, premiums may be reduced or skipped as long as sufficient cash values remain in the policy. However, this will result in lower cash values.
If you decide to purchase the policy, find out when the insurance becomes effective. This could be different from the date the company issues the policy.
It allows policyholders to receive all or part of the policy's proceeds prior to death under certain circumstances, including the need for long-term care and confinement to a nursing home. Because payments may affect tax status and Medicare eligibility, and will be deducted from the overall benefits paid later to beneficiaries, policyholders should thoroughly investigate options in advance.
Always name a "contingent," or secondary, beneficiary, just in case you outlive your first beneficiary.
Select a specific beneficiary, rather than having the proceeds of your life insurance paid to your estate. One of the great advantages of life insurance is that it can be paid to your family immediately. If it is payable to your estate, however, it will have to go through probate with the rest of your assets.
Be very clear in wording beneficiary designations. Naming specific children may exclude those born later. If your child dies before you, do you want the proceeds to go to that child's children? Changing the beneficiary designation is easy, but you have to remember to do it.
"Accidental death benefit", provides for an additional benefit in case of death as a result of an accident.
"Accelerated benefits", also known as "living benefits." This rider allows you, under certain circumstances, to receive the proceeds of your life insurance policy before you die. Such circumstances include terminal or catastrophic illness, the need for long-term care or confinement to a nursing home.
"Child rider", provides insurance for all your children, usually from $1,000 to $20,000 of death benefit.
Provisions or riders that provide additional benefits can often be added to a policy. One such rider is a waiver of premium for disability. With this rider, if you become totally disabled for a specified period of time, you do not have to pay premiums for the duration of the disability.
The answer almost always is yes. You may want to consider this option:
Life insurance - even if you have no dependents now, you may later. If you buy now when you are younger and healthier, you can "lock in" lowest-cost coverage, including guaranteed insurability.
Medical tests can provide accurate and current information about an applicant's health, thus enabling insurers to charge premiums that reflect the level of risk an applicant represents. Because some health conditions are easily managed through proper medication, therapy or lifestyle changes, medical information sometimes makes it possible for insurers to cover applicants who might not otherwise be insurable. More serious or incurable conditions present an enormous risk that an insurer simply cannot assume.
Think twice before you do, because in many situations it may not be to your advantage. Before dropping any in-force policy, make sure your "new" policy is paid for and in effect and first consider:
If your health status has changed over the years, you may no longer be insurable at preferred or standard rates.
If you replace one cash-value policy with another, the cash value of the new policy may be relatively small for several years and may never be as large as that of the original one. There may also be a period wherein a surrender charge is applicable on the first policy.
You should ask for a detailed listing of cost breakdowns of both policies, including premiums, cash surrender value and death benefits. Compare these as well as the features offered by both policies.
If you decide to surrender or reduce the value of the policy you now own and replace it with other insurance, be sure your new policy is in force before you cancel the old one.