According to a study by Limra.org, life insurance ownership is at 50 year lows with only 44% of U.S. households having any life insurance coverage. In fact, people have more cars, TV's and smartphones than they do live insurance.
Please don't be one of those statistics.
Children and spouses can be devastated when the bread winner of the family passes away. They can suddenly be plunged into a world of destitution and lose almost everything they own because they no longer have a source of income to pay the bills and prepare for the future.
A sad aspect of life is that everyone must, at some point, pass on from this world and leave those they love behind. There are measures a person can take to help ease the transition for their family by making sure they have a life insurance policy they will provide funds for the family to live on and pay current and future costs. Term life insurance is relatively inexpensive and there are several types of policies available to provide coverage and other benefits.
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Guaranteed Level Term Insurance
When evaluating all your life insurance options, getting an affordable term policy is the most popular. The policies usually last for a set period of time. The periods usually last for 5, 10, 15, 20 or 30 years. The monthly premium and death benefit are fixed until the policy expires. One should choose carefully the length of time they want coverage. When the term period ends the policy also stops.
In order to extend coverage a person will often have to go through the whole application process again. There are cases where a person’s health has declined and is no longer eligible to obtain a new policy and can no longer get the coverage they might need to protect their family. A basic rule of thumb is to have a policy that lasts long enough for dependents to grow up and become independent.
Non-Medical Policies
Getting life insurance without an exam is becoming much more common place in the insurance market. Basically, this allows you to get a fully underwritten policy without having to take the typical life insurance physical that many are accustomed to. If you need life insurance in a hurry or are deathly afraid of needles, then these type of policies make a lot sense.
If you're not in a rush to get your policy, then sticky to a traditional term policy makes the most sense as these policies will typically cost a bit more. Also, please don't think that these policies will not look over your medical records, because they do. After you complete a short telephone interview, they will be able to verify your information by cross referencing what is on your MIB record.
Return of Premium Policies
These policies will refund the premiums paid if the person being covered lives until the term policy period ends. For instance, if one purchases a 20 year policy and pays $30.00 per month for this coverage, they will have paid $10,800 in premium payments during the lifetime of the policy.
With a return of premium policy at the end of 20 years, this money is returned to the policy holder. This can be an alternative savings vehicle for people. They can have the coverage they need while raising their families, but can receive a lump sum payment later in life to use for other things once that coverage is no longer needed.
Convertible Policies
These policies are useful for young people who want a whole life policy, but really can’t afford the cost right now. They can get a term life policy that will allow them to convert it to a whole life policy regardless of their health conditions, or having to undergo a medical examination, when the term life policy ends. Whole life lasts for the lifetime of a person provided they make their premium payments.
Decreasing Term Life Policies
These policies are usually bought to cover a specific debt or financial obligation that decreases as one pays off the debt. A common reason people purchase these policies is to cover their mortgage. The amount a person owes a lender is decreased each time they make their monthly payment and one will not need as much money to pay off the loan as time passes. These policies are normally more affordable than the other options since the death benefit decreases each year.
Life insurance is designed to protect loved ones after one passes away. There are numerous options available to address most situations where coverage is needed to keep a family financially stable if the unexpected happens.
I just replaced my term policies to protect us against income loss.
I have recently got Term Life Insurance plan from ING life Insurance.