Life Insurance Cost

Shop smarter for Life Insurance!

Archive for the ‘Term Life’ Category

Term Life Insurance FAQ

Posted by Pamela Spencer On May - 2 - 2009

People often have questions about term life insurance. Here are answers to some of the more frequently asked questions.

1. Why should I buy life insurance?
The purpose of life insurance is to pay the funeral expenses and outstanding debts you may have at the time of your death, as well as provide a means of support for your children, spouse, or others who may financially depend on you.

2. What is a term life insurance policy?
A term life insurance policy is a policy that provides coverage for a specific time period. The beneficiary receives the benefit if the insured dies within the coverage period.

3. What is the advantage to buying term life insurance?
Usually a term life insurance policy costs less than a permanent life insurance policy because the coverage is for a shorter period of time. Some term life insurance policies even allow the policy holder to collect on the paid premiums after the term has expired.

4. How much insurance coverage do I need?
The amount of insurance coverage you will need depends on several factors. One major factor is the amount of outstanding debt you have as well as factoring in any funeral expenses and outstanding unpaid bills. One rule of thumb that is suggested is to multiply your net income by ten.

5. What term length should I choose?
The term length you choose will depend on your preferences and what terms your life insurance company has available to you. Some people prefer to have shorter terms so that they can continue to reevaluate their life insurance needs. Individuals who prefer stability may elect longer terms.

When you are choosing a term length you should consider your age and the ages of your spouse and children If you have long term obligations such as paying off a mortgage or sending your children to college, you may need a longer term insurance policy.


6. Is there a way to make my term life plan a permanent one? If so, how?
Permanent life insurance plans cover the insured for life provided that premiums are paid on time. These plans are more complex than term life insurance plans. Some term life insurance policies can be converted to permanent plans. However, the terms on the policy may change. You can ask your insurance agent how you can convert your insurance policy.

7. Why do I have to take a physical exam?
Insurance companies often do require that a medical exam be taken by individuals looking to purchase insurance coverage to ensure that they are not in bad health or have a preexisting condition. Older individuals and those with preexisting conditions or bad health will most likely pay higher premiums on their insurance coverage.

8. What does an insurance agent or broker do?
An insurance agent or broker works for an insurance company. They are assigned to assist policy holders with their insurance needs. The agent or broker can advise you on the specific details in your insurance contract. They are also the person you can contact or who your family can work with to file a claim.

9. Will I be able to get my money back when the policy ends?
It depends on the particular policy. Some do offer this as an option and some don’t. Most term insurance policies will offer you the option to renew. Be sure to read all of the terms and conditions of the insurance contract carefully before agreeing to any insurance policy.

  • Share/Save/Bookmark

Getting Term Insurance Online

Posted by Pamela Spencer On April - 15 - 2009

The internet provides a great way to shop, find information, communicate, and receive the latest news online. You can also buy term life insurance online these days. In fact, it is becoming more and more popular. You may wonder why anyone would go through the trouble of researching and buying term life insurance online when you could just find a local insurance company and sign up with them. Online life insurance customers would probably ask you the reverse, why go through all the trouble of contacting life insurance companies in your local area when researching and buying term life insurance online is so easy and convenient?

You may have your doubts, but getting quotes, doing comparisons, and purchasing term life insurance online has several benefits and advantages.

One great advantage to shopping for term life insurance online is that you are more likely to find lower term life insurance quotes and rates as well as great deals shopping online than you would by limiting yourself to local life insurance companies. You may be wondering how that is possible. One reason is because you are going to have access to a much bigger selection of choices online than you will in confining yourself to local life insurance companies. This gives you a better chance of finding better rates. Another advantage is life insurance companies operating online generally have low costs and zero commissions. They can pass their savings onto their customers in the form of discounts.


If these advantages are not reason enough, consider how convenient it is to shop online. It’s true that there are people who do prefer meeting with an agent in person, but many other individuals would prefer the convenience of shopping online where they don’t have to worry about scheduling conflicts and going to all those appointments. When you shop for life insurance online, you can do your searches for quotes, compare different insurance companies and shop for a life insurance policy at your convenience from home whenever you want.

Despite all the benefits and advantages of shopping and purchasing term life insurance online there are several things you need to consider as well.

One reason people are hesitant and skeptical about shopping for term life insurance online is because of scams. There are many reputable, legitimate life insurance companies online. However, there are also dishonest, shady ones on the internet as well. Take the time to do some research on the online life insurance companies. Contact the Better Business Bureau to see if any complaints have been filed against the company. Also check to make sure that you do qualify for the rate that you have been quoted.

Another thing to keep in mind is that in order to get the best rate and deal, you need to compare several companies. Getting just a quote or two is not adequate. You need to get multiple quotes in order to get the best deal on your life insurance.

You should also take full advantage of the customer service department of the online life insurance company. Discuss any concerns or questions you have about their terms and conditions, rates, or a particular policy that you are interested in. If the life insurance company does not have online customer service and support it’s a good idea to keep looking until you find a life insurance company that does.

  • Share/Save/Bookmark

Protect Your Business with Term Life Insurance

Posted by Pamela Spencer On February - 7 - 2009

Do you have a few employees or run a single-person, home business? Are you concerned about something happening to you or one of your key workers? Fortunately, insurance companies are aware of the potential losses that a business can suffer should someone suddenly pass away. These policies are often known as key employee insurance policies. They will compensate the company should someone die or get permanently disabled where they are no longer able to work. An insurance policy of this type will normally cover the training for a new employee and any subsequent losses in revenue that you may incur had the employee still been working.

Unfortunately key person insurance is not the cheapest type of insurance on the market. Luckily an inexpensive term life insurance policy can be an equally good way to cover your business. In fact, with this form of policy on yourself, you may find that the businesses expenses and debts are covered within the policy should you be permanently disabled or die. A policy like this is essential so that your company does not become a burden on your family. A term life insurance policy on each employee, including yourself, with the company named as the beneficiary may be sufficient to help offset the cost necessary should you have to replace them.


There are a number of reasons that make term life insurance a good option in these type instances. Since you are typically only paying for death benefits, the insurance itself is far less expensive than whole life insurance policies. Insurance agents will try to convince you otherwise, but they simply want you to pay higher premiums. In actuality, whole life policies are really not beneficial unless you intend to hold onto them for twenty or more years to really receive the full benefits. Generally, this is just not reasonable since more than likely you are getting insurance on an employee who has already been with the company a long time and may be eligible for retirement before you ever reach twenty years on the policy.

Just to drive the point home concerning whole life insurance being unnecessary, lets consider a real scenario where you are seeking insurance. If you are getting a key employee insured, you must calculate the expense to replace him. For the sake of argument, we will say this cost is $100,000. A generally healthy person under the age of fifty can get a term life policy for less than about $350 per year. However, the equivalent whole life policy would cost roughly $3000 per year. A drastic difference to say the least. With term life insurance policies, you can expect most premiums to stay low until close to retirement around age 55.

If you put so much into your business, why would you leave its success in doubt in the face of the unexpected? Make sure you get protection! It really is quite affordable.

  • Share/Save/Bookmark

Term Life Insurance & Causes of Death

Posted by Pamela Spencer On January - 3 - 2009

There are several important reasons to purchase life insurance. However, the most important reason why people invest in a life insurance policy is to ensure that their dependents and loved ones will be provided for at a time of loss. No one wants to think about their untimely death, however this issue will need to be faced when you are considering purchasing term life insurance.

Term life insurance policies often have provisions to cover deaths that are not due to natural causes or medical complications. If you are considering a term life insurance policy, you need to be aware of what these provisions and situations are that could prevent your beneficiaries from collecting the death benefits on your life insurance policy. You should also consider riders to your policy that can provide additional protection.

Suicide is a horrible tragedy for any family to have to endure. At such a difficult time, grieving families may need assistance from a life insurance policy. One provision that many insurance companies include in insurance contracts is suicide clauses. What the rider usually states is that the insurance plan needs to have been active for a minimum of two years before the date of the insured’s death in order for the beneficiaries to be able to collect on the death benefit. If the time requirement has not been met then the policy will be voided and usually the money will be forfeited.

Another provision in which insurance companies often reserve the right to not pay claims is in circumstances regarding foul play. If the insured’s death is suspicious, the insurance company will withhold claims until the death has been investigated. Unfortunately people have been murdered in order to collect on insurance policies. If there is any suspicion that a beneficiary may have played a part in the policy holder’s death, their benefits will be denied.


Insurance companies rely on evidence presented by government and police investigations as well as their own research to make decisions on the insurance claims. Some insurance contracts even give insurers the right to deny claims of a beneficiary even in cases where they have not been charged with a crime.

A majority of term life insurance contracts will cover many types of accidental death, but will still have additional accident riders. Some of these clauses will enable the beneficiary to receive additional benefits if the insured’s death was caused by an accident. This will increase premium costs but will be less than increasing benefits on other causes of death.

The insurance company is who determines whether the cause of death is accidental or not. Reasons for denying accidental death claims should be specified in the insurance contract within the rider or be thoroughly explained by the insurance agent.

Many times dismemberment and accident death can be purchased either through work or privately. These additional policies can work hand in hand with a term life insurance policy to provide additional benefits for policy holder’s that work in dangerous conditions or lines of work.

Fortunately most of these types of circumstances do not occur very often. Buying a term life insurance policy is a very effective way to help protect dependents and other loved ones. You only need to be aware of these other circumstances and spend a small amount of time to ensure that you have adequate coverage in the face of unforeseen consequences. You want to spend most of your time ensuring that your dependents and loved ones are well cared for.

  • Share/Save/Bookmark

How Long Does Term Life Insurance Last?

Posted by Pamela Spencer On December - 22 - 2008

Term life insurance is a policy that is only active for a specified period of time. The term life insurance policy will only cover you for the amount of time that you intend it to and then it expires at the end of the term. With some policies you are able to pay extra during the policy’s term and have your premium payments refunded when the terms expires. This can be a good investment. How long are terms on term life insurance policies?

The terms of life insurance policies can vary depending on what your needs are. Term life insurance polices can range anywhere from a year up to thirty years. They can cover a variety of debts and expenses. There are several important reasons for you to consider getting term life insurance as well as different coverage levels and various term lengths for you to select.


You may be wondering why you would ever want a one year term on an insurance policy. There could be circumstances when you have loans or other types of debt that need to be covered. In order to protect your family, who might be responsible for these debts in the event of your death, you can increase your insurance coverage to cover the debt. For example, if you took out a car loan that was to be paid off in one year, that loan might need to be covered in the event of your death if it would pose a financial hardship on your spouse to make the payments. You can get a term life insurance policy that would pay off the car and you would only need coverage for one year. So basically the major purpose of short term life insurance policies is to cover loans or short term debts.

On the other hand you may be wondering why you would need a thirty year term insurance policy? The main reason would be for paying off a mortgage. If you have mortgage payments to make, you will want to ensure that your spouse will be able to continue making the payments if you should die. A thirty year policy should cover almost any mortgage loan term.

Another reason why you might want a longer term policy is if you have young children or planning on having additional children and it may end up being thirty years or so before all of your children are on their own and financially independent. A long term policy will help to keep things financially stable for a family with young children.

  • Share/Save/Bookmark

Level Term Life Insurance

Posted by Pamela Spencer On December - 8 - 2008

Term life insurance has been in existence for a very long time and has resulted in quite a few different kinds of term life insurance for you to choose from. Some of these types are not very common. For example, renewable life insurance that is renewed on an annual basis. This form of term insurance could end up with very high premiums. Many people hesitate buying an annual renewable policy because of the fact that they will end up paying more on their insurance premiums as they grow older.

Level term insurance is a more popular type of term life insurance. With level term insurance, the premium that is paid each year is guaranteed to be a level rate. The premium rate is guaranteed to stay level for a certain stated period of time. It is usually for ten, fifteen or thirty years. During the stated time period, the premium is guaranteed to stay the same. This gives the person buying this type of term life insurance the assurance that their life insurance premiums will not increase. This form of term life insurance is quite popular and common. People like the security it offers in knowing that their term life insurance will not increase until the stated time period is up.


Premiums are paid each year on level term policies. Each year the amount paid is the same. The longer the term is, the higher the cost of the premiums. This is due to adjustments that are made for time value of money and the cost of getting older that are factored into the rate.

Level term is usually a good type of term life insurance for many people. They get used to paying the same amount for their premiums each year, so they can plan ahead of time. However, there is still the problem of what will happen when the term expires. If it expires when they are elderly, it might be very hard for the person to renew or find a new insurance policy. However, most level term life policies today do have options for making them renewable. These policies will include a rate with a maximum guarantee if the policy holder wants to extend their policy. This often happens when the policy holder becomes ill during their policy term and do not think they will be able to find new life insurance.

  • Share/Save/Bookmark