Posts Tagged: Premiums

Long Term Life Insurance is term life insurance that is taken out for an extended period of time. Most term life insurance tends to be for a period of between one and seven years, but some people prefer a longer term cover. Insurance companies have responded to this demand by offering a new range of products that fall somewhere between whole life insurance and traditional term insurance.

Normally when people want long term cover, they purchase whole life insurance, which covers them for the duration of their life, and also builds a cash value. However, if you do not wish to pay the extra premiums that are associated with the investment, then perhaps long term insurance rather than whole insurance may be the way for you to go.

These policies may be referred to as Permanent Life policies, and can be set up so that they are payable on demise, or at a certain age. Long term life insurance really blurs the line between whole life and term life insurance, with policies often borrowing from both structures to offer the customer even more flexibility. If you do not wish to have an accruing cash value, then you don’t have to. You can also stipulate whether you want the beneficiary to receive a lump sum payment, or monthly payments to boost income.

Unlike shorter term policies, long term life insurance does tend to be initially more expensive, though over the length of the term it may prove more cost effective than short term life insurance policies. Talking to your preferred insurance provider will give you a good idea of the options that are available out there. Then you can shop around and compare policies online, which will give you an even better idea of your options. The market is booming, so if you are looking for more flexibility in your life insurance, now is the time to look.

Most individuals have some form of insurance, whether it is for their vehicle, home or health. But it is important, however, not to overlook the benefits of life insurance, which pays money to beneficiaries when the insured dies.

HOW LIFE INSURANCE WORKS

Typically, the insured person makes payments into the plan – called premiums – in exchange for a “death benefit,” the money that is paid at the time of death. If you are considering purchasing life insurance there are a few potential problems you need to be aware of.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF LIFE INSURANCE POLICIES

There are numerous types of policies you can choose, but life insurance policies generally fall into three categories – protection, long-term savings and estate conservation.

Many people purchase life insurance for the purpose of providing for their dependents in the event of their death, thus protecting your existing stream of income. If you are in the protection category you may want to consider term life insurance, which offers only a death benefit for a specified period of time such as until you retire.

If long term savings is your reason for purchasing insurance, you may consider a cash value policy. With this type of life insurance, your beneficiaries receive a payment upon your death based on the full amount of coverage , not the cash value of the plan. The value of these plans is usually tied to an underlying investment portfolio and that is how funds accumulate.

Another added benefit is that these policies usually allow a holder to borrow from the accumulated funds in the plan without taxes or penalties. Depending on the policy, you can typically withdraw a portion of cash value and not pay it back, or even cancel the policy and receive the money that has been accumulated over the years.

USE LIFE INSURANCE FOR ESTATE PLANNING

Life insurance can also be used as an estate planning tool, especially if your goal is to preserve wealth for future generations. This type of policy covers one or two lives; the cash generated by these plans typically helps your heirs pay estate taxes and provide otherwise.

Now you have to decide how much coverage you need to provide the amount of income your family will need in the event of your death. After all, your goal in purchasing life insurance most likely is to ensure that income continues for those who are now dependent upon your income.

WHO NEEDS LIFE INSURANCE?

It also is important not to ignore the need for life insurance protection in a single or dual income family. The death of either spouse could create a financial strain on your family.

Shopping online for life insurance quotes is becoming increasingly popular in the UK and throughout Europe. No longer do we have to spend hours on the telephone – much to our employer’s disgust – divulging our personal details, only to find that the quotes from the life insurance companies are too expensive or don’t match our needs. Neither do we have to concern ourselves with taking time off work to make appointments with life insurance providers, subjecting ourselves to hours of sales talk. Of course, all of these options are still available to consumers should they prefer them, but many are now voting with their mouse and turning to online sources for life insurance quotes.

Tracking down the best quotes for life insurance

Obtaining life insurance quotes online is quick and easy. We can start our search for life insurance at our convenience any time of the day or night. If we want to find life insurance quotes at 3am in the morning, then we can do! Searching online for quotes also presents us with a great deal of choice. Almost all of the familiar names in the life insurance market have web sites on which their life insurance products are offered, and there are many less familiar names too.

For the consumer, this is great news, as the more life insurance companies there are offering their life insurance products on the Internet, then the more competition there is and so the better the price. When hunting down life insurance, or any type of insurance, it is always best to get a range of quotes as premiums can vary quite dramatically – sometimes by 300% or more! The Internet provides consumers with an efficient tool to do just this, plus they get to read about the benefits of each life insurance plan in the comfort of their own home first.

The quotes process

Most life insurance companies will have links to online quotes request forms. Consumers looking for life insurance quotes will be required to complete the form and submit it online in order to receive quotes. The online forms are generally uncomplicated, often taking only 5-10 minutes to complete.

Once the form is complete it can often be submitted online to the life insurance company. Some insurance companies will come straight back to you with an instant quote, others will revert back with a quote within 24-72 hours, either by e-mail or by telephone. Many companies also back their insurance quotes up with an official quotation by post.

No one likes to think about the consequences of death and its affects on those that we leave behind. It is however an indisputable fact that sooner or later we will all shuffle off our mortal coils, often without warning. When that time comes a life insurance policy will ensure the financial security of our loved ones in their grief, and will ultimately give each of us the peace of mind that our mortgage is paid off and our families taken care of when we die.

Life insurance these days is in fact fairly cheap to maintain. Increased competition in the life insurance marketplace, coupled with its ease of purchase over the Internet has bought premiums down to record low levels. You can now obtain a life insurance policy that pays a lump sum of 100,000 upon your death for as little as 5 per month.

How Much Insurance Do I Need?

Those that do decide to take the plunge and sign up for a life insurance policy though often struggle to decide how much insurance they should take out. As life premiums go up in line with increases in the sum insured, the ultimate insurance amount is often dictated by how much the person taking out the life insurance can afford to pay each month.

Then there is the thought of the mortgage. If we are still owing money on the mortgage when we depart this world, many of us would not want to see our loved ones struggle to meet the mortgage repayments each month. The amount of insurance taken out therefore should at least cover the cost of our mortgage, or what is left on the mortgage as it would be if a reducing term life product is purchased.

Protect Your Mortgage

In fact, many mortgage lenders these days insist that life cover is taken out to protect the mortgage repayments in the event of the owner’s death. On joint mortgage applications, a joint life policy is strongly recommended by lenders, and in some instances mortgage lenders will include a basic life policy in with their mortgage products that reduces in line with the outstanding amount to pay. However, life cover issued direct by mortgage lenders may not always be the cheapest insurance policy available. It therefore pays to shop around for life cover on the Internet as you may be able to save 15 or 20 on your insurance premiums each month.

Deciding on the amount of insurance coverage

So, how is it best to decide on the amount of insurance coverage? It varies for each family individual, but in general you should take out a life policy not only to cover the cost of your mortgage but also to provide your family and dependants with a lump sum after you’ve gone. What lump sum you decide upon will depend on many factors, but it should at least cover the cost of your monthly household expenses minus the mortgage payments.

In general, may people understand that having life insurance in any form is a necessity. The policy of life insurance is an excellent method of providing protection for your family members in the event of your death. While many people understand that is important to have life insurance they may not understand that there are many different types of policies available in the world today.

One type of life insurance policy is called Whole Life Insurance, this type of life insurance is effective provided you continue to make the monthly payments upon the premium. This is a very popular type of life insurance because it allows you to build a cash value on the policy and is on a basis that is tax-deferred. The way this works is that a portion of the premium you are paying is put into an account of savings that the policy invests into. All interest that is earned upon the policy is put into the savings and helps to build the cash value. Once the cash value reaches a higher level, you could be required to pay the premium after age or you could be allowed to borrow against that cash value.

Another attractive benefit of having a whole life insurance policy is that your premium will always remain the same. At no time will the amount change at all, therefore as long as you continue to pay the premium each month, you will remain at the same amount for the entire time. If you choose to take a loan out on the cash value you have earned, the only difference you will have to pay is paying back that loan. One downside to this policy is the fact that you will have no control whatsoever over how the company chooses to invest the pounds you pay on your premium.

Another type of life insurance is the term life insurance policy. This policy is selected for a specified amount of time. If you should happen to pass away during the term of this specified time, then your family would then receive payment in the form of a lump sum as the contract specifies. Typically, the premiums upon this type of policy is far cheaper than other types and it does not allow you to build any type of cash value. With this type of life insurance, your premium can change or increase on a yearly basis and it generally does increase each year. It is the more expensive type of insurance that is available however it will provided your family with complete protection in the event of your death.

Term insurance provides coverage for a pre-specified period. For example, term insurance is designed to protect a mortgage or provide income for your family in case of your death. You pay the term insurance premium each month and as long as you pay the premium your policy will stay in force. Once the contract reaches maturity (usually in 10 years) you need to renew your policy at a higher price. If you die while you’re paying the premium your estate gets a large sum of money.

In contrast, permanent or whole life insurance remains in force until you die. You pay the premium on a monthly basis for a pre-specified term, which can range between 10 to 20 years. A portion of your monthly payment pays the insurance and the life insurance company that provided the insurance invests the remainder. Eventually you don’t pay any premiums but your estate still receives a large payment upon death.

Whole life polices have been criticized because their investment returns are low. Thus you were often advised to buy life insurance protection with a term policy and invest the difference between term and whole life payments in a separate investment vehicle, such as mutual funds, stocks, or bonds. Once you have built up a large pool of assets you don’t need the insurance because the assets will provide security and stability in the event of an unexpected death.

However, there is a new, more flexible product called universal life insurance. While the life insurance company controls the savings in a whole life policy, the savings in a universal life plan are owned and controlled by the policyholder. Insurance companies offer a large variety of investment options for this savings component, including mutual funds. Thus, you have the ability to meet your life insurance needs and increase your return on investment.

The major advantage of a universal life policy is tax-advantaged growth. When you pay the policy premium, a portion of the premium pays for the insurance and a portion is invested. However, when you are ready to withdraw the money from your investment, your cost basis ( the portion not subject to tax) is higher with a universal life policy. The cost base for a universal policy is equal to the sum of all your premiums – the amount of money you have invested plus the money you have used to buy life insurance. This is very useful because increasing your cost base will ensure you pay less tax once you sell your investments within the universal life policy.

Universal life insurance provides a powerful combination of life insurance and tax-advantaged investment opportunities. Investors should realize that universal life insurance premiums work twice as hard as other premiums. They should also know that choosing the right product is an important element in the overall success of this strategy. Finally, the benefits of this strategy are magnified if you are in a higher tax bracket.

Have you filled in a life assurance application recently? Theres a little box that strikes fear into the heart of the slightly overweight. It simply asks you to state your weight. Do you go straight to the scales, undress to the state of nudity and jiggle about on the said scales, trying to pinpoint the lowest mark on the gauge? No, I thought not, you probably take a vague and over optimistic guess, write it in and swiftly move on to the next question. Most of us do it. Its not really cheating. You know youre going to lose it soon, before Christmasholidaysthe wedding. If only!

Now, one of Britains biggest names in life insurance, namely Scottish Provident, in an effort gain more accuracy in working out the risk factors, has added another innocent little question, i.e. When did you last weigh yourself? Aware of the fact that many people are self conscious about their weight and tend forget the odd few pounds gained since they were last on their diet to end all diets, they feel that this should help to give a true picture of their clients potential health risks. It should also be noted that there are some people who will lie in an effort to obtain cheaper premiums.

Scottish Provident are quite rightly concerned that they are being told the truth. The UK government are taking obesity very seriously and it has been announced recently that almost a quarter of us are overweight, and its thought by Cancer research UK that around a quarter of these are not interested in losing weight. We are second only to Greece in obesity levels as a nation.

The definition of obesity is based on the British Medical Associations Body Mass Index (BMI). To work this out, you need to know your height in metres and then multiply by the same figure. Take the result of this and divide by your weight, using kilograms. This gives you your BMI, which can be used to indicate if you are underweight, normal, overweight or obese. It will, however, overestimate fatness in people who are muscular or athletic. These figures are for adults.

BMI categories are

Underweight = less than 18.5
Normal weight = 18.5 to 24.9
Overweight = 25 to 29.9
Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

In a recent study of 33,000 adults reported in the Lancet, the above figures for normal weight were agreed and there was a suggestion was that only adult patients with a BMI of 35 or above would present a serious lowering of life expectancy.

Most of the life insurance industry has accepted a BMI level of 30, which seems fair and even generous. For anyone with a BMI of over 30 your premium will be loaded and you may even be asked to take a medical examination. This means if youre overweight you could find your critical illness or life assurance premium could increase by 50% and it seems likely that for some, cover could be refused.

Its a risky business!

We know the importance of life insurance as we want to make sure that our loved ones are taken care of when we die. But do some research so you’ll be sure to get the best possible coverage at the right price. Here are some helpful tips:

1.Shop for your life insurance coverage
2.Never buy more coverage than you need
3.Buy sooner rather than later
4.Realize the importance of reviewing your coverage
5.You will be paying more by paying monthly
6.Don’t rely solely on the life insurance offered by your employer

SHOP FOR YOUR LIFE INSURANCE

When it comes to life insurance, it pays to shop around because premiums can vary widely. And thanks to the Internet, it’s now easier than ever.Make sure the website considers the factors in your medical history that can affect the premiums.

BUY LIFE INSURANCE THAT YOU NEED

The key to purchasing the right amount of life insurance is to have enough to meet your needs. It’s important not to have too little coverage as it would be difficult to purchase if you get sick.

The healthier you are, the better the life insurance rates
Healthy people get better rates on life insurance. You will be asked to pay a higher rate if you smoke, take medications regularly, are overweight or have a bad driving record.

GET YOUR LIFE INSURANCE WHILE YOU ARE WELL

If you’ve been putting off purchasing life insurance because you don’t want to pay the premiums, you may be doing yourself a disservice in the long run. If you are in good health, buy it now.

YOUR LIFE INSURANCE COVERAGE SHOULD BE REGULARLY REVIEWED

You’ll want to make sure that a major life event such as the birth of a child, marriage, divorce or perhaps that the children are grown won’t leave you underinsured or overinsured.

MONTHLY PREMIUM PAYMENTS FOR LIFE INSURANCE COSTS MORE

You will be paying more for your life insurance if you pay your premium in monthly installments.

GROUP LIFE INSURANCE

Don’t rely solely on the life insurance offered by your employer
Many employers offer their employees some sort of group life insurance. But this amount of coverage is usually not enough and group life insurance policies are not portable, meaning that if you leave your job, you can’t take your life insurance coverage with you.

Do you need affordable term life insurance? This seems to be the million-pound question. When you want to purchase life insurance you often do not know how much you need or if there is such a thing as having too much life insurance. What constitutes affordable life insurance and how much you need is totally dependant upon your own situation.

Don’t be fooled into determining the amount of insurance you should have to what your best friend or neighbour has. Remember, every situation is unique and your needs will be unique. Your need will be determined by what you wish to see happen in the event of your death. You do have to look at the life insurance cost of the premiums and decide how much you can afford from your monthly budget. There is affordable life insurance available at very low premiums and that will help your family out in the event of your death.

When considering what affordable life insurance is needed in a family situation, you need to do a life insurance comparison. This will help you get the most affordable rates and there are countless life insurance companies able to help you in this regard.

In order to determine how much life insurance you should have, a number of factors need to be considered. For a person with family needs, these may include such things as:
Do you have dependants? If so, how long will they be dependant upon you?
Do you have children? If so, how old are they?
Do you want to insure your children have a post secondary education?
Will your household income be greatly reduced upon your death? If so, how much income do you need to replace so your family maintains their standard of living?
How long will you need to replace your household income?
What taxes may be incurred upon your death?
Do you need to cover debt obligations such as loans or a mortgage?

When you try to determine whether or not you can afford life insurance, think about whether or not your family can afford to be without affordable life insurance.

You can find affordable term life insurance, but you need to establish exactly what you need first.

Whole life insurance quotes the most expensive kind of policies that are on the market due the fact of cash value over time. Whole life insurance is permanent life insurance coverage that lasts as long as you live and continue to make on﷓time premium payments. The reason that whole life insurance quotes are so much more expensive is due to the fact that the policy will have to pay out a death benefit when you die.

Whole life insurance quotes are available online from many insurance companies that have an online presence. Online life insurance quotes let you search for the life insurance policy that best suits your needs. When you log onto each site, you can read the information regarding the whole life insurance policies available and request free quotes. You should request at least three quotes so you can compare the different rates.

When you compare the online whole life insurance quotes, the cheapest is not always the best one to choose. They are quite affordable because the payment of premiums stretches out over a longer period of time. When you are comparing the online life insurance quotes you receive, you shouldnt just think about the amount of the monthly premium but the length of time that you have to pay the premiums.

The death benefit you choose in the whole life insurance policy will never decrease and the premiums will always stay the same. With online life insurance quotes for term insurance, the benefit and the premiums remain the same for the term, but could change dramatically when you renew the policy at an older age.

In order to determine how much of a death benefit you need with whole life insurance, you should sit back and evaluate how much money your family would need to survive without you. You have to look at the fact that the bills still need to be paid and your income will no longer be available. The sum of the death benefit is one of the factors that does determine the price of the whole life insurance quotes you receive. Other factors include your age, occupation and health.

The younger you are when you choose to get whole life insurance, the lower cost it will be to you. In your later years, you wont have to budget for the premiums, because they will be paid up. You can also borrow against the amount of money you build up in the whole life insurance, but this part of the policy and doesnt have any effect on the whole life insurance quotes you receive.

When comparing whole life insurance quotes there are quite a few things to think about.