Affordability Problem? No Worries, Here We Have the Solution - Cheap Life Insurance Options

Not necessary that everyone shall be comfortable with the concept of life-insurance and for all those who are not too comfortable with this nothing can beat the cheap life insurance options. I am sure everybody must be worried about their loved ones, and the life insurance policy helps you to relax in this matter by providing a security to your loved ones. People who think on a long term basis never miss upon the opportunity of getting for themselves the best of the best life-insurance. But at times the high premiums of the best life-insurance policies doesn't even let their mid be in peace and this is the reason why the cheap life-insurance policies have been made.

All those who are aspiring to have a cheap life-insurance should have a look at the term life-insurance, which is insurance for a limited period because the other categories of insurance that is the permanent or whole life-insurances are slightly higher. But do not rush because not all cheap life insurance policies are good ones. It is not necessary that if they offer you some advantages with the price then they'll not have any other disadvantages. It is very important to know all the aspects of the cheap life-insurance policies before buying the policy.

For all those who have the intentions to buy the right kind of cheap life insurance should make a good strategy first because lack of this strategy can make things really difficult for you. Because of the expansion in the insurance market there are many insurance companies and at times because of this it has become really difficult to select the best life-insurance company. You have to get the information related to the credentials of the life-insurance company before you make a buying decision. Do not be in a rush to decide upon anything, be careful and be alert because you might be misguided by the advertisements.

The type of life-insurance you should buy depends upon your basic life-insurance requirements. For example, term life insurance policies are selected by the ones who have a temporary insurance needs or when the insurance needs are for a limited period. When the life-insurance needs are for a longer period, the permanent life insurance policies are selected. In the same if you are looking for some other benefit tagged along with the life-insurance like some investment happen along with the life-insurance benefits then you need to go for the whole life-insurance options. There is a myth that term life-insurance is the only cheapest form of life-insurance.

Well, term life-insurance may be cheap, but there are some options in the whole life-insurance also that are cheap and affordable. You will have to do lots of research to find out the best life insurance for you. If you want to know which one of the life-insurances is the purest form of life-insurance, then the answer is term life insurance. The major advantage with the whole life-insurance policies is that along with the life insurance benefit, you have accumulated cash. When you surrender the whole life-insurance policy, you usually get the accumulated cash.

The reason why most of the people opt for the term life insurance is because they provide you the coverage at the lowest rates as compared with the other types of life insurances. Taking a life-insurance policy relaxes you because you know the fact that you have secured the future of your loved ones even if you are not with them to take care. To get the cheap life-insurance, you need to be young and healthy. The life insurance companies will offer you some of the best deals at the lowest rates only if you are young and in good health.

If you are young and you are not in the best of the health, you may not get the best deals. So, before you decide for a particular cheap life insurance, make sure that you get in good health. If you have to join the gym to do so, go ahead and join one. Assess your health after few months and then if you feel that you are good enough to go in for the life-insurance, give it a shot. Often these life-insurance companies conduct medical tests to assess the health conditions of the applicants.

If you do not want the medical examination to be done even then you will have some options because these days some of the life insurance companies are giving the policies without a medical examination. There are two very important things that should be know by all those who are planning to escape the medical examination, first is that these policies are a little more expensive from the regular ones and the second thing is that these policies have many loopholes. There are three steps to go for the online life-insurance policies:

- You complete a small online form

- You make the payment

- You print the life-insurance policy

David Livingston has been involved in the insurance industry for a long time and is considered to be one of the leading expert in this industry. For more information on how to get affordable life insurance or getting life insurance quotes, visit his site today.

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Life Insurance Basics: Getting Started

Let's be honest. The topic of life insurance isn't exciting or glamorous, but it is important. In fact, many experts consider life insurance to be the cornerstone of good financial planning.

But how do you know if you need life insurance? How much is enough? What kind of life insurance policy is best for you?

Answering these basic questions about life insurance will help to simplify the shopping process and ultimately allow you to select the best policy to secure your family's future for years to come.

Establishing Your Needs

To clear up any misconceptions, life insurance is designed to protect your loved ones from financial loss in the event of your death. Knowing this, it's important to establish whether you need life insurance and how much you should purchase.

According to MetLife you generally need life insurance if:


You have a spouse
You have dependent children
Relatives or elderly parents depend on your income
Your retirement funds are not enough to provide for your spouse's future
You own a business
You have a large estate


The beneficiaries of your life insurance policy can use the proceeds from your life insurance to:


Pay for last expenses and funeral costs
Cover estate taxes (if applicable)
Pay off existing debts (mortgage, car loan, credit card debt)
Pay for everyday expenses (food, clothing, childcare)
Put towards your spouse's retirement fund
Donate to charity


If you don't have dependents, you may still wish to purchase a life insurance policy to avoid becoming a financial burden to your loved ones in the untimely event of your death. Young singles also benefit from purchasing life insurance while they're young and healthy, allowing them to secure a low premium for years to come.

Choosing a Dollar Amount

Figuring out how much life insurance your loved ones would need to maintain their quality of living can be tough. Generally speaking, experts recommend purchasing between 5 and 10 times your annual salary. But, as MetLife points out, your exact need for life insurance will depend on your personal and financial circumstances.

You can get a ballpark estimate of your life insurance needs by first totaling the funds your family would need for the abovementioned items (funeral costs, daily living, etc.). You can find helpful worksheets online that will help you organize and come up with this list of expenses.

After you've totaled your expenses, take stock of the funds you have in cash, savings, retirement accounts, bonds, property, pension and Social Security. Subtracting your financial resources from your expenses will give you a rough idea of how much life insurance you should purchase.

When it comes to choosing how much life insurance to purchase, it's a good idea to get an idea of your needs before buying a policy--but your licensed life insurance professional will undoubtedly help you choose a dollar amount that accurately reflects the needs of your beneficiaries.

Selecting a Policy

Generally speaking, there are two types of life insurance: term life insurance and permanent life insurance. The type of policy you select will depend largely on your life insurance needs and what resources you have to pay life insurance premiums.

Term Life Insurance

Term life insurance, as the name suggests, will cover you for a specified amount of time, which means the insurer will only pay out a death benefit if you die during the term of your policy.

According to the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.), most people purchase a 20-year term policy, although smaller terms are available. Of course, you can renew your term life policy after it expires, although your premiums may increase as you age. But all in all, because of the "temporary" nature of term life insurance, policies are generally much cheaper and are therefore an attractive option for young people and families with a limited income.

Permanent Life Insurance

On the other hand, permanent life insurance, as you might have guessed, is permanent. A permanent life policy will pay out a death benefit whether you die tomorrow or in 60 years.

Permanent life insurance is also an appealing option for many because of the added benefit of the policy growing on a tax-deferred basis, which can grow to be fairly large over time. As a policyholder, you may be able to borrow against this cash value while alive, which has been of great help to some. Of course, most loans need to be paid back otherwise they will be subtracted from the death benefit, and your beneficiaries may have to liquidate assets to pay back the loan.

Nonetheless, permanent life insurance offers a wide variety of saving and investment options. Because of this, policies are generally more expensive than term policies, which may be hard for young adults to handle.

Your life insurance professional will help you decide which type of policy is best for your life insurance needs--and your budget. But researching these policy types beforehand can help you narrow down which policies appeal to you.

Knowledge is Power

No, learning about life insurance and planning for the unexpected isn't glamorous, but it is important. So take advantage of consumer resources and talk to a life insurance professional about purchasing affordable life insurance. You'll rest easier at night knowing your loved ones are taken care of for years to come!

About InsureMe

Megan L. Mahan is a copywriter and insurance information expert with InsureMe in Englewood, Colorado. InsureMe links agents nationwide with consumers shopping for insurance. Specializing in auto, home, health, long-term care and life insurance quotes, the InsureMe network provides thousands of agents with insurance leads every year. For more information, visit InsureMe.com.

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A Primer on Life Insurance for Mothers

One of my client's wives paid me a visit to ask about life insurance, a product I was well acquainted with. She told me that she and her husband were visited last night by a life insurance agent. "Jan, what did he try to sell you?"

"A $90,000 whole life policy with an annual premium of $500. Is that okay?"

Knowing that few people really understand life insurance, I asked her if she really understood what the agent was talking about.

"I thought I did last night," she replied, "but when I woke up this morning, I wasn't so sure. That's why I'm here. You once told me to never buy life insurance unless I talked to you about it. Well, I'm here. Could we chat about it?"

I was glad that Jan was here instead of Mark. I have learned that it is much easier to talk to women about life insurance than men. Women seem to better understand the financial consequences of their spouses' death, especially if they are mothers. Most men, however, don't want to face life insurance because they think that they will never die. Women know better.

I was no stranger to the murky world of life insurance. Throughout my 20 years as a CPA, I'd often locked horns with insurance agents and financial planners who wanted to sell garbage life insurance products to my clients. In my role as a CPA, I always believed that it was my job to act as a mother hen and protect my clients from the wolves.

I began by asking Jan a question that zooms to the heart of the matter. "Tell me Jan, why are you buying life insurance? What do you hope to accomplish?"

She answered, "To protect me and the children in case Mark dies."

That quickly established the fact that Jan knew about the key issue: that life insurance has but one purpose: protection in case disaster strikes.

Then I asked her another question. "Just suppose that you knew for sure that Mark was going to die tomorrow. How much life insurance would you buy on his life ---$90,000 or $450,000 --- assuming the premiums were identical?"

She looked at me as if I was crazy. "I'd buy the $450,000 policy. Who wouldn't?"

I then gave Jan a quick education about life insurance, explaining that there are only two kinds of life insurance, term and cash value. The problem is knowing which one of them is the better buy.

Term insurance is pure insurance ( protection) coverage. If you pay the premium and die , the insurance company will pay the face value of the policy to your beneficiary. It is available to age 95 and can be purchased yearly, or on a guaranteed level premium basis for 5,10,15, or 20 years. The product is uncomplicated and very inexpensive. The premiums, however, do increase each time the policy is renewed since the insured has grown older.

Cash value life insurance (sold as whole life, endowment, straight life, permanent life, universal, and a zillion other names) is the second type. It differs significantly from term because there is a savings or investment feature attached--the cash value. About 75% to 80% of every premium dollar goes to this cash value "kitty" and the remainder pays for the actual life insurance protection. These policies typically last to age 100 and the premiums remain level for one's entire life.

Thus, in one slick package, a cash value life insurance policy claims to accomplish two worthy goals: death protection and family savings. It was my job to convince Jan that cash value insurance fails miserably on both counts and that she must, for her and her children's sake, buy pure term life insurance and nothing else.

"Jan, there are two reasons why you must not buy that whole life policy or any other cash value product. First and most importantly, cash value life insurance is anywhere from five to ten times more expensive than the equivalent amount of term insurance. It's like paying $75,000 for a $15,000 automobile just because you went to the wrong dealership."

To keep their customer's attention away from the high cost of cash value, agents focus their sales spiel on the investment feature, usually with the aid of reams and reams of incomprehensible computer printouts. This sales tactic has literally duped the American public out of trillions of dollars in the last 150 years, ever since cash value was invented.

"Jan, how much time did the agent spend last night talking about the actual insurance protection versus how much money you'll earn from the cash value policy?"

She thought a bit before answering. "Well, he spent the whole evening going over a bunch of computer printouts that showed us how rich we'd be in fifty years when we retire, and how much we could borrow from the policy if we ever needed a loan."

"But what did he say about your protection needs?"

"Come to think about it, hardly anything at all. After we told him that we could afford a $500 yearly premium, he looked in a book and said that he had found a great $90,000 whole life policy that we could afford. But about protection, he really said very little." I could tell that she was starting to bristle in anger, a sign that I was doing a good job.

I then told Jan that people with children living at home should have, as a rule of thumb, about eight to ten times their yearly gross income in life insurance protection. For Mark and Jan, that translated into at least $475,000. The agent who met with them should have figured that out and done his utmost to assure such adequate protection.

"You see Jan, that agent's sole emphasis should have been on your financial protection in case Mark dies tomorrow, not about making you a rich lady in 50 years. The agent's decision to sell you the anemic whole life policy would literally rob you and your kids of $385,000 if Mark dies tomorrow."

"But Mark is not going to die tomorrow. Don't say that!"

"Jan, you don't know that. He could die tomorrow or in a week from any one of a thousand and one different causes. And so could you or I. That's why you must be fully protected right now. Life insurance is a today need."

I continued..."Jan, remember when I told you that there were two reasons to avoid cash value life insurance?"

"Yes."

"You told me Jan that the agent spent most of last night talking about the wonders of the cash value investment. Now I am going to give you the real scoop about that." This one always puts the final nail in the cash value coffin.

"The cash value," I continued, "is not like an ordinary investment such as stocks, bonds, or a bank savings account."

"But the agent said it was just like a bank savings account..."

"It resembles a savings account about as much as a shark resembles a goldfish. Tell me Jan, what do you think happens to the cash value---the promised pot of gold---if Mark dies? Who gets it?" The fun starts...

"That's easy," she replied, "I do...it's our money...our investment...right? Marsh...tell me I am right!"

"Sorry, you are wrong. If Mark dies, the insurance company keeps it. That means that all that extra premium you paid for so many years goes up in smoke."

"So what do I get if Mark dies?"

"You get the face amount of the policy...but you could have gotten that for a fifth of the premium with a term policy."

"Marsh...you can't be serious. In my worst nightmare, I would not expect something like this. Are you sure?"

"Very. But if you want some proof of your own, get the book What's Wrong With your Life Insurance by Norman Dacey. That's just one of many books in the library that echoes what I have been yapping about. Don't think I am the Lone Ranger on this."

Apparently she got fed up. Her voice rose as she said, "The agent never said word one about any of this! Are you telling me that he bent our ears off last night just to sell us a chump change policy that will leave me seriously underinsured just so he could make a bigger commission...and that they steal my investment to boot if Mark dies?"

"That about hits the nail on the head. And one more thing...when you tell the agent you want a term policy instead, expect another visit from him. Be aware that they are very well trained in changing minds. Plus, you might want to shop around for the best deal. Even among term policies there is a wide variance in price."

End

Postscript:

It is this author's hope that anyone in possession of this article pass it onto their relatives, friends, and neighbors. The information in this article can put many thousands of extra dollars in the bank accounts of those who need it most.

Copyright 2000
Marsh Kaminsky CPA (retired due to disability)
e mail: Thetermite@aol.com

Because of Multiple Sclerosis, I am a retired CPA. Besides my interest in life insurance, I have a very strong interest in early preschool learning.

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What Type Of Life Insurance Is Best?

Life Insurance (though it shouldn't be) is to this day a very controversial issue. There seems to be a lot of different types of life insurance out there, but there are really only two kinds. They are Term Insurance and Whole Life (Cash Value) Insurance. Term Insurance is pure insurance. It protects you over a certain period of time. Whole Life Insurance is insurance plus a side account known as cash value. Generally speaking, consumer reports recommend term insurance as the most economical choice and they have for some time. But still, whole life insurance is the most prevalent in today's society. Which one should we buy?

Let's talk about the purpose of life insurance. Once we get the proper purpose of insurance down to a science, then everything else will fall into place. The purpose of life insurance is the same purpose as any other type of insurance. It is to "insure against loss of". Car insurance is to insure your car or someone else's car in case of an accident. So in other words, since you probably couldn't pay for the damage yourself, insurance is in place. Home owners insurance is to insure against loss of your home or items in it. So since you probably couldn't pay for a new house, you buy an insurance policy to cover it.

Life insurance is the same way. It is to insure against loss of your life. If you had a family, it would be impossible to support them after you died, so you buy life insurance so that if something were to happen to you, your family could replace your income. Life insurance is not to make you or your descendants rich or give them a reason to kill you. Life insurance is not to help you retire (or else it would be called retirement insurance)! Life insurance is to replace your income if you die. But the wicked ones have made us believe otherwise, so that they can overcharge us and sell all kinds of other things to us to get paid.

How Does Life Insurance Work?

Rather than make this complicated, I will give a very simple explanation on how and what goes down in an insurance policy. As a matter of fact, it will be over simplified because we would otherwise be here all day. This is an example. Let's say that you are 31 years old. A typical term insurance policy for 20 years for $200,000 would be about $20/month. Now... if you wanted to buy a whole life insurance policy for $200,000 you might pay $100/month for it. So instead of charging you $20 (which is the true cost) you will be overcharged by $80, which will then be put into a savings account.

Now, this $80 will continue to accumulate in a separate account for you. Typically speaking, if you want to get some of YOUR money out of the account, you can then BORROW IT from the account and pay it back with interest. Now... let's say you were to take $80 dollars a month and give it to your bank. If you went to withdraw the money from your bank account and they told you that you had to BORROW your own money from them and pay it back with interest, you would probably go clean upside somebody's head. But somehow, when it comes to insurance, this is okay

This stems from the fact that most people don't realize that they are borrowing their own money. The "agent" (of the insurance Matrix) rarely will explain it that way. You see, one of the ways that companies get rich, is by getting people to pay them, and then turn around and borrow their own money back and pay more interest! Home equity loans are another example of this, but that is a whole different sermon.

Deal or No Deal

Let us stick with the previous illustration. Let us say the one thousand 31 year olds ( all in good health) bought the aforementioned term policy (20 years, $200,000 dollars at $20/month). If these people were paying $20/month, that is $240 per year. If you take that and multiply it over the 20 year term then you will have $4800. So each individual will pay $4800 over the life of the term. Since one thousand individuals bought the policy, they will end up paying 4.8 million in premiums to the company. The insurance company has already calculated that around 20 people with good health (between the ages of 31 and 51) will die. So if 20 people pass away, then the company will have to pay out 20 x $200,000 or $4,000,000. So, if the company pays out $4,000,000 and takes in $4,800,000 it will then make a $800,000 profit.

This is of course OVER simplifying because a lot of people will cancel the policy (which will also bring down the number of death claims paid), and some of those premiums can be used to accumulate interest, but you can get a general idea of how things work.

On the other hand, let's look at whole life insurance. Let us say the one thousand 31 year olds (all in good health) bought the aforementioned whole life policy ($200,000 dollars at $100/month). These people are paying $100/month. That is $1200 per year. If the average person's lifespan (in good health people) goes to 75, then on average, the people will pay 44 years worth of premiums. If you take that and multiply it by $1200 you will get $52,800. So each individual will pay $52,800 over the life of the policy. Since one thousand individuals bought the policy, they will end up paying 52.8 million in premiums to the company. If you buy a whole life policy, the insurance company has already calculated the probability that you will die. What is that probability? 100%, because it is a whole life (till death do us part) insurance policy! This means that if everyone kept their policies, the insurance company would have to pay out 1000 x $200,000 = $2,000,000,000) That's right, two billion dollars!

Ladies and gentleman, how can a company afford to pay out two billion dollars knowing that it will only take in 52.8 million? Now just like in the previous example, this is an oversimplification as policies will lapse. As a matter of fact, MOST whole life policies do lapse because people can't afford them, I hope you see my point. Let's take the individual. A 31 year old male bought a policy in which he is suppose to pay in $52,800 and get $200,000 back? There no such thing as a free lunch. The company somehow has to weasel $147,200 out of him, JUST TO BREAK EVEN on this policy! Not to mention, pay the agents (who get paid much higher commissions on whole life policies), underwriters, insurance fees, advertising fees, 30 story buildings... etc, etc.

This doesn't even take into account these variable life and universal life policies that claim to be so good for your retirement. So you are going to pay $52,800 into a policy and this policy will make you rich, AND pay you the $200,000 death benefit, AND pay the agents, staff and fees? This has to be a rip off.

Well, how could they rip you off? Maybe for the first five years of the policy, no cash value will accumulate (you may want to check your policy). Maybe it's misrepresenting the value of the return (this is easy if the customer is not knowledgeable on exactly how investments work). Also, if you read my article on the Rule of 72 you can clearly see that giving your money to someone else to invest can lose you millions! You see, you may pay in $52,800 but that doesn't take into account how much money you LOSE by not investing it yourself! This is regardless of how well your agent may tell you the company will invest your money! Plain and simple, they have to get over on you somehow or they would go out of business!

How long do you need life insurance?

Let me explain what is called The Theory of Decreasing Responsibility, and maybe we can answer this question. Let's say that you and your spouse just got married and have a child. Like most people, when they are young they are also crazy, so they go out and buy a new car and a new house. Now, here you are with a young child and debt up to the neck! In this particular case, if one of you were to pass away, the loss of income would be devastating to the other spouse and the child. This is the case for life insurance. BUT, this is what happens. You and your spouse begin to pay off that debt. Your child gets older and less dependent on you. You start to build up your assets. Keep in mind that I am talking about REAL assets, not fake or phantom assets like equity in a home (which is just a fixed interest rate credit card)

In the end, the situation is like this. The child is out of the house and no longer dependent on you. You don't have any debt. You have enough money to live off of, and pay for your funeral (which now costs thousands of dollars because the DEATH INDUSTRY has found new ways to make money by having people spend more honor and money on a person after they die then they did while that person was alive). So... at this point, what do you need insurance for? Exactly... absolutely nothing! So why would you buy Whole Life (a.k.a. DEATH) Insurance? The idea of a 179 year old person with grown children who don't depend on him/her still paying insurance premiums is asinine to say the least.

As a matter of fact, the need for life insurance could be greatly decreased and quickly eliminated, if one would learn not to accumulate liabilities, and quickly accumulate wealth first. But I realize that this is almost impossible for most people in this materialistic, Middle Classed matrixed society. But anyway, let's take it a step further.

Confused Insurance Policies

This next statement is very obvious, but very profound. Living and dying are exact opposites of each other. Why do I say this? The purpose of investing is to accumulate enough money in case you live to retire. The purpose of buying insurance is to protect your family and loved ones if you die before you can retire. These are two diametrically opposed actions! So, if an "agent" waltzes into your home selling you a whole life insurance policy and telling you that it can insure your life AND it can help you retire, your Red Pill Question should be this:

"If this plan will help me retire securely, why will I always need insurance? And on the other hand, if I will be broke enough later on in life that I will still need insurance, then how is this a good retirement plan?"

Now if you ask an insurance agent those questions, she/he may become confused. This of course comes from selling confused policies that do two opposites at once.

Norman Dacey said it best in the book "What's Wrong With Your Life Insurance"

"No one could ever quarrel with the idea of providing protection for one's family while at the same time accumulating a fund for some such purpose as education or retirement. But if you try to do both of these jobs through the medium of one insurance policy, it is inevitable that both jobs will be done badly."

So you see, even though there are a lot of new variations of whole life, like variable life and universal life, with various bells and whistles (claiming to be better than the original, typical whole life policies), the Red Pill Question must always be asked! If you are going to buy insurance, then buy insurance! If you are going to invest, then invest. It's that simple. Don't let an insurance agent trick you into buying a whole life policy based on the assumption that you are too incompetent and undisciplined to invest your own money.

If you are afraid to invest your money because you don't know how, then educate yourself! It may take some time, but it is better than giving your money to somebody else so they can invest it for you (and get rich with it). How can a company be profitable when it takes the money from it's customers, invests it, and turns around and gives it's customers all of the profits?

And don't fall for the old "What if the term runs out and you can't get re-insured trick". Listen, there are a lot of term policies out there that are guaranteed renewable until an old age (75-100). Yes, the price is a lot higher, but you must realize that if you buy a whole life policy, you will have been duped out of even more money by the time you get to that point (if that even happens). This is also yet another reason to be smart with your money. Don't buy confused policies.

How much should you buy?

I normally recommend 8-10 times your yearly income as a good face amount for your insurance. Why so high? Here is the reason. Let's say that you make $50,000 per year. If you were to pass away, your family could take $500,000 (10 times $50,000) and put it into a fund that pays 10 percent (which will give them $40,000 per year) and not touch the principle. So what you have done is replaced your income.

This is another reason why Whole Life insurance is bad. It is impossible to afford the amount of insurance you need trying to buy super high priced policies. Term insurance is much cheaper. To add to this, don't let high face values scare you. If you have a lot of liabilities and you are worried about your family, it is much better to be underinsured than to have no insurance at all. Buy what you can manage. Don't get sold what you can't manage.

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The Facts About Cash Value Life Insurance - What Suzie Orman Won't Tell You About Buying Insurance

For years now, made for TV experts and infomercial wizards have been dispensing financial advice to millions of eager Americans. Celebrity advisors such as Suzie Orman and Dave Ramsey for example, utilize the television media, to provide consumers advice on everything from credit issues and home mortgages to stock market investing and life insurance. As a result, many of these advisors have amassed thousands of devoted followers of their brand of financial wisdom while making income from the sale of books, CD's, newsletters, etc. There is nothing wrong with utilizing the media to build your "brand" and increase your visibility. In fact, this is an accepted and highly successful technique for building a financial services business. However, the information provided by many of these "experts" often reflects a certain philosophical bias that can be short sighted, self serving and not reflective of individual financial circumstances. The hallmark of good financial advice is that recommendations are always based on conducting a thorough investigation to determine an individual's current financial situation and future plans. Only with the knowledge of a client's current assets and resources, investment risk tolerance and priorities for the future can a financial advisor be sure that their recommendations are right for any individual. Without this knowledge, all financial advice is generic and thus may not be right for everyone.

No where is this type of one size fits all advice more prevalent then in the belief that when it comes to buying life insurance, term coverage is always best. Suzie Orman, Dave Ramsey and others, have expressed the opinion that consumers, in all cases would be better off buying low cost term life insurance versus the more expensive cash value permanent life policies. They routinely advice listeners to purchase less expensive term insurance and utilize the money saved on costlier permanent life insurance to invest in the stock market mutual funds, IRA's or other market driven products. In the insurance industry, this is referred to as (BTID) "Buy Term and Invest the Difference". Proponents of the "BTID" philosophy argue that cash value policies are not sound long term investments because life insurance companies invest too conservatively in order to generate the returns guaranteed to cash value policy holders. The "Buy Term and Invest the Difference" crowd advocate a more aggressive investment approach for premium dollars beyond what life insurance companies can expect from the conservative markets. They also argue that you will only need life insurance for a short period of time anyway, just until you have accumulated enough through debt consolidation, savings and investments to live comfortably. Orman on her website explains, "If you are smart with the money you have today and you get rid of your mortgages, car loans and credit card debt and put money into retirement plans you don't need insurance 30 years from now to protect your family when you die".

Clearly eliminating personal debt and investing wisely are worthwhile and important financial goals for everyone and should be given the highest priority in any financial recommendations. On the other hand, if you are unable to achieve a debt free lifestyle or realize substantial market returns, you run the risk of losing your insurance protection due to premium increases or becoming ineligible to qualify for coverage when it is needed most.

Real World Experience

The "Buy Tem and Invest the Difference" concept makes sense until you examine it's it closely and compare it with the real world experiences of life insurance buyers. Looking at the experiences, of many policy holders who buy term life protection with the intent to invest their premium savings, we see why this strategy may not be practical for the average consumer. Most consumers are neither experienced nor consistent market investors nor do they have the time and discipline necessary to become successful market players. The results are that most consumers eventually buy term insurance and never invest the difference. Or in other words "Buy Term and Spend the Difference".

A 2003 Harris Interactive study found that 77% of more than 1,000 Americans surveyed had bought term insurance as a way to save for long-term financial goals. But only a third of them could identify those goals, and just 14% invested all the money they saved by buying the term policy. By contrast, 17% spent it all.

According to 2007 Dalbar Report', investor results over a twenty-year period (1987-2006), showed that the average investor only earned 4.3% during a period where the S&P 500 yielded 11.8%, And, this was during one of the best bull markets on record. And, it doesn't include the 2008 stock market downturn nor does it consider investor fees or expenses paid. Clearly many people are being misled when it comes to actual returns experienced by the average investor. The average investor never realizes higher interest gains on their premium savings and as a result of " BTID" generally find themselves without life insurance coverage because they can no longer afford the higher term premiums or no longer qualify for coverage.

IRS Taxes:

Another reason to question the "BTID" philosophy is that even where consumers are successful in achieving higher investment returns from mutual funds earning, all such returns are subject to capital gains taxes.

Insurance buyers must factor in taxes when comparing the guaranteed returns from cash value life insurance versus mutual funds shares. The interest returns on mutual funds gains are subject to as much as, 25-38% in taxes, depending on one's income tax bracket. In addition, mutual fund gains must also be adjusted to account for the investment fees these fund providers charge share holders for the opportunity to invest. These fees will further erode any positive market gains achieved. The question is what is the true rate of return on mutual fund shares compared to guaranteed returns found in most cash value policies?

Market Volatility:

The BTID concept presupposes you will have no further use for life insurance because you will have generated sufficient market returns through this more aggressive investment strategy which will out pace any potential cash values generated through conservative returns on whole life. However, we know the stock market can be a tricky thing to predict especially for investors who depend on market returns to provide retirement income, and create legacy assets. The stock market in 2008-2009 provides a recent example of how difficult it is to create returns when they are needed the most. "In the 12 months following the stock market's peak in October 2007, more than $1 trillion worth of stock value held in 401(k)s and other "defined-contribution" plans was wiped out, according to the Boston College research center. Whether it is 401K shares or individual mutual funds, all investors are subject to market risk and timing near the end of their working careers which can still blow their savings and future retirement plans.

Will you need Life Insurance?

What Suzie Orman, Dave Ramsey and others are missing is that the arguments about the rate of return you can get from cash value insurance are completely secondary. The main reason to own cash-value life insurance is the permanent nature of the coverage. We face greater financial risks during our retirement years than at any other point in our lifetime. Even if you can afford to self insure, many of these financial risks can be managed most effectively through owning life insurance and by shifting the risk to an insurance carrier rather than assuming all the risk yourself. The disadvantages of not having life insurance at retirement are far greater than any potential benefit gained by self insuring. Since life insurance is cheaper and easier to purchase when you are young and healthy it makes more sense to lock in fixed insurance premium rates and provide lifelong financial protection for your loved ones. In addition, life insurance can not only protect one from the risks of premature death, but can also provide protection from the risks of outliving your retirement savings, help pay estate taxes, and replace lost pension income. With more and more people living into their 80s, 90s and beyond, the real fact is that lifetime insurance coverage cannot practically or affordably be maintained with term insurance.

Price versus Value

Many people are familiar with the concepts of homeownership. In general, most Americans accept the financial principal of homeownership without question. The principal that owning is always better than renting is part of the American cultural legacy. Why because it is about value and not the price. Well this same principal can be applied relatively easily to owning a cash value policy. The example below shows you how closely buying and owning cash value life insurance resembles buying and owning a home:

o You pay more up front to purchase a house and to buy Cash Value Life Insurance.

o They both build equity over time and free of income taxes.

o After a number of years owners usually can get all their money back with a reasonable interest return.

o You can access your home equity and policy equity only buy selling or by taking out a loan against them

o If you take a loan against them, you can use that money tax-free.

o You don't pay income taxes on the value of the house or the CV Life Insurance until you sell them.

o Both a home and cash value life insurance are considered financial assets.

Advantages of Cash Value Life Insurance versus Term Insurance

Benefits of Ownership Cash Value Life Term Life

Premiums that never increase over time Yes No

Your cash values accumulate tax deferred. Yes No

The cash accumulated in your policy can provide you with a

tax-free income in retirement. Yes No

Creates a liquid 'Emergency Fund' Yes No

Considered asset when applying for bank loans Yes No

Guarantees - Only Life Insurance and Annuities guarantee your

investment principle Yes No

Cash values can be accessed income tax-free and penalty free prior

to age 59½. Yes No

Cash value life insurance is not attachable by creditors. Yes No

Cash value life insurance doesn't count as an asset when you apply

for college financial aide. Yes No

Conclusion

The success of people like Dave Ramsey and others in shaping the debate over term versus permanent insurance is largely based on unrealistic assumptions and misconceptions about the benefits of cash value life insurance. Their advice while otherwise sound, when it comes to buying life insurance does not reflect the realities of the experiences and habits of the American consumer. A larger question is why are so many people touting the benefits of "BTID", including insurance carriers like, Primerica, Inc., (Division of Citigroup), which bases it's entire marketing strategy on the BTID philosophy. In my opinion, the answer is two fold. One, the insurance industry has done a poor job of educating the public regarding their options. Two, term insurance is a highly profitable and less risky product for all life insurance carriers. Think about it! They are only on the hook for a short period of time-minimum of one year and a maximum of 30 years. There are no additional cash values obligations or potential dividend payouts to be accounted for.

Additionally, according to industry statistics, only 1-2% of all term policies actually pay out a death claim to the policyholder. This suggests that the majority of policy holders either lapse their term contracts before the end of the policy period and thus receive nothing for the years of premium payments made nor retain any of the insurance protection from the policy. In addition, companies like Primerica, also earn additional fees and commissions from the sale of their mutual funds to policy holders. This makes "BTID" a good marketing strategy for the certain insurance companies but not necessarily good for consumers. Consumers should consider the total amount of insurance coverage they will need to protect their families, and for how long they will realistically need the coverage, before purchasing any life insurance. The most important life insurance buying strategy is to make sure your family has the right amount of coverage, whether that becomes term, permanent or a combination of both. However, in my opinion, owning a cash value life insurance policy is a better value than buying term insurance as long as you can afford it. If you need life insurance and can get comparable returns to the market without the risks, more guarantees, tax free income, plus other benefits, then why not buy cash value life insurance? Consumers should not be fooled into accepting simplistic advice such as "buy term and invest the difference" just because it comes from someone with a TV show.

Michael McCoy is President of Las Vegas based McCoy & Associates. Mr. McCoy is well known financial educator and retirement consultant to affluent seniors and other retirees. He is the premier retirement income and defensive asset allocation strategist. He has published several articles on retirement investing and has been assisting senior investors for the past 8 years. Michael's practical investment experience has helped him develop a knack for working with retirees and those about to retire who are seeking to protect their principal and make their money last. He focuses on teaching investors age 60+ how to preserve their assets, increase their income and reduce the taxes they pay.

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Is Life Insurance Right for Me?

Life insurance provides money to your family or loved ones if you should die. Life insurance can also help protect the financial interests of a business if a key employee should die. Here, we will discuss the use of life insurance for your family.

Now, no one likes to think about the consequences of their death. Yet, people die of accidents and diseases every single day. Around 2.5 million people in the United States die every year. While diseases lead the list of causes, over 100,000 people die every year of accidental causes.

If you have family members that depend on your earning power, the important question you must ask yourself is, "What will happen to them if I am no longer around to provide for them?"

And, you must ask that question now, before you die of an accident or are diagnosed with a deadly disease. Once you are involved in a deadly accident, it's to late to obtain life insurance. And, once you are diagnosed with a deadly disease it's awfully hard to obtain life insurance.

Life insurance can protect and provide for your family in a number of ways:

- Pay off debts

- Provide care and education of your children

- Provide needed money before your spouse can make up for your lost income

=== Life Insurance Can Pay Off Debts ===

Many families live in a home with a substantial mortgage. Your mortgage typically represents your greatest debt. Your income is probably what provides the money to pay your mortgage payment. Life insurance can be used to pay off that mortgage debt if your income is lost.

Millions of families have a large credit card debt. They often cannot pay off their credit cards every month. Those families that seldom pay off their credit cards have an average debt of nearly $8,000. And, many families that declare bankruptcy have tens of thousands of dollars in credit card debt. Life insurance can be used to pay off that credit card debt.

=== Life Insurance Can Help Pay for the Care and Education of Your Children ===

If you are a family with "special needs" children, you may be paying for special tutoring or child care. These expenses will continue beyond your untimely death. Life insurance can help provide for your child's special needs. This help could continue for quite some time.

A university education often costs $20,000 a year or more. Your savings and investments over the years could help pay that cost. But, if your income stops before those investments can grow to help your children with their education expenses, your children will have less money available to get them through their university education. Life insurance can be used to help provide the educational costs of tuition, books, fees, and living expenses.

=== Life Insurance Helps Your Spouse ===

Your spouse may or may not be able to make up for your lost income. Depending on your spouse's age or other circumstances, your spouse may:

- Re-marry and gain another source of income.

- Wait until a pension and/or Social Security provides an additional income stream.

- Increase income from employment or entrepreneurial efforts.

Life insurance can help your spouse make the transition from the time of your death to the time of a new income stream. While life insurance sales people often want you consider your family's lifetime income requirements, this is often beyond what is really required.

You need to consider how large an income stream your spouse needs and for how long before a successful transition to another source of income can be made. The face value of your life insurance can be tailored to help provide the income stream through this interim period.

Typically, as you become older and income from pensions and Social Security are closer at hand, your need for life insurance decreases. And, if you have built up sufficient financial resources, your need for life insurance is almost non-existent.

=== Types of Life Insurance ===

There are two basic types of life insurance:

- Term Life Insurance

- Whole Life Insurance

Term life insurance is simply a contract that calls for you to pay a premium for a certain number of years for a certain face value of life insurance. The length of the contract can vary from 1 to 30 years. If your term policy ends without your death, you receive no benefits. If you die before your policy ends, you survivors receive the full face value of the insurance.

Some term life policies are called "decreasing term" because the face value of the policy decreases over the years. Term life insurance policies are often "renewable" when they expire, allowing you to get another policy of term life insurance without a new physical examination.

Whole life insurance is a long term policy in which you pay premiums that provide for both life insurance and a "cash value" investment plan. When the policy is surrendered, it either pays the face value death benefit (if you die) or the "cash value" of the policy. Often the "cash value" of your policy is determined by a fixed rate of return on your premium payments. After some initial period, you can borrow against the cash value of the policy. The premiums for whole life insurance are higher than for term life insurance.

Whole life insurance is also offered with some variations in premium payments and face value amount. Such variable plans can be called universal life insurance, variable life insurance, or other names.

Several factors are important when considering whole life insurance. You should clearly understand:

- When Cash Value Begins to Build -- Often whole life insurance policies do not allocate much of your premium to begin building a significant cash value before you've paid into the policy for 10 years or more.

- Rate of Return -- The rate at which your policy builds cash value is often below the rate you could get if you invested elsewhere.

You should carefully investigate both term life insurance and whole life insurance plans. It is often wise to consider buying a term life insurance policy and investing the excess of what the whole life insurance policy would cost. That way you would have the benefit of both life insurance and a higher rate of return on your investments.

Overall, you should evaluate your circumstances to determine if you need life insurance. If you need life insurance you should determine how much insurance is appropriate and the type of life insurance policy that would best meet your family's needs.

Bob Sherman is the owner of http://www.bobshermancredit.com that provides information about credit, debt, wealth building, and other financial topics. His ebook, How to End Your Credit Card Debt, is offered free to subscribers of his Credit and Debt newsletter.

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Whole Life Insurance Basics

If you're shopping around for life insurance, you start with two big questions: How much insurance do I need? And what type of policy should I buy?

When you've calculated your short- and long-term obligations, it's time to decide what type of policy is right for you: term life or whole life insurance.

Term life insurance provides coverage for a specified period of time, such as 10, 15 or 20 years; premiums go up over time unless you buy a "level term" policy, which guarantees that premiums stay the same. It's possible that you could outlive the term of your policy, in which case your policy expires and you'd have to shop for another policy if you wish to still have coverage.

With a whole life policy (also called permanent insurance), you don't have to worry about possibly outliving your policy term because your contract gives you coverage for your entire life, as long as the premiums are paid. With a whole life policy, unlike term life, you also build up "cash value" in the policy that you can tap in the future.

Premiums are significantly higher for permanent insurance than term life due to charges and fees (see sidebar) that you don't pay with term life.

Cash value is a crucial selling point for whole life: It's an account within your policy that builds up over time, tax-deferred, fueled by a portion of your premiums and interest paid by the insurance company. In fact, the whole life contract is designed for you to take advantage of that money in the future. When you die, your beneficiaries receive the death benefit, not the cash value, with the exception of some universal life policies.

Whole life insurance policies [http://www.insure.com/quotesmith/controller?REF=99998&reqid=qstermindex&redirx=x] build up cash value slowly at first but then pick up the pace after several years, when your earnings start to grow faster than your "mortality" cost (the cost of insuring you). If you would like whole life insurance explained in more detail, your life insurance agent should be able to show you a few types of policy illustrations.

Whole life could be an attractive option for any of these reasons:

Others are relying on you for long-term financial support.




You're worried about outliving a term life policy and being unable to buy further insurance due to age or deteriorating health.




You want to build up cash value in addition to protecting your beneficiaries.




You want to create an estate for your beneficiaries after your death.




Your beneficiaries need the benefit to pay estate taxes on other assets.

"Whole life insurance is suited for anybody who loves somebody," says Scott Berlin, senior vice president in charge of the Individual Life Department at New York Life Insurance Co. "Whole life does two things for you: protects your family and allows you to save for the future."

Berlin says whole life's advantages are that you don't have to worry about outliving your policy (as is possible with term life) and there is the "forced savings" component of the cash value account, which grows tax-deferred. Once your cash value is built up, you can access it for anything - retirement, your child's college tuition or the vacation you've always wanted. Whole life policies are also eligible to earn dividends (depending on the company and not guaranteed) which can be used in a variety of ways, such as providing paid-up additional life insurance, which increases both the life insurance benefit and policy cash value.

"Buying term is like renting your insurance," says Berlin. "You don't build up any residual value. Whole life is like owning a home - you build up equity."

Berlin cautions against buying term life insurance just because of the premium difference.

"When you're 35 you think that 20 years is a long time, but life doesn't always work out like you think," he says. "People who buy permanent insurance understand the value of what they're providing to their family."

If you decide that a whole life policy is right for you but feel you're currently unable to afford the premiums for the face value you desire, Berlin recommends buying as much whole life as you can afford and filling in the rest of your face amount with term life. Later, you can convert your term life policy to whole life.

For the wealthy with large estates, putting a whole life policy into a trust is a way to pay estate taxes when they die.

A smorgasbord of choices

If the features of whole life insurance [http://www.insure.com/quotesmith/controller?REF=99998&reqid=qstermindex&redirx=x] fit the bill for you, there are multiple varieties depending on your needs and your tolerance for financial risk.

Ordinary whole life insurance: Premiums are level as long as you live and your policy builds cash value. The initial annual cost will be much higher than the same amount of term life insurance, but as you get older that gap closes.





Limited payment whole life insurance: This policy lets you pay premiums for only a specific period, such as 20 years or until age 65, but insures you for your whole life. Thus, premium payments will be higher than if payments were spread out through your lifetime.





Single premium whole life insurance: This policy is paid up after one substantial initial payment.





Universal life (UL) insurance: This policy lets you vary your premium payments and adjust your death benefit as beneficiaries' needs change. You have to be aware of how much is in your account and whether you need to make payments in order to keep the policy in force. There are also UL policies that can provide level premiums, as well as UL policies with a planned premium option and guaranteed death benefit for life. These policies may offer lower premiums in exchange for a slow accumulation of cash value, if any.





Variable universal life (VUL) insurance: Here your cash value and death benefit are tied to a particular investment account. Your cash value and death benefit increase if the underlying investments do well, or they may shrink considerably under poor investment performance. Read the prospectus for VUL carefully and never buy a policy that you don't understand. There may be an extra premium required to guarantee a death benefit amount.





Survivorship life insurance, also called second-to-die life insurance: This type of whole life policy insures two lives as once (typically a husband and wife) and pays out upon the death of the second individual. This is good for people who need to provide for beneficiaries only after both have passed away. It is also less expensive than insuring two lives under separate policies.





Participating or non-participating whole life insurance: Any type of whole life policy listed above could be "participating" or "non-participating." You have a participating policy if your life insurance company pays dividends to policyholders when it has a good financial year. Dividends are not guaranteed and they will vary year to year when they are paid, but if you have a participating policy you can take your dividends as cash, use them to pay your premiums or use them to purchase additional insurance to increase your policy's face value. Dividends are not taxable as long as they don't exceed the premiums you've paid in.

The life insurance illustration

If you're considering a policy in which premiums and death benefits fluctuate depending on investments or interest rates, you should receive a life insurance illustration from your agent. This is a picture of what could happen with your policy. Or again, maybe not.

The illustration should show you what the insurance company will guarantee (such as any guaranteed interest rates or death benefits) and what will be left open to market conditions. You'll be asked to sign a form stating you understand that some parts of the illustration are not guaranteed.

Being paid up

One happy stage of whole life insurance is when the policy's dividend values and anticipated future dividends are sufficient to cover your future premiums and you no longer need to make premium payments out of pocket. This is called a Premium Offset Proposal, or "POP" arrangement. "POP" means that your cash value is now large enough that it can be used by the insurer to pay your premiums for the rest of your life. You can still withdraw your cash value, but you'll have to resume premium payments to keep the policy in force or settle for a reduced benefit that the remaining cash value can support.

You could also choose a "limited pay" policy, for which your premiums are calculated for a set number of years or a certain age, like 65.

New York Life has introduced "New York Life Custom Whole Life", a life insurance policy that lets you choose your own guaranteed paid-up date. (You must pay premiums for at least five years and cannot pay premiums past age 75 for this policy.) So, say you want to retire in 12 years and you want your policy to be guaranteed paid-up at that time. New York Life will calculate the premium necessary to have your policy fully paid-up in 12 years so that you won't have to worry about paying life insurance premiums during your retirement. If your need for the full life insurance benefit is reduced during your retirement, you can also begin withdrawing or borrowing from your cash value to supplement your retirement income.

Planning for all situations

Life insurance companies offer a number of riders that can be tacked on to whole life policies. (All riders may not be offered by all companies, and many insurers offer other specialized riders not listed here, so check with your agent.)

Accidental death benefit rider: Pays an additional benefit if you die in an accident.





Disability income rider: Provides regular income from the insurance company if you become totally and permanently disabled.





Level terms rider: Adds a fixed amount of term insurance to the whole life policy for a specified period.





Living benefits rider, also known as accelerated death benefit: Pays an portion of your death benefit during your lifetime if you are diagnosed with a terminal illness and have a specificed life expectancy (such as 12 months). You can add this rider after buying the policy.





Long term care (LTC) rider: Pays for LTC expenses if you meet certain criteria.





Policy purchase option: Gives you the contractual right to purchase additional insurance without evidence of insurability. For example, you may need additional life insurance after the birth of a child.





Waiver of premium rider: Waives premiums if you become disabled or unemployed. (Terms vary by insurer.)

Watch out for:

The hard sell: An unscrupulous insurance agent may push whole life insurance when term insurance is sufficient for your needs; the whole life insurance sale could provide him a larger commission.




Churning: If your agent suggests your current policy needs to be replaced, be wary. "Churning" is when an agent convinces you to surrender an old policy and buy a new one because he makes a new commission off you.




You thought you were paid up: You may have signed papers allowing your cash value to be used to buy another policy.




Term vs. perm: A comparison service

You've probably heard the advice "buy term and invest the difference." And to make that work you must have the financial discipline to actually invest that difference every year. And if you did, how much would you come out ahead, or would you?

The Consumer Federation of America (CFA) offers a Rate of Return (ROR) service that provides you with a report comparing the estimated "real" investment returns on a cash value policy versus a term policy with the premium difference invested in a savings vehicle. The service is manned by James Hunt of the CFA, a life insurance actuary and a former insurance commissioner of Vermont.

An analysis can be run for policies you're considering or already own. The cost is $70 for the first illustration and $50 for each additional illustration submitted at the same time. The cost for variable life policies you've already bought (unless within the free look period) and for survivorship life (also called second-to-die) is $80/$50.

Maximizing your cash value policy

Hunt, who has analyzed life insurance policies for almost 25 years, says that because of the high fees associated with whole life, you want to look for ways to maximize your premium dollar within the policy. He suggests these strategies:

Decline all riders (except term riders on your own life and waiver of premium disability riders) because they'll eat into your cash value potential.




When you look at the illustration, make sure your first year's cash surrender value is a significant portion of your first year's premium outlay. (A good number would be 50 percent or higher.)




Consider buying direct rather than through a fully commissioned agent. Examples of direct sellers are Ameritus and TIAA. Returns on these "low-load" policies are generally higher than returns on comparable policies purchased through agents.

If you are looking at cash value life insurance to possibly supplement retirement income, Hunt advises that you may be better off by buying term life and maximizing other tax-advantaged retirement plans first, such as your 401(k), 403(b), IRA or Roth IRA.

Wanting out

Perhaps you committed to a whole life policy many years ago and no longer want or need it. If you simply stop paying the premiums, this will "lapse" your policy and you'll have to chalk it up to an expensive mistake. If you have held the policy long enough to build up cash value, your insurance company will start using the cash value to cover premiums until the cash value runs out.

Instead of lapsing your policy, inform your insurance company that you want to surrender the policy. You'll then receive the current cash surrender value, minus any loans against cash value you took out and unpaid premiums. You may also be hit with a surrender charge for getting out of a UL or VUL policy. Surrender charges can amount to 100 percent (or more) of the first year's premium and usually start to grade off over 10 to 15 years, according to Hunt. With some policies it may take 20 years before surrender charges disappear.

Or, if you have enough cash value, you can ask the insurer to consider the policy "paid up" at a lower death benefit.

Lapse and surrender rates for life insurance show that indeed there are many folks who end up with buyers' regret. Statistics from LIMRA International, a financial services industry research group, show that by policy year five, 69 percent of whole life policies are still in force; that drops to 50 percent in year 13 and 39.6 percent in year 20.

No matter your reasons for considering whole life insurance, rule No. 1 is to never buy a policy you don't understand.

Amy Danise is a staff writer for Insure.com. Visit Insure.com for a comprehensive array of comparative auto, life and health quotes, including a vast library of originally authored insurance articles and decision-making tools that are not available from any other single source. Insure.com is dedicated to providing impartial insurance information to consumers. Visitors can obtain instant quotes from more than 200 leading insurers, achieve maximum savings and have the freedom to buy from any company shown.

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Top 8 Life Insurance Mistakes to Avoid

Mistake #1

Don't forget to update the beneficiaries on your life insurance policies regularly. Update it every few years or when there's a major life event such as marriage, divorce, new babies, death of beneficiary, etc. I hear sad stories all the time from people who's husband, father, or wife forgot to update the beneficiary on their policy. Instead of the deceased's family getting the money it's some ex-wife, ex-husband, cousin, distant relative, ex-girlfriend and the current family and kids are left penniless. That's tragic.

Mistake #2

It's important to not let your life insurance lapse when you're switching bank checking accounts. Most people have their life insurance premiums taken out by EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) every month and forget to notify the insurance company of this change. And guess what? Murphy's law strikes when you least expect it and can't afford it. It's a high chance that something will happen when you've been paying 20 years for insurance and then when it has lapsed for 3 months there's a car accident. Notify the insurance company when closing and switching bank checking accounts.

Mistake #3

When requesting life insurance quotes most people aren't aware that they don't have to set up an appointment with the first agent that calls to give them a quote. You can receive a quote over the phone or through email. And you don't have to buy life insurance from the first Insurance Agent you talk to. It's ok to shop around, but please be polite when you turn down the other agents. Selecting an Insurance Broker is often easier than working with an agent that only represents one life insurance company. A broker will try to find the lowest rate for you and the best policy to fit your situation. An agent that only works for one company called a "captive agent" can only offer you the products from that one company.

Mistake #4

Buying life insurance that does not require a medical exam. It's often 2-3 times the price of normal life insurance and not worth it if you are perfectly healthy. A medical exam can be inconvenient but it can save you several hundred of dollars a year. Now think of how much you can save if you multiply that by 30 years or whatever length you plan to keep that life insurance policy.

Mistake #5

Buying the life insurance policy with the intent to commit suicide. Ok, this is silly but there are people that face depression and have suicidal thoughts. First, this idea isn't going to pay because most insurance company and policies have this suicide clause that states if you commit suicide within the first 2 years the company won't pay the death claim. Don't do it, please get help if you are thinking this.

Mistake #6

Canceling your old life insurance policy when you're purchasing a new life insurance policy with another company but the new policy hasn't been issued yet. Wait until you have received the new policy before canceling your old one. You don't want a few months where you don't have life insurance. You don't know what can happen during that time.

Mistake #7

Not getting enough life insurance coverage. It's hard to understand why some people would spend money to buy $10,000-50,000 of life insurance. That is such a small amount, certainly not enough to pay off a mortgage, send a kid to college, pay off loans or debts, and can't support someone for a few years. At least find out how much it cost for $250,000-300,000 of coverage. It may be cheaper than you think.

Mistake #8

Lying on the life insurance application. The insurance companies have a way of finding things out. If you lie on the application then insurance company may not pay the death claim and just refund the premiums if they find out. Be honest about all medical conditions and list all the medication you're taking.

About the Author: Katherine Ly, licensed Life Insurance Agent. Author and Publisher of http://www.term-life-insurance-quotation.com Katherine?s Guide to Insurance is an easy to understand source of information for consumers and provides answers to frequently asked questions regarding life insurance.

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Easy Ways To Get Affordable Term Life Insurance?

If you're on the lookout for affordable term life insurance then this article is for you. Contrary to popular belief affordable term life insurance can be a smart decision for a lot of people. In most cases the only drawback regarding term life insurance is the length of the insurance policy. Most insurance underwriters will only carry a term life insurance policy for a maximum of 30 years. With this one drawback there are many consumers who instead opt for a regular life insurance policy, which can also be a cash-value policy. The monthly insurance payments or premiums for this type of life insurance policy are usually more expensive when compared to a standard term life insurance policy. These standard life insurance policies offer a lifetime value and feature a built in savings program. Whether or not that sways you to purchase that type of policy over a term life insurance policy is a decision only you can make.

I will assume you are still interested in the benefits of a term life insurance policy and how easy it can be to actually find affordable term life insurance. The best place to shop for affordable life insurance policies is on the Internet. The ability to instantly and easily compare hundreds of life insurance offerings from many different companies gives you the ability to truly find the most affordable term life insurance policy with all of the features you're interested in having.

In fact many insurance companies offer websites that are very user friendly and easy to navigate. Best of all you don't have to worry about talking to an insurance agent that you feel may be interested in only making a sale instead of best serving your life insurance needs. When using online access to view insurance quotes you can quickly compare polices and insurance quotes to see which insurance company offers the best policy for your needs at an affordable price. In order to speed up the process you should have some information about your current state of health readily available. Information such as your current weight, blood pressure, cholesterol level and previous medical history when available will greatly aid in speeding up the life insurance quote process and allow you to receive a more accurate rate in your free term life insurance quote.

There are a few bits of crucial information that can help you lower your current term life insurance rates. For instance if you just had a health checkup (which you should do annually) and can show that you've lost weight or decreased your cholesterol level this will allow you to be offered a cheaper term life insurance quote. Additionally if you were a smoker and decided to kick the habit you could be entitled to a decrease in your current term life insurance rate.

Other methods of achieving a lower out of pocket cost for your term life insurance revolve around your actual insurance company. Some will offer a slight discount provided you have a your insurance payment automatically taken out of your bank account. Even more companies offer a substantial savings for each insurance coverage amount increase. Make sure to compare what the rates are between amounts such as $250,000, $500,000 and higher. One thing to consider is your age. As with most life insurance, term life policies are cheaper the younger you are so if you're debating on whether or not to purchase an affordable term life insurance policy you may want to do so before your next birthday. Finally if you've ever had any type of surgical procedure done to treat a major medical condition you may be able to negotiate for a lower term life rate depending on how long ago your operation to treat the medical condition took place.

Finding affordable term life insurance doesn't have to be a stressful situation. Especially if you've taken the time to familiarize yourself with the many ways to effectively lower your insurance costs. One thing is for sure, its well worth your time and pocketbook to do some comparative shopping online in order to find the best and most affordable term life insurance provider.

Timothy Gorman is a successful Webmaster and publisher of Best-Free-Insurance-Quotes.com. He provides more life insurance advice to include ways to find affordable term life insurance [http://www.best-free-insurance-quotes.com/life-insurance.html] that you can research in your pajamas on his website.

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Check Out The Basics of How to Get Cheap Term Life Insurance

Almost all people might have heard about life-insurance because of the media publicity and advertisements. But, most people don't know the different types of life-insurance. When such people are asked about term life-insurance, you will find in a dilemma. Term-life-insurance gives the family members the surety that they will not be financially starved when the policy holder passes away. Most people buy the life-insurance polices for some financial support for their families. However, there are many people who want to also make an investment when they are looking at life-insurance.

Term-life-insurance policies are very cheap and affordable and the cost of this life-insurance depends on the coverage amount. The higher the coverage amount, the higher will be the life-insurance premium. The lower the coverage amount, the lower will be the life-insurance premium. Going by this logic, for a five year term life-insurance, you may pay $600 for a $100,000 policy and $1200 for a $200,000 policy. One thing you need to know is that the amount that you pay per year for term life-insurance is not accumulated.

So, at the end of the tenure of the term life insurance, you will have nothing from the life insurance company. The life-insurance business is growing well when they have more and more people buying the term life-insurance policies. In fact, the term life-insurance policies are beneficial to both the insured person and the life-insurance company. At the end of the tenure of the cheap term life-insurance, you can have it renewed for either the same number of years or more. However, check with the respective life-insurance company for the renewal policy.

There are some life-insurance companies that do the renewal of life-insurance policies as soon as the tenure of the cheap term life-insurance policy is complete. The policy holders need to check the terms and conditions for the automatic renewal of the cheap term life-insurance policies. When the policy holder gets the hard copy of the life-insurance policy, the first thing that needs to be done is to read the finer prints of the life-insurance policy. There are many things listed in the finer prints that may also come as a shock to policy holders.

Consulting the life-insurance agents is one easy way to get the cheap life-insurance rates because they have been trained for this. While discussing the things with the live insurance agent do not be hesitant, remember the fact that in this meeting you intend to solve all your queries and so you are free to ask as many questions as possible. In case your queries are not solved in the first meetings with the agent then make sure that it is solved in the second meeting at least. Usually the life-insurance agents are in constant touch with the insurance companies so they are in the state to provide you all the information that you need.

In case you are not willing to deal with the life-insurance agents for the cheap life-insurance rates then the next option that you have is the internet. In the current time internet has been in great demand and there are many people who opt for this. The main reasons for the people using the Internet for the life-insurance policies are:

- Getting the online cheap term life-insurance policies is faster.

- It saves time

- It saves effort

- It is reliable

When you are searching for the cheap term-life-insurance on the Internet, you will have to check for the authenticity of the insurance website. Some websites are fake ones also. You need to beware of such websites. If you have any friends who have taken a cheap term-life-insurance from a website, you may want to ask that friend to give you the URL of that website. There are many popular life insurance companies that have their websites. You can always try and log on to their websites and check out the deals.

There are further cheaper versions of the term life-insurance like, level term-life-insurance policies and increasing term life insurance policies. In the case of the level term life insurance policy the amount that you pay is same throughout the year. On the other hand in the case of the increasing cheap term life-insurance in the initial stages the premium that you pay is less but it keeps increasing as the time passes by.

David Livingston has been involved in the insurance industry for a long time and is considered to be one of the leading expert in this industry. For more information on how to get affordable life insurance or getting life insurance quotes, visit his site today.

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How To Choose The Right Life Insurance Policy

Life insurance - what is it & how does it work?
Life insurance is the simplest, most popular and cost effective way to financially protect any dependants in the event of your death. While it won't help those left behind to get over their loss, the benefit of a lump sum, in most cases tax-free, will guarantee your family aren't deprived of funds during an already stressful time.

With the cost of life insurance at an all time low, now is the perfect time to arrange cover. For those in good health, a policy that was taken out six years ago can be replaced today for significantly less, despite the fact that being older, one is in theory at greater risk. The industry over-reaction to the threat of AIDS initially caused premiums to rocket skywards, but when the expected epidemic failed to materialise, costs fell rapidly from the mid 1990s onwards.

Life insurance premiums vary from person to person, with factors such as age, gender, current and previous health, lifestyle, term required, occupation and smoker status all having an influence. Risk is assessed with the use of what's known in the industry as 'mortality tables' to determine the premium for a particular individual, to which a 'loading' may be added which takes further account of other factors relating to medical history and lifestyle.

Whole of life versus term life insurance

Life insurance can be split into two main types, known as 'whole of life insurance' and 'term life insurance'. In essence, as the name suggests, whole of life insurance provides cover for the lifetime of the policyholder, whereas term life insurance provides cover for the duration of an agreed period in time. For all policies it's crucial to ensure that premium payments are kept up to date to keep cover in place.

Whole of life insurance

Whole of life insurance tends to be the more expensive option, though often has the advantage of being more flexible. It can fulfil many purposes including personal protection, family protection and inheritance tax planning, and can be combined with a term life insurance policy to cover specific debts as required.

Typically, policyholders' contributions are invested and life insurance benefits are 'purchased' using the investment fund. The fund's performance, along with other factors, has a significant effect on the level of future benefits. As the policyholder's age increases the cost of the insurance increases, thus reducing the sum in the investment pot. The investment element varies from insurer to insurer; some are more generous payers than others, making the expert advice of an insurance broker or independent financial adviser invaluable in choosing such a policy. Some plans require contribution until the policyholder's death, some for a set period of time, and some up until a certain age is reached, with additional options available to cover specific illnesses or disability. The common factor throughout is that cover is maintained for the life of the policyholder, making whole of life insurance a very popular way to leave dependants a nest egg.

One great benefit of whole of life insurance is that the guarantee of a payout on the policyholder's death, at whatever point in time that may be, removes much of the guesswork involved in other types of life insurance. As long as premiums are maintained, cover is assured. Although the more expensive option, it's important to note that premiums are lower than those one would pay in later life by repeatedly renewing term life policies.

Term life insurance

A simpler option, term life insurance offers basic cover for a set number of years, usually at low cost. A term life insurance policy requires a regular premium payment and pays out a lump sum on the policyholder's death providing this occurs within the term of the policy. Death outside of the term to which the policy applies won't result in a payout, meaning the loss of any investment made, making it particularly important to be sure that cover is adequate and the term is appropriate.

Some policies can be extended to provide critical illness cover; full disclosure of all medical conditions, existing and historic, is vital when arranging this to avoid a denial of payment just when it's needed most. It's also imperative to be certain exactly which conditions the policy covers, as insurance companies are notoriously specific as to the illnesses they'll pay out for!

Term life insurance cover can be further categorised into these types:

Flat-rate (or level) cover - offers a set amount of cover for the policy term, fixed from the outset.

Decreasing (or mortgage protection insurance) cover - cover decreases over the term of the policy, often inline with a diminishing mortgage debt.

Family income benefit - pays out a regular income rather than a lump sum during the policy term.

Increasing term assurance - premiums and benefits increase each year, usually in line with inflation, allowing the protection of a lifestyle.

Convertible term assurance - gives the option to convert to a whole of life policy without giving new information about your health.

How much cover do I need?

It's important to correctly identify your dependants' financial needs to establish just how much life insurance cover to arrange. A general rule is to choose a policy providing at least ten times your salary, but more may be appropriate, with the amount varying depending on how you intend it to be used. Basically you decide how much you want your dependants to receive in the event of your death, and your premiums will be determined accordingly.

Don't overlook factors like:

Mortgage repayments

Replacing the primary earner's salary

Replacing childcare

Education expenses

Outstanding debts

Support for a business partner

What do I need to look out for?

Before signing anything, look carefully at the terms and conditions of your proposed life insurance policy giving particular attention to any regulations pertaining to payouts. Some policies may not, for example, pay out if death is caused by participation in certain dangerous sports or activities.

In the case of index-linked policies which allow for economic change, it's important to establish whether the policy is linked automatically or whether there's the need to opt-in to linkage each year; failure to do so could result in being locked out of future linking.

Though life insurance payouts are usually tax-free, there are circumstances where taxes will apply. A life insurance policy can be placed 'in trust' to protect revenue and provide payment more quickly, though this is a complex issue which needs professional advice for clarity before proceeding.

A joint-life policy is a popular and often less expensive option for couples which covers the two of them simultaneously, with options for payout on a first-death or last-survivor basis.

How much will it cost?

The cost of each different policy offered by a life insurance company varies widely, and depends on a number of factors: the type of policy, the length of the policy term, the size of the death benefit, the flexibility of the policy, number of people covered by the policy and so on.

The only certainty is that the longer you delay getting life insurance, the more expensive the premiums will be!

Clare Mactaggart writes for Bellwood Prestbury International, FSA regulated UK providers of life insurance [http://www.bellwoodprestbury.com/personal-life-insurance.asp] and cover for all business, personal and expatriate needs.

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Everything About Life Insurance!

I want to start off this 2010 with an article regarding Life Insurance. Many people find this topic morbid but believe me when I say this contract is as important as a Will and should be taken just as seriously as health insurance. Due to the length in details of this article I have provided chapters for easy reading. I hope this will educate you on Life Insurance and the importance of its necessity. (Note: For better understanding "You" is the policy owner and the insured)

Chapters:

1= Introduction

2=When/If you have Life Insurance already

3= Difference between a Insurance Agent and Broker

4= Types of Policies

5= What are Riders and popular types of Riders

6= The medical exam

1) About general Life Insurance:

This is a contract between you and an insurance company to pay a certain amount (the premium) to a company in exchange for a benefit (called the Death Benefit, face amount, or policy amount) to the beneficiary (the person you want to get paid in the time of your death). This can range based on the type of policy (which will be discussed momentarily), your health, your hobbies, the Insurance company, how much you can afford in premiums, AND the amount of the benefit. It sounds overwhelming but it is not if you have the right agent or broker.

Now many people can say that Life Insurance is like gambling. You are betting that you will die in a specific time and the insurance company bets you won't. If the insurer wins, they keep the premiums, if you win...well you die and the death benefit goes to the beneficiary. This is a very morbid way of looking at it and if that is the case you can say the same for health insurance, auto insurance, and rental insurance. The truth is, you need life insurance in order to ease the burden of your death. Example 1: A married couple, both professionals that earn very well for a living have a child and like any other family has monthly expenses and 1 of the couple has a death. The odds of the spouse going back to work the next day is very slim. Odds are in fact that your ability to function in your career will lower which RISK the cause of not being able to pay expenses or having to use one's savings or investments in order to pay for these expenses NOT INCLUDING the death tax and funeral expenses. This can be financially devastating. Example 2: lower middle income family, a death occurs to 1 of the income earners. How will the family be capable of maintaining their current financial lifestyle?

Life insurance is about the ability of lowering the risk of financial burden. This can be in the form of simple cash or taxes via estate planning.

KEY Definitions:

The Insured: The person that is covered by the insurance company (He/She does NOT have to the policy owner)

The (policy) Owner: The one that pays the premium, controls the beneficiary, and basically owns the contract (Does NOT have to the insured...hope you understand it can be either/or).

Face Amount: Also known as the death benefit. The amount to be paid to the beneficiary.

The Beneficiary: Is the person/persons/organization who will receive the face amount (death benefit)

2) When/If you have Life Insurance:

First, you should review your beneficiaries once a year and your policy approximately once every 2-3 years. This is free! You need to make sure the beneficiaries are the people/person you want to get paid! Divorce, death, a disagreement, or anything of the sort can make you change your mind about a particular person to receive the benefit so make sure you have the right people, estate/trust, AND/OR organization (non-profit preferably) to receive the benefit. Furthermore, you need to review every 2-3 years because many companies can offer a lower premium OR raise the benefit if you renew your policy or if you find a competitor that sees you have been paying the premiums may compete for your business. Either way, this is something you should consider to either save money or raise the policy amount! This is a win-win for you so there should be no reason not to do this.

3) Life Insurance Agent or Broker, what is the difference?:

The major difference is an Agent is usually an independent sales man that usually works with different insurance companies in order to give the client the best possible policy while the Broker works for a particular company. My personal advice: always choose an Agent. Not because I am one myself BUT because an agent can look out for your benefit by providing different quotes, types, riders that are available (explained later), AND pros/cons regarding each insurance company. If you don't like a particular insurance company, tell the agent and he should move on to the next carrier (if he persist for some odd reason, fire him). Buyers BEWARE: The Agent should get paid by the carrier that is chosen, not by you specifically. If an Agent asks for money upfront for anything, RUN! There are also Insurance consultants that you pay but to keep things simple, see an Agent. Consultants and Agents are also great in reviewing current policies in order to lower premiums or increase benefits.

4) Types of Policies:

There are 2 main categories: Term and Permanent Insurance. Within each of the 2 categories have sub-categories. I will explain them at a glance in order for you to make the best possible choice for you and your loved ones. Remember, you can have estate/trust or a organization as the beneficiary. (Note: There are even more sub-sub-categories within these sub-categories but the difference are so small and self explanatory that I have not included it in this article. Once you speak to an agent you will have enough knowledge by this article that you will know what questions to ask and know if you agent is right for you).

Term Insurance: A temporary policy in which the beneficiary is paid only upon death of the insured (you) within a specific time period (hence the word "Term"). Term Insurance is usually less expensive with a smaller death benefit. Some do not require medical exams BUT expect to pay a higher premium since the risk of the insurance company is unknown. Also, term insurance normally does not accumulate cash value (explained in permanent insurance) but can be purchased on top of your permanent policy (for those that may have coverage already):

Convertible Term: Ability to convert policy to permanent. There are some REALLY GOOD policies that require no medical exam, driver history, or hazardous avocations at a certain point in order to convert to permanent coverage guaranteed with all the benefits that permanent insurance policies has to offer.

Renewable Term: Able to renew a term policy without evidence of insurability.

Level Term: Fixed premiums over a certain time period than increases (great for those that are young adults and expect within 10 years to have a increase in pay).

Increasing/Decreasing Term: Coverage increases or decreases throughout the term while the premium remains the same.

Group Term: Usually used for employers or associations. This covers several people in order to reduce premiums. (Great for small business owners)

Permanent Insurance: Just as the name states, this provides coverage throughout the lifetime of the insured. This also builds cash value which is fantastic for tax purposes because if you loan out money to yourself using this cash value there are no tax implications. Few policies may have in general withdrawal tax-free. However in most cases, If you withdraw the cash value you pay the only the taxes on the premiums (the amount that grew) which is fantastic. Just make sure your agent knows not to have the cash value grow larger than the death benefit otherwise it is subject to 10% taxes! Surrender charges may also apply when you withdrawal so PLEASE consult with an agent who can assist you with these details. You should consider Permanent Insurance if you have a family and don't mind an increase in premiums (amount you pay) by a few dollars compared to term.

Traditional Whole Life: Pay a fixed amount of premium in order to be covered for the insured's entire life which includes accumulating cash value.

Single-Premium Whole Life Insurance: Whole life insurance for 1 lump sum premium (usually that 1 lump sum is very large in order to get a great death benefit).

Participating Whole Life Insurance: Just like Traditional Whole life except it pays you dividends which can be used as cash OR pay your dividends for you! There is no guarantee that you will be paid the dividends, this is based on performance within the insurance company.

Limited Payment Whole Life Insurance: Limited payments for whole life but requires a higher premium since you are in fact paying for a shorter amount of time. This can be based on payment amounts (10, 20, 30, etc payments) or a particular age (whole life is paid up at age 65, 75, 85, etc).

Universal Life Insurance: Flexible premiums with flexible face amounts (the death benefit) with a unbundled pricing factors. Ex: If you pay X amount, you are covered for X amount.

Indexed Universal Life: Flexible premium/benefit with the cash value is tied to the performance of a particular financial index. Most insurance companies crediting rate (% of growth) will not go below zero.

Variable Life Insurance: Death Benefit and cash value fluctuates according to the investment performance from a separate account of investment options. Usually insurance policies guarantee the benefit will not fall below a specified minimum.

Variable Universal Life Insurance (also called Flexible Premium Variable Life Insurance & Universal Life II/2): A combination of Variable and Universal which has premium/death benefit flexibility as well as investment flexibility.

Last Survivor Universal Life Insurance (also called Survivorship or "Second to die" Insurance): Covers 2 people and the death benefit is only paid when both insurers have died. This is FANTASTIC and somewhat a necessity for families that pay estate taxes (usually High-Net-worth individuals).

5) Life Insurance Riders, what is it and why is it very important:

Rider is the name of a benefit that is added to your policy. This provides special additions to the policy which can be blended and put together. There are SO MANY types of riders that I would have to write a different article regarding Riders (and insurance companies add new types of riders often) but I want to at least name the most popular (and in my opinion, the most important) that you should highly consider when choosing a policy. Riders add to the cost of the premium but don't take riders lightly; it can be a life saver!

Accidental Death Benefit Rider (AD&D): Additional death benefit will be paid to the beneficiary if you die from a result of an accident (ie: Car accidents, a fall down the stairs). This is especially important if the insurer travels often, relatively young, and has a family. Please note: You can buy AD&D Insurance separately.

Accidental Death & Dismemberment Rider: Same as above BUT if you lose 2 limbs or sight will pay the death benefit. Some policies may offer smaller amounts if losing 1 eye or 1 limb. This is great for those that work with their hands.

Disability Income Rider: You will receive a monthly income if you are totally and permanently disabled. You are guaranteed a specific level of income. Pay attention to this detail, depending on the policy it will either pay you depending on how long the disability lasts OR time frame of the rider.

Guaranteed Insurability Rider: Ability to purchase additional coverage in intervals based on age or policy years without having to check insurance eligibility.

Level Term Rider: Gives you a fixed amount of term insurance added to your permanent policy. This rider can add 3-5 times the death benefit or your policy. Not a bad deal!

Waiver of Premium Rider: If you become disabled which results to the inability to work/earn income, the waiver will exempt you from paying the premiums while your policy is still in force! There is a huge gap between policies and insurance companies so the devils in the details with this rider.

Family Income Benefit Rider: In case of death of the insurer, this rider will provide income for a specific time period for your family.

Accelerated Death Benefit Rider: An insurer that is diagnosed with a terminal illness will receive 25-40% of the death benefit of the base policy (The decision is made between the insurer and the insurance company). This will lower the death benefit however depending on your finances or living lifestyle, this rider should not be taken lightly and should seriously be considered.

Long-Term Care Rider: If the insurer's health compels to stay in a nursing home or receive care at home, this rider will provide monthly payments. Please Note: Long Term Care insurance can be bought separately for more benefit.

6) The Medical Exam:

This section is not to scary you away but to mentally (and possibly physically) prepare you for the medical exam so this way you know what to expect and can get the lowest possible premiums while receiving the highest possible death benefit. This really shouldn't be a concern if you work out regularly and maintain a healthy eating habit (notice I said habit and not diet. Diets don't work for long term).

The exam is mandatory for most insurance policies. Many term insurance do not require one but expect a low death benefit and/or higher premium. The idea of the exam is not just to see if you're insurable but to also see how much they will charge the insurer/policy owner. The exam is done by a "paramedical" professional that are independent contractors hired by the insurance company who either come to your home or has an office where you/the insurer visit. They are licensed health professionals so they know what to look for! In very few cases the insurance company may ask for an "Attending Physician Statement (APS)" from your doctor. This must be provided by your doctor and NOT copies by you. TIP: The "paramedical" job is to give the insurance company a reason to increase your premiums so don't give any details that are not asked.

First part (either called Part 1 or Part A) is complete by the Agent or by you. Part 2/B is the paramedical or physician portion. The best bet is to have your agent contact a paramedical that specializes in mobile exams for an easier exam for you. Paramedical will contact you to schedule an appointment. The exam is not optional so it's not a matter of yes or no but when and where. This entire exam will cost you nothing except time so make the time, life insurance is important!

The paramedical/physician will take your medical history (questions), physical measurements of height and weight, blood pressure, pulse, blood, and urine. Additional tests will vary based on age and policy amount (yes, the higher the death benefit = the more tests that must be provided). Now if the policy is substantial, the insurance company may not send a paramedical but require an actual Medical Doctor to exam you. Of course, this is chosen by the insurance company so remember my tip earlier! This exam may even include a treadmill test and additional crazy exams in order to see if you qualify for that substantial amount and low premium. On the flip side, if you choose a low insurance policy, you will just have a paramedical doing simple tests that mentioned earlier with no additional exams.

What they are looking for: Paramedical/Physicians are looking for health conditions that may shorten your life. Remember, insurance companies are here to make a business and if you're a liability then it might be a risk they do not want to take or raise the premium to make the risk tolerable. Blood and urine is taken to see the following:

- your antibodies or antigens to HIV

- Cholesterol and related lipids

- Antibodies to hepatitis

- Liver/kidney disorders

- Diabetes

- Immunity disorders

- Prostate specific antigen (PSA)

- Drug tests such as cocaine

The Results: They are sent directly to the insurance company's home office underwriters for review. Many times you can request (must be written request) to receive a copy of the results however many insurance companies will automatically do this. Many times they will find abnormalities but it's usually not a concern and just speak to your medical professional for a follow up (remember: the insurance company will look at these exams with a "fine tooth cone" in order to see what the risk are). The underwriters will look at the exam results and the application (remember part 1/a? well, now they want to see if your also lying) and determine the premium amount. Smokers pay more; any nicotine in your system will consider you a smoker, even if it is just socially.

The premium is determined by a category that you fit in. This really depends on the insurance company on how they factor but the general rule is if you are a higher risk, you pay higher premium. If you are standard risk, you will pay a standard premium, and if you are a preferred risk, you will pay a low premium.

You can decline the policy after you receive the final quote after the exam but do remember this: All results will become part of the MIB group's database (Medical information Bureau). This is a clearinghouse of medical information that insurance companies use to store information after you apply for Life/Health/Disability Income/Long Term care/Critical Illness insurance. So for seven years it will be on database. You can receive a free report annually (like a credit check) at their website which I included at the bottom of this article.

Now that you know practically everything there is to know about life insurance. I hope you realize how important it is. It may seem like a lot but the hardest part is simply choosing what type of policy is right for you. This can be done with the help of your Agent. In the end, everyone is different and everyone should analyze their own situation and need for the beneficiaries. If you have even the slightest concern for a loved one regarding what will happen if you was no longer with us then you should consider life insurance. There truly is a feeling a relief once you know you and your loved ones are covered regardless of how much you or that person makes. For many that feel that their loved ones don't need the death benefit due to whatever the case may be ("they earn enough money to survive" is the biggest reason I hear against life insurance), this can be a simple last gesture of "I love you" or appreciation for them being part of your life.

I hope I was able to educate you in Life Insurance and if you have any additional questions please feel free to email me.

MIB website: http://www.mib.com/html/request_your_record.html

Financial Consultant, Risk Manager, Insurance Agent, and Retirement Planner here to give honest opinions on the current financial trends. (*Please note: This is not a solicitation and opinions on this blog are independent and not connected to blogger.com. Please consult with your financial representative prior to applying any recommendations on this blog or twitter. If you have ANY questions, please feel free to contact me. I will be more than happy to chat with you!). [http://www.MichaelAponte.Biz]

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