When you need to protect your family’s financial situation, life insurance makes a lot of sense. Many employers offer group life insurance or your financial adviser can recommend a quality company. Life insurance can also be purchased from online sources, but it’s important to do your homework so you know what to buy.
When creating a divorce settlement that requires one parent to maintain life insurance in order to keep custody of children, create the insurance policy before signing the divorce settlement. This speeds up the settlement process and insures that any kinks in the making of the insurance policy are dealt with before the custody issues.
When choosing a life insurance policy, it is important that you assess your and your family’s financial needs. Separate what you think you know from what the insurance salesman is telling you. You understand your situation better than any salesperson, which means you know how much coverage you require.
If you are considering purchasing life insurance you may want to look into possible coverage that is already offered by your employer. It’s common for employers to offer basic life insurance plans at good rates for their employees. You should make sure that the coverage is adaquate for your needs and purchase supplemental policies if additional coverage is desired.
Make sure you understand all the exclusions, inclusions, and terms involved in your contract before signing on the dotted line. Items like non-payment for pre-existing diseases, no coverage if you were doing an activity considered dangerous and other exclusions are very common. Read the fine print and understand fully what you are paying for.
Before purchasing a life insurance policy, be sure to look into the quality of the company you’re buying it from. If you purchase a life insurance policy from a low-quality company, they may not be around to pay out when it becomes necessary. Worse, there are many people out there trying to scam you out of your money by impersonating a life insurance salesman. Always check up on the reputation of the company and the salesperson before you sign anything.
Before you commit to a life insurance policy, be sure to look around and compare rates. You do not want to be stuck with a policy that will not provide your loved ones with sufficient funds. If you are unsure of which companies are reliable, you can look at online reviews.
Life insurance companies often charge cigarette smokers double the usual premium. A way to reduce the monthly cost of your insurance, is to quit smoking if you are a smoker. Another way to bring your premium down is to stay in shape. Physically fit, non-smokers are at far less risk for developing illness and diseases.
Get yourself a policy that has a “conversion to permanent” clause. This refers to the fact that at any time, the policy holder can switch their term insurance into permanent insurance without further medical exams. While this may not save money at first, it will eventually save money if you start suffering from poor from health problems before the policy runs out.
Sometimes people with life insurance (whole-life, not term) feel like updating or changing their policies after a few years, especially when a company introduces a better policy. This is why it’s important to think first before getting into a commitment, because changing now could cost you your premium payments and policy. So you should avoid this.
If you need more life insurance because of your poor health, you should consider purchasing a rider instead of a new policy. A rider is an addition or change to a current policy. Therefore, a rider is usually not as expensive as purchasing an additional policy, which will keep your premium low.
Understand that most life insurance companies offer a range of different payment options to your beneficiaries. If you think those you leave behind would be better off receiving periodic payments, then this is something you have to decide now. You can choose to give the lump sum or to break it up.
How much should I expect to pay? This depends on a number of things, such as your overall health, habits and sometimes even your hobbies. The insurance company will probably require you to have a medical exam prior to approval. A good tip is to lose weight and stop smoking. This could reduce your rates by a substantial amount.
When purchasing a life insurance policy, be truthful on all medical exams or history profiles. Should anything happen and the carrier discovers you provided false information when purchasing a policy, they can legally deny a claim which defeats the purpose of buying life insurance. Letting your insurance company know about any pre-existing conditions or risky hobbies, may result in slightly higher premiums, but prevent problems with claims.
Life insurance can help you sleep at night, knowing your family is well-provided for, if something should happen. Finding the right life insurance for you involves an assessment of your personal needs. Decide on the level of coverage you need and start making inquiries. Life insurance is more affordable now than ever.
