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Welcome to Life Insurance Tips
Hi, I'm Joe Wallace, one of the hundreds of writers here at LifeTips.com. Enjoy these 170 Life Insurance Tips! If you’re a business, why not hire the expert writers at LifeTips? And if you’re a writer, apply for freelance writing gigs.
How Much Life Insurance Do You Need?
When looking for a life insurance quote, it is important to know how much life insurance you will need. Ask yourself a series of questions, including:
- What expenses will need to be paid immediately and up front if something happens to you?
- How much income your will your family need to replace your current income or what expenses they need to pay regularly?
- How long will your family need this income>
- Are there any large purchases, such as a mortgage, that could be paid off to make things financially easier for your family?
These questions will help you determine what kind of a life insurance quote you will need to look for.
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LifeInsure.com Tip: Buying Term Life Insurance
Use the following tips and strategies to save on life insurance.
Tip 1. Consider Low Cost Term Life Insurance
• Low cost term life insurance is available for as little as one year or for as long as 30 years. Longer policies carry lower term life insurance rates. • Insurance shoppers should be aware that this most basic coverage does not include an investment component, but it is still a good choice. Term life insurance offers the convenience of set payments, which means no surprises. • Policy holders can expect that beneficiaries will receive the face value of the policy. The good news is that there are many affordable life insurance policies available with values in excess of $1 million.
Tip 2. Get Several Term Life Insurance Quotes
• Believe it or not, the rates for similar (and sometimes even the same) coverage between insurers can span several hundred dollars. Shop around for the most affordable term life insurance quotes before you sign on the dotted line.
Tip 3. Use an Insurance Calculator for Accurate Term Life Comparison
• An insurance calculator can help you determine how much value you will get from your policy based on the price you expect to pay. • When comparing policies be sure to make all things equal to get the most accurate picture (in other words compare apples to apples).
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Cashing in Your Life Insurance Policy
Unless you are under a term life insurance policy, you probably have the option of cashing in your life insurance policy for a cash settlement. However, it is important to know when is a good time to cash in your life insurance policy and when is not. Ask yourself the following questions:
- Does anyone depend on my income besides myself?
– Am I old enough that marriage and children are likely not in my future?
– Do I have enough money saved to cover my own final expenses?
– Do I have enough money to pay for a lengthy nursing home stay?
– Do I have enough money to pay for any health conditions that may arise?
If you can answer yes to all of these questions, then you may benefit from cashing in your policy and saving yourself the monthly premium expenses.
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LifeInsure.com Tip: Holding on to Your Life Insurance Policies
Ideally, life insurance policies are kept in a safe place and beneficiaries know how and where to find them if it becomes necessary to make a claim. When that isn’t the case there are ways to find a lost life insurance policy.
Tip 1. Review Financial Records
• Financial records can give beneficiaries a clue about who might have issued the policy holders insurance. • If such records are not immediately available talk with people who may be familiar with the deceased’s financial history.
Tip 2. Contact the Medical Information Bureau (MIB)
• This agency has a database of requests from insurance carriers for medical information from potential applicants.
Tip 3. Check with the Insured’s State
• If no beneficiary steps forward to claim the benefit the insurer may turn the funds over to the state as unclaimed property. If the death occurred at least 3-5 years ago it might be worth checking your state’s searchable database for unclaimed insurance benefits.
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A Life Insurance Policy For Every Need
No matter what type of life insurance policy you need, there is bound to be one suited for you. With all of the different life insurance policy choices available today, there is one for almost every situation. The most popular types of life insurance that one can choose from include:
- Term life insurance
– Whole life insurance
– Universal life insurance
– Variable life insurance
– Variable universal life insurance
– Mortgage life insurance.
Each one of these life insurance policy options will have a different premium, payout, and individual rules and regulations, so make sure you fully understand each before choosing the one for you.
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LifeInsure.com Tip: Tips On No Medical Exam Insurance
When buying life insurance online, you won't need to visit your doctor's office. Depending on the type and amount of life insurance you are seeking everything can take place in the comfort of your own home.
Tip 1. No Medical Exam Policies Are Available: The medical exam or medical underwriting component of applying for coverage can generally be avoided by those 40 and under seeking low value (say $100,000 or less) policies. As you age, the amount of coverage you qualify for without a medical exam decreases.
Tip 2. If You Do Require an Exam it can be performed in Your Home: The most basic medical underwriting requires only samples of your saliva blood and urine. Using portable equipment, medical personnel contracted by the insurance carrier can perform these tests in your home or office. Why take saliva, blood and urine samples? Carriers are looking for evidence of risky health habits or conditions. Specifically nicotine or illegal drug use, elevated cholesterol levels, HIV infection and so forth.
Tip 3. High Value Policies Generally Require More Extensive Exams: In addition to the more basic exam older policy applicants or those seeking high value policies must submit to additional testing. These tests can include things like an EKG or a heart stress test using a treadmill or similar equipment.
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Ensuring That You Will Never Be "Uninsurable"
Paying the higher cost of permanent life insurance rates can ensure that you never become “uninsurable”. Unlike with insurance policies that expire, your permanent life insurance rates and benefit should stay in place throughout your life, as long as you keep up your payments, no matter how old you get or if you develop a severe illness. This is your return for all of those years that you have paid your permanent life insurance rate on a timely, monthly basis.
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LifeInsure.com Tip: Tips for Life Insurance Company Ratings
If you are asking, "Which life insurance company?", your decision is likely based not only on products and prices but also the rating of life insurance companies. How are life insurance companies rated; and what does that mean for the consumer? Read the following tips to find out.
Life Insurance Ratings are determined by Independent Reviewers. Reviewers consider several qualitative and quantitative factors to arrive at life insurance company ratings. One such reviewer, A.M. Best evaluates the balance sheet strength, business profile, and operating performance to make a rating determination.
Life Insurance ratings are expressed as letter grades. Ratings range from A++ (which is superior) through F (in liquidation). It can be assumed that top rated life insurance companies enjoy higher ratings and foster more confidence among policy holders.
There are some companies that are not rated. There are several reasons a life insurance company may not be rated. The most common include: the company has not be in business long enough, there is not sufficient data available or the evaluation processed used is not applicable under the company’s current circumstance.
It is wise to review the insurer’s rating at policy inception and periodically throughout the life of the policy.
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Getting the Most out of Your Life Insurance Policy
To get the most out of your life insurance policy, it is important to pick the right one. This means not only looking at your life as it is now (especially if you are relatively young), but looking at the future as well. It can be expensive to switch life insurance policies later on down the road and you could end up losing out on some of the money you have invested (such as if you switch from a term life insurance policy to a whole life insurance policy). There are life insurance policies that have the flexibility to change when your life changes, so make sure you examine the possibilities thoroughly before settling on one.
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Buying Affordable Life Insurance
Once you have determined that you need life insurance, how do you go about purchasing an affordable life insurance policy?
There are numerous ways to purchase life insurance, including going to one of the many life insurance companies available near you.
A life insurance agent or financial advisor can provide a detailed analysis to determine your best options. Life insurance coverage is often offered through your place of employment as part of your benefits package. If you're seeking an inexpensive or cheap life insurance option, insurance policies can also be obtained over the phone and by mail. And with the emergence of the Internet, affordable life insurance can efficiently be bought online.
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Determining Life Insurance Needs
Estimating the amount of the life insurance policy you need can be tricky, and often complicated. There are few immediate questions you can ask yourself in determining your life insurance needs:
How much money will your family need after you are gone?
How much money will be needed to cover immediate expenses for medical costs, funeral expenses and lingering debt?
And how much money will your family require to maintain their standard of living over time?
Most life insurance companies provide a calculator or formula to help determine the optimal amount of affordable life insurance that will be needed. Factors such as future needs, existing finances and your current health will determine the amount of the monthly investment to protect your family in the event that you are no longer around.
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Changing Needs, Changing Policy
Changing a life insurance policy can cost money, you could lose money, and it can be a complicated process. Fortunately, there are life insurance policies that will change with your changing needs, such as a variable universal life insurance. This is a great option for someone who expects their situation to change over time. For example, a young person can start with a low variable universal life insurance premium & benefit, increases their variable universal life insurance premium & benefit once they have a family, and then decrease their variable universal life insurance premium & benefit again once their children leave the nest.
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Filing a Life Insurance Claim
If you need to file a life insurance claim, immediately contact your life insurance agent. Your representative will help you through the claim process and answer any questions along the way. Before filing a claim, review all bank statements, credit card information and contact employers to find out what coverage was carried by the deceased. All paperwork should be in order. A copy of the death certificate is necessary and in certain situations a marriage license and other documentation will be required. File the claim with the life insurance company. And if needed, determine the proper payment plan. Follow-up on your claim once it has been submitted to ensure a speedy payment. There are many channels that a claim can get tied-up and delayed without proper attention.
