If you’re in the market for life insurance, you might have been tempted by those ads claiming, “For just a few dollars a day, you can protect your family with $1 million in life insurance!” It sounds like a great deal, doesn’t it? These ads typically refer to term life insurance. As its name implies, term life insurance provides protection for a limited amount of time or term, such as 10, 20, or 30 years.
The concept is fairly simple: If you die while your policy is active, your family will receive a death benefit. But the many types of term insurance and options can be confusing. Is term life insurance likely to pay off for you? Start by asking yourself the following five questions.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Nobody really wants to talk about life insurance; it sounds expensive and brings to mind our own mortality.
- Nevertheless, having the proper life insurance in place can bring peace of mind, knowing that your loved ones and beneficiaries will be taken care of financially when you die.
- Depending on your lifestyle, family structure, and financial position, different types of life insurance coverages exist that can be customized to meet your particular needs.
1. Why Do I Want Life Insurance?
Before you buy any kind of life insurance, think about why you’re buying it. Are you protecting your family in case of early death? Have you taken on additional debt that requires you to provide coverage? Are you looking to leave an inheritance or a gift to a charity?
If you want insurance to potentially cover financial obligations you’ll have for a very long time—possibly for the rest of your life—you may want to consider permanent life insurance. If you’re in a cash crunch and have immediate obligations to your family, business partners or lenders, term insurance can provide you with a short-term solution.
2. What Type of Coverage Is Available?
Most people will have access to at least one of the two types of term insurance policies: group or individual.
Group Life Insurance
Most companies offer their employees some form of term life insurance as an employee benefit. This is called group term insurance because you’re getting protection as part of a larger group. Usually, it’s deducted right from your paycheck, and the only requirement for coverage is to complete a brief questionnaire with details of your health history. Here are some of the advantages of group term insurance:
- It’s convenient. You can usually sign up for a policy when you take a new job and enroll in your company’s benefits program. You may also have an opportunity to sign up during the annual enrollment period at your company when you can sign up for other benefits, such as medical or dental insurance or an employer-sponsored retirement plan.
- No medical exam required. Most group plans don’t require a physical exam. A statement of good health, along with a medical history, is usually all that’s required to secure coverage.
- Automatic payments. Through payroll deduction, you’ll hardly feel the financial hit of paying premiums every month.
Individual Life Insurance
As its name implies, an individual policy is one in which you apply for coverage on your own. You, or a family member, will own the actual policy. To obtain an individual policy, you’ll probably have to undergo a medical exam of some sort, provide a detailed medical history, and give the insurance company permission to look into your medical records and perform a background check on any driving offenses or criminal activities. This might sound a little invasive, but there are some great benefits to owning an individual life insurance policy.
- It’s portable. If you take a new job at a different company, you don’t have to worry about losing your life insurance protection.
- Level premiums. Generally, individual policies can be structured to have level premiums for the duration of the policy.
- Flexibility. If you ever want to upgrade or convert your term policy to a permanent policy, you might have more options available with an individual policy than you would with a group plan.
3. What If I Don’t Die?
Ironically, some people who buy term life insurance get upset when they find out that if they don’t die, they don’t get anything back. If this is a concern for you, it’s important to get an understanding of what will happen to your policy as you near the end of the term.
As you near the end of your policy term, you may have the option of keeping your policy. If you do, and you have been paying level premiums, you can expect a hefty jump in your premium. So, if you are still healthy at that point in your life and you want to keep the coverage, it may be best to apply for a new policy.
Perhaps you only wanted your policy to cover you as long as you had a mortgage, or until your children’s college education was paid for. If that’s the case and you have no other obligations to protect, you might want to let the coverage expire.
4. How Can I Upgrade My Current Policy?
Most term policies come with a “conversion privilege.” This allows you to essentially trade in your old term policy for a new permanent policy and continue paying premiums, which may be higher. This is a great feature that provides future flexibility, but because some policies have limitations, you should familiarize yourself with the conversion rules of any policy you’re considering.
The conversion privilege might have a time limitation on it. For example, you may have to convert it before you hit a certain age. Other policies allow conversion during the entire term of the policy. The most generous term policies allow you to convert to any type of permanent policy available, such as whole life, universal life or variable universal life. Some term policies may force you to convert to one type, and some companies may not offer all types, which can limit your options.
5. Where Do I Buy a Policy?
A number of online companies can provide you with a term insurance policy. These distributors typically focus on finding the policy with the lowest cost based on the personal information you provide.
For a more personalized experience, you might consider finding a professional. An insurance agent will help you understand the different types of insurance and should be able to answer any questions you might have. You can find one by visiting any of the major company websites or combing through your local phone book, but probably the best way to find a representative is to ask for a referral from a friend or business associate.
Finally, for group coverage, you can check with your employer. If you’re self-employed, you may have access to a group plan through a professional association, or you may even be able to put a group plan in place for yourself and your employees.
The Bottom Line
After going through these five questions, you will be able to decide for yourself if that million-dollar coverage offered in the ad is really what you need to provide for you and your family. If it’s not, don’t be afraid to pass it by—there are hundreds of policies waiting to provide you with the peace of mind you’re looking for.
