At InsureChance we don’t give you a “one size fits all” policy for your Life Insurance needs. We understand that you and your family have a unique situation so we build customized plans based on your personal and financial requirements. Click on each product to learn more and feel free to Contact Us if you have any questions. If you want to compare quotes online please refer to the sidebar on the right, to learn more about the life insurance products keep reading. While there are many products, it all comes down to 3 categories: Term Life Insurance, No Medical Exam Life insurance, and Permanent Life Insurance.
What is Term Life Insurance?
Term life insurance is life insurance you can get for a specific “term” of your life, anywhere from 5 to 30 years. After the term is up your policy expires. Much like car insurance its coverage we hope we don’t have to take advantage of. But in the case of an unexpected death, you have the peace of mind knowing your beneficiaries will be protected from any financial setback that your death may beset upon them.
Now while it may be a temporary coverage, it is also your most affordable option for the highest possible death benefit amount. Often called pure protection life insurance it is the most affordable life insurance product on the market because it offers the most “bang for your buck” in terms of monthly premium vs death benefit amount.
Who is Term life Insurance for?
Term life insurance is for those trying to protect their current financial responsibilities in the event of a premature death. If you have a mortgage, loans, or kids in school, a term is for you. It will provide the peace of mind of knowing that while your kids are in school they will have the necessary funds to proceed and that your liabilities will not befall upon the family in the event of death. Besides being a great investment for temporary needs term life is also the most affordable option. If you are struggling to make ends meet and can’t afford permanent insurance, a term policy is your best bet to get some kind of coverage in place while your situation improves.
Term life insurance Riders
Term life insurance is also highly customizable with options to renew at the end of the term, refund premiums and more. We recommend you discuss these in detail with an agent because each company offers different options with each rider. But let’s discuss them briefly.
Option to Convert
Mostly all of the term life insurance products that we offer come with an option to convert the term policy. What that means for you is at the end of your term period or age 75, whichever comes first, you will have the options to convert the temporary coverage to a permanent life insurance policy without proof of insurability. That means you will not have to take another medical exam in order to get coverage. Your premium will go up to reflect your new age but even if you contract an illness that would normally mean a decline you are still guaranteed to convert the policy with the health rating you attained at the conception of the policy.
Example: John, 35, buys a $500,000 term insurance policy for 20 years at preferred health rating for $25 a month. At the end of his term he decides he would like to convert it to a permanent coverage but in those 20 years, he got diabetes. He is still eligible for the preferred health rating despite diabetes but at the new age of 55 years of age. So his premium is adjusted accordingly to that of a 55 years old at a preferred health rating class.
Accelerated Death Benefit Rider
The accelerated death benefit rider is another option that comes standard with most term policies. This rider provides a living benefit in the case that you are found to have a terminal illness. If your doctor tells you to have less than 12 months to live you are eligible to receive up to 50% of your death benefit whether to take care of any hospital bills, enjoy your last moments with your family, or just check off your bucket list.
Return of Premium Rider
Probably the most popular of term riders, the return of premium does exactly what it sounds like. In the fortunate event that you outlive your life insurance policy, you receive a refund for every single premium you’ve paid out since policies conception. Now you’re probably wondering “what’s the catch?” The return of premium option is a bit more expensive, sometimes double the premium you would pay for a regular term policy. The benefit of course is, you would receive that money back given you are still alive at terms end.
Waiver of Premium Rider
The waiver of premium rider is an add on that would automatically pay your premiums in the event that you become completely disabled and unable to work. This is a good tool to prevent your policy from lapsing if the situation arises in which you are unable to me your policy premium requirements due to disability. Life Insurance companies have their own stipulations when it comes to this rider so it’s best to check with an agent to discuss your options.
Child Rider
Many people wonder about getting life insurance for their children, and with each policy, there is always an option to add a child rider. One child rider would cover all the kids from 15 days old to 19 years of age. Usually, allows up to 50,000 worth of coverage for each child and is a great idea if you have 2 or more children because the cost is the same no matter a number of children you want to cover.
Disability Income Rider
The disability income rider can provide you with an income in the case that you find yourself out of work due to an accident or disability due to illness. The insurance company normally states the amount of income and the duration in which it will be paid out.No medical exam life insurance is exactly what it sounds like. It’s getting life insurance coverage in place without having to go through the hassle of taking a medical exam. With a standard issue term, life insurance policy companies require a medical exam to take place at a time and location of your choosing. It usually involves a blood and urine sample along with a blood pressure test, height/weight measurement and a questionnaire regarding your health history. This is then followed by an underwriting process that may take 4 to 8 weeks. If specific doctors records are requested it may take even longer. That’s why some people choose to get no medical exam life insurance that only a few select companies offer.
What is No Medical Exam Life insurance?
No medical exam life insurance helps speed up the process by a few weeks because it skips the medical exam portion of the underwriting process. The life insurance company will still go through your medical history and ask a questionnaire on the application but it will be an expedited process. Underwriting for no medical exam life insurance can take anywhere from 48 hours to a maximum of 30 days depending on which non-med insurance company you go with. Most of this is based on how strict the company is when it comes to your health history.
Who is No Medical Exam Life Insurance for?
Nonmed life insurance policies are growing in popularity and for good reason. It offers the ability to skip the inconvenience of a medical exam if for no other reason than the fact that you may hate needles. Besides needle aversion, it’s also for anyone looking to get coverage fast, whether for a loan assignment or simply to speed up the application process. After all, we do get life insurance to protect risk.
You can also benefit from a no exam life insurance policy if you’ve been fairly healthy and haven’t seen the physician in a few years. No medical exam life insurance policies are normally more expensive, but if you haven’t seen the physician it may actually save you money.
For example, if you decide to opt for a medical exam after years of avoiding the doctor, you may find that your cholesterol and high blood pressure levels are elevated. This will cause the life insurance company to rate you up, causing a much higher premium. Now it’s in your records and you have no choice but to accept the policy. If you initially chose the no medical life insurance policy you would be able to secure a much better rate. So if you haven’t seen the doctor, opt for a non-med life policy. If you’re a busy individual who seeks simplicity and efficiency, no medical exam life insurance is for you.
What you’re not getting
Many people have a misconception that a no exam life insurance policy will allow them to skip the underwriting process. This is not the case. You skip the medical exam but the company will still look into the Medical Information Bureau (MIB) to check your health history and some companies may even ask for additional records from your doctors. They will also review your driving and criminal history for the last 5 years. Given that the company is taking a higher risk by forgoing the medical exam, a no medical exam life insurance policy has a cap of coverage at 399,000 with no option to renew or convert in most cases. If you are in need of more coverage, it’s better to get a standard issue life insurance policy.
Pros and Cons of No Exam Life Insurance
Let’s review some highlights of what no medical exam life insurance offers.
Pros
- Faster application process
- No needles
- Convenience
Cons
- More expensive
- Capped coverage amount
- Non-convertible, non-renewable
No Medical Exam Life insurance Companies
Many of our customers ask us what life insurance company is best for a no med policy, the answer is: “it depends.” Each company has its own requirements and does things a little differently than the other. The key to finding the right company and type of policy is by establishing your goals with an agent that can guide you in the right direction with your no medical exam life insurance coverage. If you want to learn more about what each company specialized in feel free to read more in the no medical exam life insurance resource links below or visit our no exam quotes page for a detailed breakdown.
Permanent Life Insurance
Unlike term insurance, permanent life insurance has a few products, some with an option to accumulate cash value and some new products that offer pure protection at more affordable rates. Lets discuss two of the most popular, one with a focus on pure protection and one with cash value accumulation.
Guaranteed Universal Insurance
Guaranteed universal life insurance is also known as GUL, permanent term, lifetime term, and no lapse guarantee universal life insurance. It’s often referred to as a lifetime term product because it has the simplicity of term life insurance with the benefit of a permanent life insurance product. While it is more expensive than term life it does provide the value of permanent coverage and it is the most affordable option for permanent life insurance on the market. It offers cash value but only in enough amount to guarantee a level premium throughout the length of a policy whether to age 100 or 121 depending on the company and policy type. It also provides a guaranteed death benefit amount as long as you maintain the level premium.
Who is Guaranteed Universal Life Insurance for?
The permanent term guaranteed universal life insurance policy is for anyone who has permanent financial responsibilities. Term insurance is great to cover short term financial responsibilities, such as mortgages or college education. Unlike term, a GUL policy is perfect for anyone who needs income replacement at any age whether spouse, business partner, friend or family that’s dependent on your income. It can also be used to leave any legacy behind and most importantly to cover any final expenses in the form of hospital bills, funeral expenses, and any leftover liabilities.
Options and Riders
Guaranteed universal life insurance policies come with many customizable options, some of which may be unique to certain companies so we recommend talking with our agents to discuss all of the options but of course, let’s go over some of them briefly here.
Option to convert
Some Life Insurance companies will offer an option to convert your GUL policy to a Universal Life policy with cash value accumulation if your needs happen to change throughout the length of the policy. It can also be done without further underwriting as long as it meets the companies guidelines for conversion.
Riders
In brief GUL riders include:
Accelerated death benefit rider – If you are diagnosed as having less than 12 to 24 months to live you are eligible for up to 75% of your death benefit amount.
Accidental death benefit rider – This rider will increase the death benefit amount if the death is the result of an accident.
Child term insurance rider – this is a rider that covers your children up to 50,000 worth of coverage for each child up to 19 to 25 years of age depending on the company.
Waiver of monthly deductions rider – This rider will pay your monthly premium for a certain period of time to prevent policy lapse in case of inability to pay due to disability.
Whole Life Insurance
The original form of permanent life insurance that is known to provide a level death benefit and accumulate cash value. These type of policies have lost their popularity since newer forms of permanent life insurance such as universal life and variable life came to the scene. Some folks still find whole life to be a great policy since the payments are guaranteed to stay locked in with consistent cash value growth.
Whole life policies provide a lifetime death benefit protection, unlike term life insurance which is for a set period of time. Since this type of policy is designed to provide protection for the whole of your life, If the insured is still alive at the end of the policy it matures.What that means is your cash value will be equal to your death benefit. If you reach age 100 and you are still alive, your whole life policy will provide a living benefit. Meaning you will be given the money equal to your original death benefit to using for anything you please.
Cash value is a savings element that builds up over the age of the policy. As it acquires interest the cash value rises and it is designed to equal the death benefit at age 100. That is not to say that you are not allowed to tap into your cash value before then. You are given the ability to “borrow” against the policy. It’s a loan that there is no time limit to pay back. If you happen to pass away before paying it back the cash value you borrowed simply comes from the top of the death benefit with up to a 10% penalty from the amount borrowed.
The cost of the whole life policy is the reason why many people choose other option since it can be 3-5 times more costly than a term life insurance policy. It is one of the most expensive life insurance products out there because of the guarantees it provides in terms of investment, death benefit and level premium. It is not recommended to pursue whole life as a replacement for other investments so we always recommend talking to your financial planner for other options. Whole life often gets confused for being the only permanent coverage but there are much cheaper alternatives for permanent life insurance if you are looking for pure death protection.
Whole life policies are ideal for people who like low-risk investments to supplement their retirement strategy while also getting a lifetime protection. Because it is more expensive it is common for people who purchase this type of policy to be in a higher income bracket.
If you have more questions feel free to visit our quotes page in the right sidebar up top or call us at 888-492-1967.
