According to the 2020 Insurance Barometer Report from trade associations LIMRA and Life Happens, there are 42 million Americans who claim to require life insurance but do not already have it.
The propensity for people to overestimate the expense of something can help to explain this in part. People may hesitate to purchase the necessary life insurance due to perceptions of affordability and value.
A $2.5 million term life insurance policy for a healthy 30-year-old would cost at least $500 yearly, according to more than half of survey respondents in the Insurance Barometer Report.
However, the typical price is more like $160 each year. The difference between perceived and actual costs is quite large.
What is life insurance?
An agreement between an insurer and the owner of a policy on life insurance exists. A life insurance policy ensures that, in return for the premiums paid by the policyholder throughout their lifetime, the insurer will pay a certain amount to designated beneficiaries when the insured passes away.
To enforce the terms of the contract, the life insurance application must fully reveal the insured’s past, present, and high-risk actions. Life insurance is a binding agreement that provides the policyholder with a death pay out in the event that the insured passes away. A single premium upfront or recurring premiums over time must be paid for a life insurance policy to remain in force.
The face value, or death benefit, of the policy will be paid to the designated beneficiaries in the event that the insured passes away. Term life insurance plans have a certain number of years before they expire. Permanent life insurance policies are in effect until the insured passes away, the premiums are stopped, or the policy is surrendered.
A life insurance policy is only as good as the firm that issues it in terms of financial stability. If the issuer is unable to pay claims, state guarantee funds may.
Types of life insurance
There are numerous kinds of life insurance plans that can shield your loved ones, and they all fall into one of two groups: term or permanent. You receive coverage for a specific period of time with a term life insurance policy (say, 5 years).
When the term is up, you must either obtain new insurance or go without coverage. If you pass away during that time, money is paid to your beneficiaries.
Permanent life insurance, such as whole life and universal life, offers lifetime protection with a “cash value” component that can help with a variety of goals, such as assisting in the development of your retirement nest egg while also offering protection for life and other financial advantages along the way.
- Life term insurance
A term life insurance policy is what its name suggests: coverage for a predetermined period of time, usually 10 to 30 years. Because there is no cash value to the policy, unlike whole life insurance, it is also referred to as “pure life insurance.” Its primary purpose is to pay out to your beneficiaries in the event that you pass away during the term.
The majority of individual term insurance have level premiums, which means that you pay the same amount each month. When the term expires, there is no longer any coverage; you must either eschew insurance altogether or purchase a new one, which will probably be more expensive given your advancing age.
However, a lot of companies, such as Guardian, will let you change a term policy to permanent life insurance for all or a portion of the coverage time. Rates for term life insurance through your company are normally offered “on achieved age,” which means they will rise over time.
- Whole life insurance
The simplest type of permanent life insurance, whole life offers coverage for your entire life. It has a monetary value element, just like other permanent policies: You put some of your premium money into a cash value account, where it grows over time tax-deferred so that you don’t have to pay taxes on the profits.
A whole life policy differs from other types of permanent coverage in three key ways:
- The level premium is fixed for life.
- If the guaranteed premiums are paid, the death benefit is ensured.
- In the policy, there are guaranteed cash values that increase at a set rate.
You can benefit significantly from cash value in various ways while you’re still alive. It takes a while for it to grow to a sizeable sum, but once it does, you can borrow money against it, use it to supplement your insurance payments, or even exchange it for cash to supplement your retirement income.
See: How to Get an Affordable Life Insurance?
- Universal life insurance
Another type of permanent insurance that offers whole life’s lifetime coverage and cash value is a universal life policy. However, there is a key distinction from whole life: the premiums are variable. With a universal policy, you are free to alter the premium you pay as you see fit, as long as you stay within the policy’s parameters.
If you pay less now, you might potentially have to pay more in future years in order to maintain your coverage. While offering the same level of cash value growth as whole life insurance, this form of policy can adapt to your own circumstances.
How life insurance work
A death benefit and a premium are the two primary parts of a life insurance policy. These are the two parts of term life insurance, however whole or permanent life insurance policies also include a cash value element.
- Death benefit
The amount of money the insurance company promises to the beneficiaries named in the policy when the insured dies is known as the death benefit or face value. Examples of the insured and beneficiaries include parents and their children. Based on the anticipated future needs of the beneficiaries, the insured will select the desired death benefit amount. Based on its underwriting standards for age, health, and any dangerous activities the proposed insured engages in, the insurance company will decide if there is an insurable interest and whether the proposed insured is eligible for the coverage.
- Premium
The cash the policyholder spends on insurance is known as a premium. If the policyholder pays the required premiums, the insurer is obligated to pay the death benefit when the insured passes away. Premiums are based in part on the likelihood that the insurer will be obligated to pay the death benefit under the policy given the insured’s life expectancy.
The insured’s age, gender, medical history, work dangers, and high-risk hobbies are all factors that can affect how long they live. The operating costs of the insurance business are also covered in part by the premium. Insurance with greater death benefits, people who are more at risk, and permanent policies with cash value accumulation all have higher premiums.
- Cash value
Permanent life insurance’s cash value serves two functions. It functions as a savings account that the policyholder can use for the duration of the insured person’s life; the money grows tax-deferred. Depending on how the money will be utilised, some policies may contain limitations on withdrawals.
For instance, the policyholder might borrow money using the policy’s cash value and be required to pay interest on the loan’s initial amount. The cash value can also be used by the policyholder to pay premiums or buy more insurance. A living benefit that remains with the insurance company after the insured passes away is the monetary value. The death benefit of the policy will be lessened by any unpaid loans against the cash value.
Benefits of life insurance
- Pay-outs are free of taxes. Because they are not seen as income by the beneficiaries, death benefits are paid as a lump sum and are not taxed by the federal government.
- Dependents are not responsible for their own living expenditures. In order to avoid forcing the surviving spouse or children to take out loans to pay off large obligations like mortgages and college tuition, the majority of policy calculators advise setting aside a multiple of your gross income equivalent to seven to ten years.
- Final costs can be paid for. Funeral costs can be high, but they can be avoided by purchasing a burial policy or a regular term or permanent life insurance policy.
- Retirement funds can be supplemented by policies. Whole, universal, and variable permanent life insurance plans, among others, can provide cash value in addition to death benefits.
Conclusion
The purpose of life insurance is to assist safeguard the financial future of your family. Even if you have money, it’s unlikely that they would be sufficient to support your family for a number of years.
Your monthly budget probably includes housing, food, utilities, clothing, automobile maintenance, and health insurance payments; even without your income, your family would still need to pay for these costs. The money your family might need to cover these costs can be provided through the death benefit from a life insurance policy.
Any debt you leave behind, including credit card debt, company debt, personal and/or school loans, and mortgage debt, may be covered by life insurance. Life insurance can assist lessen some of the financial obligations your loved ones may feel after your departure, at a time when they are already coping with your loss.
If you have kids, life insurance can assist your family with future child care and education costs, particularly for college.
