In the world of life insurance, there are plenty of great resources available to both new and experienced buyers alike. There are many websites, e-guides, books, and other resources available. This set of tips contains some of the best advice for helping you buy the right policy for you and your family.
Save money on your policy by cleaning up your bad habits and improving your health. Your policy will be priced based upon your risk class, which is determined by many different health factors. Losing excess weight, quitting smoking and getting your cholesterol in check, will reduce your premiums.
When deciding what term to take for your insurance, take a look at what will need to be done with that money. If your children are newborns, a 25 year term policy will make sure that they are cared for if anything happens to you before they are able to financially take care of themselves. If you have a 30 year mortgage on your home, considering making that your term to protect your home while it’s being paid off.
Disclose any high-risk jobs or hobbies. Your policy will be more expensive but you will be ineligible for coverage in case something happens to you while practicing a dangerous hobby your insurance company was unaware of. It’s thought of as fraud if you withhold this information, and it carries very large legal penalties.
It’s a good idea to review your life insurance policy each year to see if it still meets your needs. If you’ve had any big changes in your life such as a new child or the purchase of a home, you may have to modify your policy to reflect your new situation.
Before purchasing life insurance, you must understand that insurance is for protection purposes only, which does not include investing. Term insurance gives you protection only, with no savings. Whole life and universal policies offer savings, but they are a lot more expensive and you would be better off using the cost savings to invest in something else.
Most life insurance companies require you to take a medical exam before they give you coverage. They look at blood pressure, cholesterol levels, an EKG of your heart rate activity, and many other indicators that reveal the presence of any type of disease or risk factors. You can perform better on the test, even put yourself into a higher rate class, by eating low-fat foods for the two days before your test. Drink extra water to maintain hydration, and avoid alcohol for three to four days ahead of the test. Also, make sure you get plenty of sleep for the week leading up to the exam.
Many life insurance brokers and agents get paid through commission. It is therefore to their benefit to sell you the most expensive package they can with as many riders as possible. Because of this, before agreeing to a specific life insurance policy, you should get a second opinion. Make sure everything included is something that you actually need!
When determining how much life insurance coverage you need, don’t just think about your mortgage payment and regular monthly bills. If you have children, they’ll need financial assistance for college in the future. Although it’s not pleasant, consider worst-case scenarios. Should you unexpectedly die in the near future, how much debt will you leave behind? Make sure your policy covers your outstanding debts, or the money you intended to be used for paying off the mortgage for your spouse may end up being used to pay off your creditors instead. You also want to ensure that your funeral expenses and any estate taxes and legal costs are covered.
Even after you’ve found a policy that you feel you love, you should still make sure to compare multiple policies to see if you can find a better deal on any other life insurance package. You never know; you might find the same package for 20% less per month. That would be a huge difference in the long-term.
Remember that endowment life insurance policies are the policy option you should go with if you want an investment option. These policies will charge you a higher premium and put some of that money into an investment fund. You can select of period 10, 20 or 30 years and then have that investment paid out to your beneficiaries.
If you’re a smoker who was addicted and smoking cigarettes at the time of your life insurance policy, you can actually quit smoking and save money. Most companies will let you reapply for a policy as a non-smoker after a certain amount of time has passed. So there’s some incentive in it if you can quit.
After reading these tips, you can begin to understand what it takes to become a smarter life insurance buyer. There is a lot of information to be had, and you also need to know how to apply it. With this in mind, you can refine your approach to find the policy that works best for your needs.
