Life insurance can be an intimidating topic to approach, especially for those who aren’t experienced with it yet. The fact that considering a life insurance policy inherently means contemplating your own mortality probably doesn’t send new potential customers racing to get quotes, either. Still, life insurance is the best way to protect your dependents financially in case the worst should come to pass, and it’s a good idea to get a policy from a life insurance company sooner rather than later.
If you’re concerned about average life insurance premiums, it’s hard to pin down numbers for each type of policy. So many factors are at play, such as the type of policy you want, the amount of coverage you need, the length of your policy, and even your age and health at the time of applying. Fortunately, there are online aggregates that can provide you with life insurance quotes from the most trusted insurance companies, and the more accurate information you can give them, the more accurate your quotes will be.
All life insurance policies will guarantee a death benefit to your beneficiaries should the worst happen, and some provide additional benefits as well. Here are some of the most popular types of life insurance, so you can decide what kind of plan you need before you go searching for quotes.
Term Life Insurance
Term life guarantees a death benefit for the insured with no additional benefits. The primary advantage of a term life insurance policy is that it has lower premiums than most forms of life insurance. A notable exception would be burial insurance, which is meant to specifically cover funeral costs.
While no medical exam insurance policies do exist, most people will find term life insurance more affordable than other options, regardless of age or health. Term life can also be upgraded to a permanent life insurance plan later, so they’re excellent starter plans for younger people without much financial security. These plans are also great for families who just need temporary coverage while they work toward their big financial goals, such as covering college tuition.
As the name suggests, term life will only provide a death benefit for an agreed-upon length of time. Term length is usually set in increments of 10 years, but you may be able to find plans that renew annually in exchange for a higher premium.
Whole Life Insurance
Whole life is one of the most popular permanent life insurance policies, and it provides a cash value savings component in addition to the death benefit and entire life coverage. You can speed up the rate at which you accrue cash value by paying your monthly premiums ahead of time. You can also use your cash value however you see fit. For example, you could borrow against it to help you afford a mortgage payment, or you could even make withdrawals from it. Just be aware that making too much of a withdrawal can eat into your death benefit, and any money borrowed from it must be paid back with interest.
Universal Life Insurance
A universal life policy is a form of permanent insurance that provides lower premiums, similar to term life. Variable universal life insurance is a great example of this type of insurance policy. These policies build cash value through an investing component with subaccounts that act similarly to mutual funds. With these policies, the cash value you build can be affected by market changes, both good and bad. A variable policy gives you the highest earning potential through these investments, but market volatility also makes it the riskiest type of permanent policy.
Life insurance is your best way of achieving peace of mind, knowing that you’re protecting your family members and dependents. Reach out to a quote aggregate today to see what you’ll need to get a policy that fits your life insurance needs.