Life Insurances Reviews & Info

Joint life insurance policies are life insurance policies that are usually owned by spouses or business partners. There are two basic types of these plans.

The first is a life insurance policy whose terms indicate that it will pay a death benefit when the first person dies. For a childless couple, the advantage to this type of coverage can be that the mortgage gets paid off regardless of which one dies first. There may be need for a second payment from a life insurance company and therefore no need to insure the second death if they have no children.

Sometimes small companies with partners will purchase first to die life insurance coverage. If their business has a mortgage or other debts they may need a lump sum payment to cover that financial obligation if one dies, but will not need a second sum of money when the second one passes away

Premiums are likely to be less with a first-to-die joint life insurance policy. This is when the premiums are compared to the premiums for two separate policies with the same face amount.

The other type of joint life policy pays a death benefit only when the second person dies. These policies are usually purchased by couples for estate planning purposes.

Financial advisors often suggest these types of joint life policies to affluent couples. Since there can be tax advantages to passing money to the next generation via insurance as opposed to other assets, many couples will choose to pass money to their children through a second-to-die policy.

Money and other assets that are left to a spouse will not get reduced by estate taxes the same way that they would when they get passed to the children or grandchildren. This is why there isn’t the same tax payment issue when the first spouse passes away.

Another advantage to a second to die policy is that it can be easier to qualify for. Since the policy terms indicate that it won’t pay until the second party dies, the insurance companies’ underwriting can focus on the health history of the healthier of the two people being underwritten.

A joint life policy isn’t for everyone or every couple. Most of us are not in a financial situation where a financial planner is likely to think that a joint life policy is advantageous for us. These policies are mainly needed by business owners and for the affluent whose financial advisors have recommended estate planning.

Even where a first-to-die policy makes sense many people will choose to purchase separate policies. You may pay a lower premium, with a joint life policy as opposed to having two separate policies.

However, rates for term life insurance coverage is so inexpensive today, it can be a better option for most couples. You can get a quote for term life insurance from this site.

When someone dies, often the family will want to know how to find their life insurance policies. Unfortunately not only will this take some work and you will never know whether or not you have found all of the life insurance policies. Finding these policies takes some detective work.

You’ve probably already brought the usual suspects in for questioning. You’ve talked with those who are close with the person who died. You’ve looked in the safe deposit boxes, desks, filing cabinets and closets.

You may want to contact the place of business of the person who passed away. Many active workers have life insurance coverage as a part of their benefits package. Some retirement packages also include a death benefit, but this is less common.

You should also take a look at the decedent’s bank records or check register. Since life insurance will usually have monthly or annual payment terms, you should be able to find evidence of most or all policies that are current if you look at the last year or 18 months worth of cancelled checks or statements.

(While you are looking at bank statements, look to see if any health or auto insurance policies were paid for recently. If the insured’s paid for coverage that included a term after his or her demise, the estate may be eligible for a refund of unearned premiums from the company.)

There may be other financial records to look at. If the person who died may have paid for a life insurance policy with cash from a mutual fund or other similar investment, be sure to check those records as well. A pension, annuity or 401k might have been a source of funds for a life insurance policy.

There may however, be other policies that pay a death benefit that are active. Some life insurance policies are single premium policies. Some policies are paid up by design. By default other cash value policies stay in force until the cash value is eaten up by the deductions the company makes for the cost of the insurance. (This is what usually happens when a policy is just forgotten about and never cashed in.)

For this reason, you may want to do more detective work. There may be an older policy that won’t be discovered by looking at recent banking transactions. It may pay to look at older bank statements.

You may also want to check with the family tax professional attorney or CPA who handled financial matters for the decedent. They may be aware of policies purchased or may have made recommendations to buy a given life policy.

You can also ask questions of insurance agents the decedent has worked with. Who handled the car or house insurance? Are there any calendars around the house with an agent’s name and contact information on them? The agent who sold the auto insurance to the person who died may have also sold them a term life insurance policy.

Insurance companies are not supposed to give information to you without proper documentation. If you are not the beneficiary and you cannot prove that the insured died, the company may not be willing to share any information with you. They are not legally allowed to inform you about the death benefit or other date regarding other policies.

Now that you have gotten a taste of how hard it is to take care of all the business that needs to be taken care of after a loved one’s death, you may want to make this process easier for the next generation. So that you make things easier for those you love, be sure to make a list of your list your insurance policies in a place that they will be able to find.

Life insurance isn’t the only type of policy to be concerned about. If you are alive but unable to communicate, you will want them to keep your health and disability insurance active so that you can continue to receive the benefits of those policies. Make it easy for your spouse or child to contact your insurance company and find the information regarding your Life Insurance and other policies.

If you are over 50 and in the market for a personal life insurance plan, you have probably heard some of the TV ads targeted at boomers and seniors. Although these guaranteed issue and simplified issue policies can be good for some people, they are not the best way to purchase life insurance for most consumers.

Since these policies are easier to qualify for they also have higher costs. You run the risk of avoiding a slightly more involved application and underwriting process and by doing so get a higher premium month after month. This is not good for your financial health.

These policies tend to be “modified benefit” policies. This means that the policy covers you differently than a standard policy would. Your family would only receive the full death benefit if you live two or three years after your effective date. Other life insurance policies will pay your beneficiary even if you died right.

This means that the coverage provided is not as good. Since the monthly costs for each dollar of death benefit is also higher as well, these policies should be avoided by all who can qualify for an underwritten policy.

If you are over 50, chances are you are not quite as healthy as you were when you were 20 or 30. However, chances are you still qualify for an underwritten personal life insurance policy.

The “regular” life insurance companies still want your business and are willing to offer you reasonable rates for the coverage. You will find that common ailments like hypertension will have an impact on the price that you are charged, but you will probably also find that the rate you are offered is still less than the rate you would be quoted for a guaranteed issue policy.

Whether you are looking for a whole life or term insurance plan, be sure to get personal life insurance quotes on the Internet and/or from a local broker before you buy a “guaranteed issue” life insurance policy. Buying one of these policies isn’t a good financial move for most. Most people who purchase these policies pay too much per month for each $1,000 of face amount (death benefit).

Final expense life insurance is just one way to cover your funeral expenses. A portion of a larger life insurance policy, a prepaid funeral arrangement and other assets from your estate are other options.

Final expense insurance plans tend to be small policies that pay only about enough to cover a burial and funeral services. These policies can pay your chosen beneficiary and can reduce the burden on your family, but often cost more for each dollar of death benefit than other larger policies.

For this reason, it is often best to avoid purchasing separate policies to cover your life insurance needs. The quotes for two separate policies purchased within a short period of time will usually cost more than one policy that has a face amount equal to the sum of the face amounts of the two policies.

You will probably have more expenses to be taken care of at your death besides your burial. You may have other final expenses as well as income that needs to be replaced by a life insurance policy.

(Since insurance premiums go up as we age older permanent policies should be looked at carefully and compared with quotes for new policies before cancelling them.)

Prepaid funeral arrangement plans are popular ways of taking care of your funeral expenses. These arrangements have the disadvantage of being illiquid, but generally offer the advantage of combining the planning of your funeral service and your internment with a contract that will pay for both.

Using other assets from your estate to take care funeral expenses is another option. You have to consider whether your family will have enough assets to use to cover your funeral costs. You will also have to be sure that the money will be available to them in a timely manner.

A Final expense life insurance plan can make things simpler for your family in the aftermath of your death, but there are other options to consider.