When buying life insurance its vital you get the right policy for your needs. With a plethora of web sites offering discount life insurance, it’s often easy to end up with a policy that is not suited to your unique needs and circumstances.
Many people need clarification regarding the various types of life insurance, and which is best for them.
Term Life Insurance:
Term life policies cover you a predefined term.
Term life insurance only offers protection for the duration of the mortgage, and is normally of no value when your mortgage is paid off.
However, term insurance is cheap, and the cost can even reduce over time. There are five main forms of term life insurance, and these are as follows:
* The first is known as level term cover, and it’s the most common type. With this form of policy the premium costs are locked in for as long as you hold the policy. In other words, you will pay the same amount throughout the entire term of the policy.Unfortunately, it means that as time goes by you could end up paying more for your life cover. However, the nice thing is that you get the benefit of paying at today’s rates. However, bear in mind that over time these rates could fall instead of rise.
* The second type is known as escalating term cover. This type of policy can be become expensive in later years, as you generally pay an increasing amount as the policy ages. However, there is an advantage, in that the payout at death also increases. This type of life policy is normally more suited to younger people.
* Next, we have decreasing term insurance, and in this type of policy monthly payments stay the same, although the amount of cover reduces each year.
* The forth type of term life policy is known as increasing term insurance. With this type of term life insurance the benefit on death increases. However, in order to make up for this increase you will need to increase your premiums at certain times, for example on the birth of a child, or as your financial circumstances improve.
* The fifth and final type is known as convertible term insurance. It is a type of term life insurance that you can convert at a later stage into an investment vehicle. The value of the investment is normally based on your health when you originally took out the policy.
Whole of Life Insurance & it’s Advantages:
Whole of life insurance covers you right up until the time of your death, providing that you keep paying your premiums. It can give a considerable lump sum to your family when you die, and it normally accumulates in value over the years.
Whole of life policies can be more expensive and more complicated than term life insurance. Also, the investment you make can earn some interest each year. Therefore, since your investment generally grows each year, your premiums can actually reduce over time. You may also reach a time where the interest gained covers all the future premiums, which means you may have no more premiums to pay.
However, it’s important to understand that it is possible the cash-in-value of a whole of life policy may actually be less than the amount put into the policy over it’s full term.
Summary:
The decision of whether to buy a term life policy, or whole of life cover comes down to your own unique needs, and circumstances, and what you wish to achieve.
The simplest form of life insurance is a level term policy with renewable option. This allows you to buy life cover for as long as you may require it.
However, you may prefer a policy that offers a growing nest egg, that pays out while you are still around to enjoy it!
Both types have their advantages and disadvantages, and careful consideration and advice from a competent insurance adviser is vitally important.
Michael Pettigrew writes for numerous insurance sites including Best Insurance Quotes, a provider of quality low cost life insurance. Visit Best Insurance Quotes for a better life insurance quote
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