Is Term Insurance Right For You!
For some reason I always seem to receive a lot of mail this
time of year on the subject of “Life Insurance”. Most want to
know the benefits or pitfalls of Term Life Insurance over
Permanent Life Insurance.
Term Life Insurance is by far the most cost effective way of
securing a life insurance policy available to the general
public. Term Life Insurance covers a specific period of time -
normally the policy will run for periods of 5, 10, and 20
years. As the age of the insured increases, the cost of the
premium will increase. Premiums are calculated on the mortality
rate, which is usually dependent on the persons age, sex and
whether that person uses tobacco.
This type of policy allows the insured or the owner to pay a
set premium for an agreed period. The Insurance company
provides monetary benefits to the beneficiary in case of death
of the insured during that period. Usually, the benefits
received on the death of the insured is income tax free.
There are four parties in term life insurance: (1) the owner is
the one who pays the premium; (2) the insured is the one on
whose death, a death benefit (face value) will go to the
beneficiary; (3) the beneficiary is one who will receive the
proceeds of insurance on death of the insured; and (4) the
insurer is the company providing the insurance. Depending on
the Insurance company you choose, the premiums can be paid
monthly, quarterly or annually. For example, Fred pays $50
dollars monthly to XYZ Company for insuring the life of
Margaret (his wife) for a period of 10 years. Should Margaret
die during the 10 years of the agreement, XYZ company will pay
$25,000 to Joe (son of Fred and Margaret). Here the insured is
Margaret, the owner of the policy is Fred, the beneficiary is
Joe and the insurer is XYZ Company. If Margaret does not die
during the 10 years, XYZ Company will not be liable to pay any
money to any of the parties involved. Often the owner and the
insured are same. That is, a person buys a policy to cover his
own death and nominates a beneficiary. Husbands and wives
often insure each other in case of death.
What is Term Life Insurance? It is a legal contract with terms
and conditions and assumed risks. Sometimes there can be
special provisions in the agreement like suicide terms, wherein
on suicide of the insured, there is no benefit accrued to the
beneficiary. Term Life Insurance is based on two concepts: (1)
theory of diminishing responsibility and (2) Buy Term and
Invest the Difference (BTID). With Term Life Insurance, the
responsibility or liability of the insuring company reduces as
the policy reaches its maturity. What makes Term Life Insurance
the most cost effective type of insurance available to the
public is that there is no cash value at the end of the period.
Studies have shown that the mortality rate in Term Life
Insurance can be as low as 1%. Hence the concept of BTID.
Rather than going for permanent life insurance (where on the
expiry of the agreed period, the owner will accrue some cash
benefit and there is a savings component in it) it is
considered cheaper to buy term life insurance and take care of
the savings components by investing in other areas.
With the present market giving good returns on investments,
buying a term life insurance is a more attractive option than
permanent life insurance.
Have an opinion or a question you would like me to answer, then
write me! www.CarlHampton.com
About The Author: Carl Hampton is the best selling Author of
“From Credit Despair To Credit Millionaire”
www.CarlHampton.com www.fcdtcm.com
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