Comprehending Your Life Insurance Agent’s Advice

August 15, 2010 | Author: ToddPittenger | Posted in Insurance

Once you have discussed your monetary needs and goals with your agent, he or she will recommend the kind of life insurance policy that will best
suit your purposes. Often, the agent will supply a “policy illustration” that will illustrate how your policy will work. Carefully
study your agent’s proposal and ask for a point-by-point explanation if there are items you don’t comprehend. Because your policy is
a legal document, it is important that you know what it provides.

Here are a number of other questions you should ask:

Does this policy truly meet my needs?

If your agent recommends a term policy, take into account the following:

How long can I keep this policy?
If you want the option to renew the policy for a specific number of years or until a certain age, ask your agent about the provisions of renewal of the contract.When
will my premiums increase? Annually? Or after a longer period of time, such as five or 10 years?

Can I change to a permanent policy?
Some policies let you to alter the policy to permanent insurance without a medical examination, regardless of your physical condition at the time of the conversion.
These policies are known as “convertible term.”

If your agent recommends a permanent policy, consider the following:

Are the premiums within my budget? Be certain you want to spend the money for this kind of long-term policy cover. Can I commit to these premiums over the long term?
Make sure you know the amount you would obtain if you surrender your policy.Keep in mind that permanent insurance is intended to give
protection for your whole life. If you don’t plan to keep the product for many years, consider a different kind of policy. Cashing in a
permanent policy after only a couple of years can be a pricey way to get insurance protection for a short term.

What does my policy illustration show?

An illustration shows policy premiums, death benefits, cash values and information about additional things that can have an effect on your price of obtaining
insurance. Some of the items scheduled in the illustration are used by the insurance company to decrease your costs if its future financial results are favorable. Your
policy may provide for dividends to be paid to you as either cash or paid-up insurance.Or it could provide for
Interest credits that could raise your cash value and death benefit or decrease your premium. These items are not guaranteed. Your costs or benefits could be higher or lower than
those illustrated,
Because they depend on the future financial results of the insurance company. With variable life, your values will depend on the results of the underlying set of
investments.Ask your agent for an
Explanation of the illustration; some figures are guaranteed and some are not. Keep in mind that the insurance company will honor the guaranteed figures regardless of its
future financial experience.
If your policy is a variable life policy, be sure that the interest rate assumed is reasonable for the underlying investment accounts to which you choose to allocate your premiums. For
instance, some
Investment advisors suggest that a higher interest rate assumption may be warrant-Ed if you plan to allocate your premium to a stock account, while a lower rate should be assumed for more conservative
Alternatives.It is important to keep in mind that an illustration is not a legal document. Legal obligations are spelled out in the policy itself.

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