4 Life Insurance Types of Coverage, Advantages, Disadvantages, and Explained Finance Essay; This insurance is one of the most popular types of insurance that people purchase. Life insurance is insurance that you purchase and will pay money to your beneficiaries if you die. One of the main reasons why people purchase life insurance is to protect their families financially. Life insurance will help pay for burial costs, debt, mortgages, and any other income losses that will occur if someone dies. Life insurance pays for just like automotive insurance is. It can pay by a monthly, quarterly, or annual premium for as long as the policy goes for. There are several different types of life insurance coverage policies that people can purchase that will best suit their needs.
Here is the article to explain, 4 Types of Life Insurance Coverage, Advantages, Disadvantages, and Explained Finance Essay;
The main types are term life insurance, whole life insurance, variable life insurance, and universal life insurance. In this research paper, I will explain the advantages, disadvantages, time lengths, and how each of the types of life insurance coverage fits different people. It is very important to understand how these insurance companies calculate premiums for different people. Their main goal is to assess the risk of someone dying during the policy. Just like other types of insurance, the more risk you have, the higher your premium will be. Some of the factors that use to determine premiums are gender, age, occupation, height, weight, medical history, lifestyle, and if you smoke.
Recently I had to do a project in class where you had to find different premiums on life insurance. Some other things that I was asked were if I recently had any DUIs if any relatives have died before the age of 60, if I have recently been hospitalized, and if any diseases run in my family. All of these factors do give the insurance companies a better understanding of someone’s risk, but it is nearly impossible to be able to determine the chances of someone passing away. It is also difficult to estimate the cost of each of the 4 different types of life insurance because it is different for every individual.
Term life insurance;
Term life insurance is very affordable, and that is why it is growing in popularity. It is a life insurance policy that covers a person if they die during the length of their insurance. Term life insurance policies can be anywhere from 1 to 30 years. These policies know as “temporary” because once the policies are over, you are no longer covered. For example, if you purchase a 10-year term life insurance policy, and you die the year after your policy expires, your beneficiaries won’t receive any money. This also means that if you stop paying your premiums, you will no longer cover.
There are many different reasons how people decided on how long they want their life insurance policy to cover their family. A lot of people that purchase term life insurance decide to make their contract until they retire. Another popular way people decide on their term is to remain covered until their children have turned 18. This is a very smart way to ensure that your children will be financially protected until they are adults. Another good reason to purchase term life insurance is if you involve in risky or potentially fatal activities. Even though these factors will increase your premium, it is still worth it in case something terrible happens. The cost of term life insurance all depends on a person’s risk and the length of the policy.
Types of Term Insurance;
There are several different types of term life insurance coverage, and it is important to know the differences when selecting the best type. Annual renewable term life insurance means that each year a person may renew their term life insurance. However, each year you renew your term life insurance, the premium will go up in cost because of your age. Renewable term life insurance means that after your specific term is up; you allow signing a new term life insurance contract. Level premium term insurance means that your premium will not change throughout the length of the contract. This type of term insurance is good because as you get older, you don’t have to pay more money for your life insurance.
Convertible term insurance means that you allow converting your term insurance into another type of life insurance, like universal or whole life. There are advantages and disadvantages to term life insurance. Some advantages are that you get to choose how long you want to cover for; most policies can change or renew to other policies, and your beneficiaries pay a specific amount upon your death; which decides when you start your policy. Some disadvantages are that if you pass away after your term life insurance policy, no benefits give to your family; and it doesn’t offer as much protection as other life insurance policies offer.
Whole Life Insurance;
Whole life insurance is exactly what it sounds like, a life insurance policy that lasts for someone’s whole life. Upon death, the beneficiary receives the value of the account. Whole life insurance is also known as permanent life insurance. The main difference between whole life and term life is that whole life insurance grows in value over time. Whole life insurance is similar to a retirement account where you are putting money toward the future, except in this case it is toward your death. An interesting fact about whole life insurance is that you can borrow money out of your account, which you cannot do with term insurance. To be able to borrow money out of your account, there must be a set minimum of money already invested into the account.
Most whole life insurance policies mature when a person turns 100 years old, so if that person is still alive they will receive the face value of their account. The main reason why people choose whole life insurance over term life insurance is that they want to insure for the rest of their life. For this reason, whole life insurance is more expensive than term insurance. There are several different types of whole life insurance coverage. Non-participating whole life insurance means that you do not receive dividends for your policy. On the other hand, participating in whole life insurance means that you do receive dividends. Level premium whole life insurance is just like level term insurance, where you pay the same premium throughout the length of the policy.
Why are you buy a whole life insurance?
Purchasing a life insurance policy with a fixed premium is a great choice because once you retire; you wouldn’t want your premium to increase every year due to the loss in income. Single premium whole life insurance is a policy where you pay a large sum of money at the begging of your policy; which then eliminates having to pay premiums. This type of policy is not very popular the reason that you would need a lot of money upfront. Intermediate whole life insurance means that your premiums change over time depending on your status. In the past couple of years, a significant amount of people lost their homes because of adjustable mortgages, so I think that this type of whole life insurance is not a good choice.
Some advantages of Whole life insurance are that they usually fixed premiums; the beneficiaries will receive money whenever the policyholder dies; there are tax benefits, and most of the money will return if the policy cancels. The money that accumulates in your policy is tax-free; which attracts a lot of people to purchase a whole life insurance policy over a term life insurance policy. Some disadvantages of whole life insurance are that it costly compare to term insurance; and, it is much more complicated than term life insurance. If you are interested in purchasing a whole life insurance policy; it is important to know which type it is so you know you will be able to afford it for the rest of your life.
Universal Life Insurance;
Universal life insurance is very similar to whole life insurance. A universal life insurance policy will cover someone for their whole life; so it also considers a permanent life insurance policy. Universal life insurance policies also grow in cash over time, which tax-defer. The interest rates increase and decrease like the money market; so there is a chance to make a lot of money in this type of life insurance. The main advantage that universal life insurance has over whole life insurance is that there is more flexibility in the policy. The cash value and the death benefits parts of your policy broke up; so a person can decide how much of their money will go in each part. The policyholder can also increase and decrease their premium depending on their situation.
However, the insurance companies do have a target premium, so if you pay less than it, you may penalize. This type of life insurance policy would be best for someone who wanted to cover for the rest of their life and would want to be able to adjust their policy to suit their needs. Advantages of Universal life insurance are it is the most flexible, you can take out loans, you can adjust your premiums due to your situation, and the cash you earn in interest can use toward your payments. Some disadvantages are that your cash value isn’t guaranteed like it is with whole life insurance; and, it is more costly than term and universal life insurance policies.
Variable Life Insurance;
Variable life insurance is also considered a permanent type of life insurance. It is considered a “pure investment policy” because the insured has completed control of how their money is invested. They can decide to invest their cash account into bonds, stocks, or any other money market funds. For this reason, variable life insurance is the riskiest out of all the types of life insurance coverage. If a person makes poor investment choices, they risk losing a substantial amount of their money. On the other hand, if good investments make, the policyholder can receive a significant profit. Due to the risk of this type of life insurance, it is the most expensive one. This type of life insurance policy is only a good choice for people that understand the money market and will remain active in watching their investments.
Benefits Advantages Drawbacks Disadvantages of Life Insurance Types of Coverage;
Life insurance offers several advantages not available from any other financial instrument, yet it also has disadvantages.
Benefits or Advantages of Life Insurance;
- Life insurance provides an infusion of cash for dealing with the adverse financial consequences of the insured’s death.
- Life insurance enjoys favorable tax treatment, unlike any other financial instrument. Policy loans are income tax-free.
- A life insurance policy may exchange for another life insurance policy (or for an annuity) without incurring current taxation.
- Many life insurance policies are exceptionally flexible in terms of adjusting to the policyholder’s needs. The death benefit may decrease at any time and the premiums may easily reduce, skip, or increase.
- A cash value life insurance policy may be thought of as a tax-favored repository of easily accessible funds if the need arises; yet, the assets backing these funds are generally held in longer-term investments, thereby earning a higher return.
Drawbacks or Disadvantages of Life Insurance;
- Policyholders forego some current expenditure to pay policy premiums. Moreover, life insurance typically purchase for the benefit of others and usually only indirectly for the insured person.
- Cash surrender values are usually less than the premiums paid in the first several policy years and sometimes a policy owner may not recover the premiums paid if the policy surrender.
- The life insurance purchase decision and the positioning of the life insurance can be complex especially; if the insurance is for estate planning, business situations, or complex family situations.
- The life insurance acquisition process can be annoying and perplexing (e.g. Is the life insurance agent trustworthy? Is this the right product and carrier? How can medical underwriting streamlined?).
References; Types of Life Insurance: Advantages and Disadvantages. Retrieved from https://www.ukessays.com/essays/business/life-insurance-will-pay-money-to-your-beneficiaries-if-you-die-business-essay.php?vref=1, and https://www.gatewayfinancial.biz/private-clients/advantages-disadvantages-of-life-insurance/
