Rate Comparison for Life Insurance

You cannot buy the right life insurance plan and buy your portfolio unless you take the time to do a life insurance comparison. A majority of people begin to understand that they have a need for some type of life coverage when they get married, have children or buy a home.

While these are the most common life stages that lead to purchasing cover, there are several other scenarios that create a need for even a small final expense plan.

If you want have decided that it now time to begin to set aside money to buy a life policy, you need to consider your current needs along with your future needs and how time will change your burdens and obligations.

You may not be able to predict or project exactly how much coverage will be sufficient, but there are definitely ways to compare policies and plans so that you can find the best option that suits you and still falls within your budget.

Here is a valuable consumer guide that will help you do a thorough life insurance comparison so that you are always a smart consumer. Be sure to use the FREE comparison tool above!

Why is it so important for people to compare premium for individual life?

The life insurance industry, while it is a highly regulated marketplace, is a very competitive one. There are dozens and dozens of different companies that have small and larger product offerings that include life coverage and each of these providers have their own policy features that give them an advantage in the marketplace.

Each provider each sets their own rate as well and decides how the premiums that are collected will be invested into stocks and bonds.

This is why larger companies with more investing experience are able to charge more competitive rates or offer sub-standard policies to applicants who would normally be classified as too much of a risk for a traditional company that has not diversified their investment portfolios to counterbalance.

You want to find a company that has the perfect mix of financial asset holdings so that they are able to keep their rates low and still fulfill their financial obligations.

You also need to do a quote comparison before you shop so that you are able to pinpoint exactly what demographic of insured the company would like to insure.

All companies, no matter the size of that company, will have rates that are specifically set to benefit people in a certain age group or in a specific health class.

A Comparison Between Group Life and Individual Life Products

Now that you understand why you need to compare companies and then premiums, it is time to learn why you still have a need for cover even if you have a group life insurance through your employer.

Group Life

Group life insurance is a product that is employer-sponsored and offered to all full-time benefited employees. The best thing about group life is that your employer pays a portion of your premiums and then you pay the remainder in pre-taxed dollars.

This means that your tax bracket can go down. You cannot be denied for group life, accidental or standard, even if you have pre-existing health conditions.

Individual Life Insurance

Individual life insurance is a product that you buy on your own. Your employer does not own your plan so they do not have the right to cancel benefits at any time.

You can also select any policy from any company and not just limited options from specific carriers with benefit restrictions. Most group life plans only offer up to 3 times your salary as a death benefit.

In most cases, the death benefit of a group plan is just not high enough to provide all of the protection that you need.

Add in the fact that you will not have the cover when you move jobs, retire, or when your employer stops offering it, and you can see why individual coverage would be a must. It is great to have the supplemental plan in the form of group life, but you should not lean on it.

All people who need protection should lean on individual coverage and know that the group life is an added buffer.

Comparing the Type of Individual Products Available

It may feel a bit easier to buy group insurance because you do not have all that many options to research, but the key to finding the right individual plan that will really provide you with the financial protection and peace of mind that you need is to buy your own plan.

Buying your own plan involves comparing a long line of different types of policies with their own special structures as well as qualifications and premiums.

Here are some of the factors you will need to consider when you are doing a thorough comparison:

Choosing Between Term and Permanent Life Insurance

The biggest decision you must make as you start your comparison is deciding if you want a very affordable term insurance policy or a more expensive permanent plan that does not ever expire.

Term insurance is a plan that will only stay valid for the term that you select.

The term itself can range between 1 and 40 years, depending on your age at the time of application, your needs, and ultimately your budget.

Permanent insurance is more expensive because it has an investment component and it also includes premiums for life cover that are projected for the remainder of your life.

Here are some tips to help you decide which type of insurance you need.

When Term Life is the right Life Plan

One of the major benefits that any life agent will highlight when trying to sell you a term life plan is the fact that term life is the most affordable choice for consumers who want a large amount of coverage at a bargain price.

It is affordable to you as a consumer because there is an end in sight and the company is able to assess risk much easier than they can if you have a permanent insurance plan.

Term life is the best choice if you want coverage now but you cannot afford the cost of permanent insurance. It is also a great choice when you only have a temporary need for coverage to pay for things like income replacement, education costs, dependent care, and debt.

If you have a business and you have a buy-sell agreement in place, term insurance can fund that agreement. It is important to keep in mind that it can be difficult to renew your term plan when the term ends if you are nearing retirement and the rates are much higher.

When Permanent Life is the Right Life Plan

Permanent life, which is also known as cash value life, is a policy that has both a pure life feature and then a savings component. The cost can be as much as 10 times higher for permanent insurance than a term plan with the same death benefit.

This is why many people will choose a cash value plan with a lower benefit or a term plan that is convertible so that it can be changed to a permanent plan later in life.

Permanent life plans are best for people in any life stage who know that they will have a need for coverage that will never go away.

Your mortgage may get paid off and your children may grow up, but there will always be a need for retirement income, money for estate taxes, or money to pass down when you want to leave a legacy.

Permanent insurance is also a good choice if you are interested in buying a life insurance that will also have living benefits.

Selecting the Right Death Benefit

Once you select a plan or multiple types of plans, you need to then move on and select a benefit.

You should already have a financial plan in place and a maximum budget for coverage established.

This will help you as you are comparison shopping so that you never go over your limit by choosing a limit you just simply cannot afford at the time.

If you need help selecting the right amount of insurance, there are plenty of free resources you can use online that will help you do all of the calculations yourself.

By using a life needs calculator, you never have to worry about being pressured to buy a sizable plan that you know that you cannot pay for.

Now that you know what to consider before you look at rates, the next step is to compare the cost of insurance plans. If you want to do so without wasting time, you can use an online rate tool that will give you quotes to the best insurers in the industry.

Log in to the quoting tool, enter your personal information, select a plan, and start your personal application. Start your search with our FREE tool below!