Senior Life Insurance Choices

There are many senior life insurance policies available for people looking to buy life insurance after reaching the age of 50 and above. If you have suddenly lost your long time, employer sponsored life insurance, as many of us have, or, you are concerned for your loved ones in the event of your death, you know that you should be preparing for the needs of your beneficiaries after you are gone. If you are like most of us, this can seem like a daunting and maybe even an expensive task. Thankfully, it doesn’t have to be either very difficult, or crushingly expensive. As we all know, people over age fifty have many differing needs, and budgets. You may not be aware of it, but, life insurance companies have a lot of different policies to choose from, that can help you meet those needs and concerns. There are several choices that a policyholder can make when planning for the inevitable time of death, so that their beneficiaries will have peace of mind knowing that they have cash for the burial, and additional funds to help pay living expenses. These policies can ensure that the beneficiaries will have more choices available to them concerning a child’s education, the family lifestyle, and future savings..

Types of Life Insurance

The three most common types of insurance are known as Permanent life insurance, Whole Life and Term. Whole Life is a permanent life insurance, where early payments are invested and grow over time, and you have protection for the rest of your life. They are more expensive than term, but can be more affordable because of the added protection. Also with Whole life, beneficiaries get the entire amount of the benefit of the policy, and usually don’t have to pay taxes on it. You, of course must keep paying the premiums in order to receive the benefit.  Also, with Whole life, you, or your beneficiaries can get some of the premiums back by borrowing against the policy or cashing it in. Having said that, if you are not planning on keeping the policy at least 15 or 20 years, it’s not a good idea to invest the extra money  for that type of policy, because it takes years to build up enough to do you any good.

For senior life insurance needs, Term Life is probably the route to take. Term policies offer fixed rates for a specific number of years, 10 years for example, and at the end of the term, must be renewed. in most cases, policy rates rise along with the age of the insured, but are fixed during the term of the policy. These policies pay the face amount of the policy to your beneficiary, or beneficiaries, and, in most cases are substantially cheaper than Whole life. As I said, it pays a lump sum at the time of death, so long as the death occurs within the policy coverage period and you pay your premiums. There are  numerous Term policies available that will fit almost any need, and, at an affordable price.

 

With Guaranteed Life Insurance, which is offered to those over fifty, the plan is also called a guaranteed acceptance life insurance, which is offered to an age group that has fewer health problems. Guaranteed Life Insurance costs more because of increased risk taken by the insurance company where requirements are minimal, and health concerns of over fifty policyholders are more common than those of other age groups.

No Exam Insurance

No Exam Life Insurance is a high risk life insurance that costs more than the other types, because of health risks. You are guaranteed coverage, if you satisfy the requirements, and do not have to undergo a physical exam or consult a doctor to find out if you have a pre-existing condition that would normally result in a denial of coverage with other types of life insurance. That doesn’t apply with  high risk life insurance. The business of all insurance companies is reduction of risk, and premiums are set accordingly. No Exam Life Insurance is a high risk type of life insurance policy. Age, medical history and life expectancy are some of the risks assumed by an insurance company, and, also affect the price of premiums. Since life expectancy is important in setting premium rates, senior life insurance, and life insurance over 50, is largely determined by this risk factor, more so than other types of life insurance.