Whole life insurance is insurance to provide lifetime protection and a guaranteed death benefit.
Many people understand the need for life insurance, in general, but may not understand the different types of life insurance that are available. So, what is whole life insurance, sometimes called “final expense” insurance for people for people over 65, and is this something you need?
First of all, let’s talk about the advantages of whole life insurance. Most importantly, it provides a guaranteed death benefit for your named beneficiaries. In the case of someone over 65, this is typically designed to cover end-of-life expenses. The death benefit does not go down over time or change. Also, an advantage of whole life insurance is that premiums are level – they do not go up over time as most types of insurance do. Lastly, whole life insurance does not expire at a certain time – it is, as the name suggests, designed to cover you for your whole life with a set death benefit amount to your beneficiaries.
When you purchase whole life insurance, you choose the amount of death benefit. This typically ranges from $5,000 to $40,000 or $50,000. Different companies have different price ranges and different rates. So, it is important to compare plans – ideally, through an independent agent that can pull together rates from a variety of companies at different benefit levels so that you can compare in an unbiased way.
The amount of death benefit that is ideal for you depends on your financial situation, existing insurance, and needs. It is a good idea to use a life insurance calculator to see how much life insurance is needed. One such tool can be found here: Life insurance calculator. This can help you get an idea of how much insurance is needed in your situation so that you can adequately prepare and protect your spouse and/or children with a guaranteed benefit.
Whole life insurance is available in most situations, regardless of your health, so that is not usually a prohibiting factor. It is, generally speaking, less expensive if you are in relatively good health, however. So it is wise to compare and choose a whole life insurance plan while you are healthy, as opposed to when you do have significant pre-existing conditions.
Even if you already have some life insurance, it is possible that you could benefit from having a separate policy to cover end-of-life expenses. Often, term life insurance is purchased with the idea in mind of covering larger expenses, such as mortgage or similar debts, or to provide an inheritance to beneficiaries, whereas whole life insurance is typically more targeted on actual end-of-life expenses.
Secure Medicare Solutions offers whole life insurance through 30+ companies that provide these type of plans, and we can help you compare plans to choose a level and rate that you are comfortable with. If you are interested in getting some quotes, you can contact us online at: Whole Life Insurance Quotes or by email.
