When buying life insurance its vital you get the right policy for your needs. With a plethora of web sites offering discount life insurance, it’s often easy to end up with a policy that is not suited to your unique needs and circumstances.
One of the questions that arise time and again is whether a term life policy or a whole of life policy is best, and what’s the difference between them.
Term Life Insurance & it’s Benefits:
Term life insurance is a bit like leasing a car. You pay cover for a predefined term, and are covered for that term. However, at the end of the term, whether for example its 15 years or 30 years the deal is done and you simply walk away.
Term life insurance only offers protection for the duration of the mortgage, and can be of little value when once your mortgage is paid up.
Term insurance is also cheap, and can even become cheaper over time. There are also a number of different types of term life insurance to choose from as follows:
* The first is level term insurance, and it is the most popular type of cover. This policy has it’s premium costs locked in for the full term of the policy, so you pay the same amount each month for the entire term of the policy.
* The second type is known as escalating term cover. This type of policy can be become expensive in later years, as you generally pay an increasing amount as the policy ages. However, there is an advantage, in that the payout at death also increases. This type of life policy is normally more suited to younger people.
* Next, we have decreasing term insurance, and in this type of policy monthly payments stay the same, although the amount of cover reduces each year.
* The forth type of term life insurance is what’s known as increasing term insurance. Here the lump sum payable at death increases each year. This increase in value of the policy is made up by increasing the premiums periodically over the years.
* Finally, convertible term insurance is a type of term life cover that can be converted into an investment/insurance policy in the future. Normally, the value of such investments will be based on your health, at the time you bought the term insurance policy.
Whole of Life Insurance Policies:
Whole of life insurance covers you right up until the time of your death, providing that you keep paying your premiums. It can give a considerable lump sum to your family when you die, and it normally accumulates in value over the years.
Whole of life policies can be more expensive and more complicated than term life insurance. Also, the investment you make can earn some interest each year. Therefore, since your investment generally grows each year, your premiums can actually reduce over time. You may also reach a time where the interest gained covers all the future premiums, which means you may have no more premiums to pay.
However, it’s important to understand that the final cash-in-value of a whole of life policy may or may not equal the amount of money that has been paid into the policy over it’s full term.
Summary:
The decision of whether to buy a term life policy, or whole of life cover comes down to your own unique needs, and circumstances, and what you wish to achieve.
Term life policies are the simplest and cheapest to set up, and cover you only for as long as you need them.
On the other hand, a whole of life policy might suit you better if you need a policy that grows in value over the years.
Both types of policy have advantages and disadvantages, and that’s why it’s always a good idea to get advice from a competent insurance adviser.
Looking for better life insurance quotes? Best Insurance Quotes help you get low cost life insurance