Life insurance is one of those necessary evils in our lives. Much like all insurance products, many of us need it, but we want to pay as little as possible.
It’s also a great example of what I call “painless ways to save money.” If you can lower your life insurance premiums, it gives you an opportunity to reduce your monthly expenses without changing the way you live.
So today I’ve pulled together 7 ways you can pay less for life insurance.
1. Reconsider how much life insurance you need
First, take a good hard look at your finances and determine exactly how much life insurance you need. Consider the expenses your spouse or other dependents will be left with if you were to pass away unexpectedly. If you’re trying to cut costs, there’s no reason to buy more coverage than you really need.
Buying too much life insurance can significantly increase your costs. Take a look at these two examples of life insurance quotes:
As you can see, the higher the payout, the higher the premium. The key is to get the amount of life insurance you need, but no more.
2. Reconsider the length of your policy
Second, apply the same principle to the term length of the coverage you purchase. If your mortgage will be paid off in five years, you may not need the same huge payout for a ten-year term. As you can see from the images above, the longer the term the more you pay.
3. Ask about benefit tiers
Third, once you have a number in mind, you may find that you can save money by rounding up. Premium rates for certain levels of coverage often drop when you hit certain thresholds of coverage. Paradoxically, a $500,000 policy may cost less than a $490,000 policy.
4. Get healthier
Fourth, stop smoking and get in shape. When I purchased my term life insurance, I got 3 times the insurance as a friend of mine, but I paid less. He was overweight, and the result was much higher premiums. If you’ve lost weight since you bought life insurance, get new quotes to see if you can save some money.
5. Look for hidden fees
Fifth, as you’re shopping for policies, make sure you check the hidden fees. Some insurers charge extra fees if you pay on a monthly basis rather than yearly. And insurance companies offer add-ons, called riders, that often offer additional coverage you don’t need. Here are a few examples–
- Accidental Death Benefit: If the insured’s death is an accident, the payout is increased (often doubled).
- Waiver of Premium Rider: If the insured becomes disabled, this rider will waive the payment of premiums. This is similar to an insurance policy that pays the mortgage if the homeowner loses his or her job or becomes disabled.
- Disability income rider: With this rider, you’ll receive a certain amount of income should you become disabled.
- Term conversion rider: Want to convert your term insurance policy into a whole or universal life policy? The term conversion rider gives you that option.
- Accelerated death benefit rider: If you become terminally ill, you can collect some of your life insurance proceeds.
Generally, these riders are a lot like the “extras” car dealerships try to sell you. Most people don’t need them, and they aren’t worth the cost.
6. Go with term life insurance
Sixth, stick with term life insurance. There are circumstances when whole or universal life policies are a good option, but for most people most of the time, term life insurance is best. And it’s a lot cheaper. Get a free online quote for term life insurance at Haven Life.
7. Comparison shop
Finally, As with any product, you’ll want to shop around for the best bargain. Thankfully, most insurers make policy quotes available online. You can hop on the web and shop for a policy that suits your needs. As you’re shopping, make sure you’re comparing like policies with like terms. While one company might offer a policy with a lower premium for the same coverage, it may have exclusions that make the policy differ in important ways.
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