Frequently Asked Questions

Since there are so many different types of life insurance, health conditions and different ages there is no single best life insurance company. There are companies that tend to do better per different types of coverage and conditions. We do discuss those on this site.

Final Expense Life Insurance or Burial Insurance plans are small whole-life plans that are designed to cover burial, funeral, cremation or final costs (not long-term care). These plans are generally $50,000 or less coverage and do not require a medical exam, making them fairly easy to pick  up.

Term insurance is designed to last 10,20 or 30 years before the plan ends or becomes considerably more pricey. At this point the coverage is normally canceled. Term insurance offers the most amount of coverage at the lowest possible price since it is designed for premature death. The coverage is popular with families or mortgage holders. Whole life on the other hand is designed to offer coverage for the insured’s entire lifetime with a level premium, but it is  more  pricey.

Guaranteed-Issue Life Insurance is whole life coverage that will be approved regardless of health. All these plans have a waiting period before coverage would pay for a natural-cause death. Normally this period is two years though it may be longer. So if an insured dies within the first two years all premium payments are returned to the beneficiary plus a bonus, normally 10%. These plans are normally more pricing than day-1 full coverage plans since they do involve more risk to the insurance company. ALSO; we have found that many seniors have this type of coverage whereas they could just as easily qualify for day-1 coverage they just did not realize it.     

There is no best type of life insurance. The type that is best for someone depends on preference, circumstances and eligibility.

Normally the first $25,000 is not a problem but for larger amounts it is a factor of what is called insurable interest, or what the insurance underwriter deems appropriate. For larger coverage amounts this is normally a factor of an insured’s earnings. So if a senior earns $100,000/yr and the multiplier is 10X then normal eligibility would be $1M. Know each carrier has a different multiplier. Even low-income seniors however may get larger coverage amounts approved if it makes sense to an underwriter, such as paying off a mortgage. Beyond insurable interest the plan also needs to be affordable. Coverage amounts can range anywhere from $2,000 to $5M+. 

Final Expense/Burial plans are normally appropriate at $50,000 or less. If trying to pay off a mortgage, providing funds for remaining family, or doing more elaborate estate planning than higher coverage amounts may be appropriate.

An independent experienced agent can provide bias-free choices to someone looking for coverage. This can result in lower pricing and better choices. Pricing via an agent would be the exact same as calling an insurance company directly but an independent agent would have more choices than simply one provider.

Yes it is possible to own coverage on parents but parents must consent to the application.

Pricing can vary based on age, health, plan type and coverage amount. Regardless of what is chosen the policy needs to be affordable so that it stays inforce and pays out.

Yes and insured can have more than one plan.

Mortgage Protection is term life insurance designed to pay off a mortgage balance.

Many plans that seniors have will in fact NOT pay out because they are term insurance that will expire prior to death, or are accident-only plans or have increasing premiums that become unaffordable later. This is a good reason to have the policy reviewed by an independent agent.