10 Facts You Need to Know About Life Insurance

10 Facts You Need to Know About Life Insurance - You’ve all seen the ads on TV for over 50’s life insurance, God knows there are enough of the bloody things. Well, I got to wondering how good they can really be. They say that you don’t need a medical, nor even answer any medical questions. All you’ve got to do is pay a regular premium and you are guaranteed a lump sum when you die. So, where is the catch to this life insurance for this over 50’s? What if you are terminally ill? Could you sign up for a number of these polices, knowing full well your loved ones will get a pay-out in a year or so? If you’ve ever wondered if getting over 50’s life insurance is worth it, or if you’ll get is a pen for your troubles (Have you noticed it’s no longer a Parker pen?), then here are the facts that I’ve discovered about life insurance for the over 50’s.

1. You have to keep up with the payments
The first thing you need to be aware of is that, unlike a normal life insurance policy, life insurance for the over 50’s is not an investment plan. You can’t cash it in, transfer it, or any other such thing. As soon as you stop paying, you lose all your premiums. If you miss just one payment, your money is gone!

2. You are likely to pay in more than you get out
Life insurance policies for the over 50’s differ from company to company, but it is quite likely that will pay more in premiums than your loved ones will receive on your death. The plan that Michael Parkinson promotes is a policy from Axa Sun Life and, with Parky’s life insurance, if you signed up at the age of 50, you would only have to live until you were 75 to have paid in more in premiums than you will get from the pay-out.

3. The premiums and pay-out are based upon your age
The older you are when you sign up for life insurance, the higher the premiums and the lower the pay-out. I wouldn’t have expected anything less really, but I thought I’d check. Different companies have different rules for the maximum age that they will take on a person for new cover as well.

4. Life insurance plans for the over 50’s vary considerable
If you are considering taking out life insurance, then you would be well advised to shop around, because the pay-outs for different providers vary quite considerably. As an example, if you are a non-smoker and you pay £20 a month into cuddly Parky’s plan, your pay-out would be £6,155. If you paid the same amount into a similar policy from National Friendly Society, you would get a pay-out of £1,715 more.

5. Not all plans take inflation into account
Another thing to check before you take this type of life insurance is whether or not the plan takes into account inflation. Five thousand pounds may seem like a reasonable figure today, but will it in thirty years’ time?

6. You have to keep on paying if you live longer than you expected
If you get lucky, and you live for a long time, even though you will have already paid well over what you will receive from the policy, you may still have to keep on paying the premiums if you ever want anyone to see a pay-out.

7. It probably won’t pay for the funeral anyway
The adverts for over 50’s life insurance suggest that the pay-out would pay for a funeral and there would be some left over for your loved ones. That is very unlikely, given that the average cost of a funeral in the UK now stands at nearly £8,000.

8. Anything with free gifts has to be questionable
In my opinion, a financial product that offers a free gist as an incentive for you to sign up has to be questionable. The Axa Sun Life plan comes with £25 of Marks and Sparks vouchers and a TV, camcorder, or a car satellite navigation system, as a gift.  That’s tacky, and it just shows you that they are expecting to make a good profit out of you.

9. Life insurance for the over 50’s works, if you are not in good health
Because life insurance plans for the over 50’s do not require you to answer any questions about your health, if you are not the healthiest chap on the block, they do make sense, but you need to do your sums. If you took out Parky’s insurance plan at the age of 65 and you don’t make it to the age of 68, the plan would make a tidy profit of about £10,000 with monthly premiums of £74.

10. Is life insurance for the over 50’s worth it?
Whether or not life insurance for the over 50’s will be worth it for you, depends on your own personal circumstances. If you think you might be knocking on heaven’s door in under a year, then no, because many policies require a year’s premium before they will pay out. If you are a fit and well you expect to get a birthday card from the Queen, then it’s probably not worth it either, because you will pay in more than you get out. However, let’s not forget that these policies will cover you for the unexpected too. You should do your sums and see if simply saving up your money wouldn’t better, but no one can guarantee how they will live for, so life insurance policies of this type, would give piece of mind in respect of unexpected early death, even if they aren’t the best value for money for many people in the longer term.

10 Things You Need to Look For When You Buy Travel Insurance

10 Things You Need to Look For When You Buy Travel Insurance - So, your bags are packed, the dog’s in the kennels, the cat has been given the neighbours, and you’re on your way to the airport to begin your long awaited annual holiday. But, did you read the small print on your travel insurance? Travel insurance is so cheap these days that most people have it, or they got given travel insurance cover bundled in with a bank account, or a credit card, but very few people ever check what they are actually covered for.  If you have never taken the time to read the small print on your travel insurance, here are ten things that you should be looking for, before you board your flight.

1. Make sure that you will be covered in all your destination countries
Not all policies will over all countries in the world, so make sure that your travel insurance covers you for all the countries that are planning to visit. It’s not just the out of the way countries and war torn regions either; some policies won’t cover you for the USA and Canada.

2. Have you declared any medical conditions?
If you do make a claim on your travel insurance, your insurer had the right to check your medical records, so have you declared everything that you should? It is estimated that 60% of UK travellers have risked invalidating their travel insurance by not declaring pre-existing medical conditions such as high blood pressure and asthma. Just because a condition might not be causing you any problems, that doesn’t mean that you don’t have to declare it on your travel insurance.

3. Check how many consecutive days you are covered for
If you are having an extra-long holiday, it is important to check the number of consecutive days your travel insurance will cover you for. The number of days covered varies by policy and just one day over the limit could invalidate your travel insurance.

4. Check that you are covered for financial failure
Many people travel independently now, so it’s important to make sure that you have insurance that will cover you should your airline, or hotel go into liquidation while you are away.  If you book through a package holiday company then you will be covered for this, but if you booked independently, your travel insurance may not cover this.

5. Make sure that you can afford to pay the excess
Do you know what the excess is on your travel insurance? Make sure that you are comfortable with the amount that you will have to fork out in excess. If you have a family policy, check to see if that excess is for all the people in your party, or whether it is per person.

6. Check you are covered for any activities that you have planned for your holiday
Some travel insurance policies specifically exclude what they call “hazardous activities”. If you do think you might try a little scuba diving, horse riding, or anything else that could cause you injury, then check your insurance first to make sure that you are covered in the event of an accident.

7. Find out what you have to do to protect your belongings
Your travel insurance will so probably stipulate the precautions that you should take to protect your property and, if you don’t follow their guidelines, they won’t pay out if you lose something. Most policies won’t, for example, cover you for lost cash unless it was locked away in a mini-safe in a hotel room, or if you had the cash on your person.

8. Check your limits
Many travel insurance policies will only cover you up to a prescribed limit for each thing that you claim for. Make sure that you know what these limits are, for example, baggage cover, and make sure that what you take with you does not exceed these limits, or increase you cover to account for it.

9. Find out if you are covered for missed flights
Getting a puncture, or getting caught in traffic, on the way to the airport, is everyone’s nightmare scenario and, most basic travel insurance policies do not cover you for missing your flight. Even the policies that do provide you with cover for this eventuality often have strict rules with regard to your proving why you missed your flight.

10. Buy your cover when you book your holiday, not just before you leave
A lot of people don’t buy their travel insurance cover until just before they are due to go away. Buy your travel insurance when you book your holiday and, subject to the terms of the cover, you will be covered in the event that you have to cancel your holiday and you will be able to claim for any loses

6 Ways Life Insurance Can Benefit You

6 Ways Life Insurance Can Benefit You - When you list the financial assets on your balance sheet, you might think immediately of your house, vehicles, retirement funds or financial investments. Another essential element in your financial plan, your life insurance, offers benefits that other assets don’t.

The Added Value of Life Insurance

Beyond the familiar death benefit, permanent life insurance has several valuable advantages that can both expand and protect your financial security. Here are some of the additional opportunities life insurance can offer:

1. Access to Cash. Once it accumulates, your life insurance cash value is accessible through policy loan or withdrawal for family and business opportunities, education funding, retirement income, emergencies, or to pay policy premiums.¹

2. Asset Protection. Life insurance can offer a financial fall-back when needed and offset the impact of estate taxes upon your death. The death benefit also can provide surviving family members with funds they need to live comfortably and help achieve their goals.

3. Consistent, Safe Accumulation. Permanent life insurance cash values are guaranteed, meaning you will always have access to the assets you accumulate.

4. Flexibility with Less Restriction. You can access your accumulated cash value without restrictions that exist on other assets. For example, there are no penalties or required minimum distributions, unlike other tax-favored investments such as IRAs and 401(k) plans.

5. Long-term Financial Security for You and Your Family. Once you have built cash value over decades, you have multiple options for accessing those funds. You can cash in the policy, convert it to an annuity for guaranteed lifetime income, keep a portion of the death benefit and access some of the cash value, or continue the policy to protect your family and leave a legacy.

6. Protected Insurability. As long as premiums are paid, permanent life insurance provides coverage throughout your life, even if health or personal situations change. And buying a policy at a young age locks in insurability.

With so many unique benefits, permanent life insurance can be a strong addition to your balance sheet and the foundation for your financial security.