Many Americans express that they don’t bother getting life insurance because it’s too complicated to understand all the options. This information is intended to provide a general understanding of the two categories of life insurance products. For more detailed product information, it is recommended that you contact one of our licensed life insurance agents.
With that said, there are two major categories of life insurance—term and permanent. There are subcategories within both types, but for the sake of this overview, we will focus on the major categories.
Term Life Insurance
Term life is insurance that covers you for a specific “term” (period of time). It is the simplest form of life insurance. It pays a death benefit only if death occurs during the term of the policy, which can be up to 40 years. Most term policies have no other benefit provisions.
These are the key benefits of term life insurance:
- Level premium, meaning your rate doesn’t increase as you age with the policy.
- Level death benefit, meaning that the death benefit stays the same throughout the duration of the policy.
- Affordable premiums, meaning premiums for term life insurance are typically lower than permanent life insurance policies.
Permanent Life Insurance
Permanent life is insurance that can cover you for your entire life. It pays a death benefit whenever you die—even if you live to 100 or beyond! The policy remains in force, as long as premiums are being paid.
These are the key benefits of permanent life insurance:
- Permanent death benefit, meaning the policy provides protection for as long as the insured lives
- Builds cash value, meaning the policy accrues cash value that can be paid out to the policyholder in addition to the policy’s death benefit. These types of policies are desirable because they act as a “tax-deferred” savings plan for the insured.
- Flexibility, meaning that there are different types of permanent policies that provide the flexibility to adjust the policy as your needs change while insured.
If you would like more detailed information regarding the different types of policies, you can click here to request a consultation with a licensed life insurance agent.
We are HMA Insurance, and we believe in being there for people in their time of need. We accomplish this through insurance products that help us provide the financial protection our clients need and deserve.