HOW
LIFE INSURANCE POLICIES PAY OFF
In
the level-premium policies, one pays more than the current price
of insurance in the initial years but the amount decreases in
the later years. The company used to collect more premium than
what was required to meet death claims during the early policy
years. Consequently, a reserve fund accumulates to one's credit.
The policyholder can borrow against his pro rata share of the
reserve fund; or if he wishes, he can surrender the policy and
collect it as cash value. Collecting more funds than are needed
in the earlier years of life creates definite obligations on the
part of the company to its policyholders. These obligations are
called "policyholders' reserves" or "legal reserves" and are carefully
supervised by the state, for the company's solvency depends on
the ownership of assets equal to these reserves. The reserves
are separate from profits and are not available for distribution
as dividends.
When
basic premium rates are set, few charges must be added to cover
the cost of running the insurance company. This charge is known
as the "loading". Efficient companies hold expenses low. Thus,
the premium charged to you for life insurance depends on three
factors:
(a)
The real cost of insurance based on mortality experience,
(b)
The return earned on the reserves accumulated under level premium
policies,
(c)
The costs of running the insurance company.
Premiums
do vary from company to company. When comparing rates, use the interest-adjusted
index of comparing the costs of similar policies. It enables the
consumer to measure value in an industry whose product is multifaceted,
which lacks uniform federal regulation, and over which 50 states
exercise varying degrees of supervision.
PAYMENT
OF PREMIUMS
It
is preferable, if possible, to pay premiums on an annual basis.
However, arrangements can usually be made to pay semiannually,
quarterly, or even monthly. In the last two cases, the company
does not require the total premium early. Besides, making premium
payments each year than a single premium payment, increases the
cost of sending out notices and keeping records, so that it may
cost you 8 to 10 percent extra to avail yourself of the privilege
of making partial payments. Of course, the average person is paid
weekly or monthly; and it is quite difficult to pay a large insurance
premium at one time, as it is to pay a large real estate or income
tax bill. One way to move out of the difficulty is to buy a number
of smaller policies, instead of a larger one, and having each
payable in a different month, provided, of course, that you stay
with ordinary insurance and do not resort to industrial insurance.
Each of the smaller policies can be paid on an annual basis, with
staggered due dates, thus achieving the economies of annual payment
for the policyholder. Only one policyholder in five pays annually
- reaping savings that many others could achieve by doing some
financial planning.
WHAT
HAPPENS IF YOU CAN'T PAY YOUR PREMIUMS?
In
a permanent policy, where a cash value has been built up, you
don't usually lose the policy. The non-forfeiture provisions come
into play. If you are temporarily unable to pay your premiums,
you can borrow against the cash value of your policy and thus
continue payments through the loan. If it looks as though you
will be unable to resume payments, or if you become 65 and you
don't want to continue to pay premiums, you can choose one of
the various non-forfeiture options. Every type of permanent policy,
of which the whole or straight life type is the most popular,
has built-in "non-forfeiture values". There are three kinds of
non-forfeiture or guaranteed values:
Cash
Value
You
will get this money if you give up your permanent life insurance
policy. The cash value is your share of this accumulation. It
will be paid to you as guaranteed in the insurance contract and
as required by law. It may be taken as a lump sum or in a series
of regular payments over a period of years, providing it amounts
to $1,000 or more.
You
can borrow against your cash value at any time; if you die before
repaying the loan, the payments made to your beneficiaries will
be reduced by the amount of the loan. In case of an emergency,
the loan proviso of your policy can be used to secure money or
to pay premiums due.
Reduced
Paid-up Life Insurance
This
is non-forfeiture or guaranteed value that you can use if you
want to keep some protection but are not in a position to or do
not wish to pay any more premiums. The amount of your insurance
will be reduced. For instance, if you buy a $1,000 policy at age
20, and then at age 65, you are unable to continue paying premiums
because of illness, you could arrange to have $857 of paid-up
insurance as long as you lived without any further payments of
premiums. That is, if you have a permanent life policy, the paid-up
insurance will protect you without further premium payments.
External
Term Insurance
Assume
that you are not able to pay premiums on your policy but want to
continue the protection as long as possible. Extended term insurance
gives you continuous protection for the full value of your policy
for a limited length of time. The time is determined by the buying
capacity of the net cash value when it is used alone to buy the
extended term protection at your attained age.
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