A life insurance policy with you as the insured person might just be the best gift your family ever received.  Hopefully, if it’s a term policy, it’s a gift that will never be used.  Quite unlike the tie you will never wear, this will be a gift everybody will be glad it wasn’t used,

Okay, so I’m being a bit facetious here.  I, myself, would never give this gift to my family for Christmas (and I’m in the business), but if you have a family, this should be the gift you purchase (without putting it under the tree before you buy all the toys that will be forgotten in a few months or the clothes that won’t fit your kids within a year or the blender you thought, for sure, your wife would really love as a Christmas present.

Making sure your family, upon your death. would be able to maintain the lifestyle you have provided for them for many years to come, might just be the most selfless Christmas gift you can buy.

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Have you ever considered what your free time’s worth?  I usually do when my wife wants me to drive a long way to go to some store that’s having an “amazing sale.”  After driving an hour out of my way and waiting in line for a half hour, I usually conclude that, when I factor in the cost of my free time, the savings were hardly worth it.

I consider that what I normally earn in an hour is also the cost of my idle time.  If I am worth $25 or $50 or a thousand dollars an hour (I wish) at work, that’s what my free time is worth to me.   Unfortunately, my wife disagrees with this concept and usually wins the argument and so, off to sales we go.

However, if you don’t take my wife’s side of this argument and do agree with me, I have some advice for you when it comes to shopping for a new life insurance policy.  You can save a lot of time (and money, per my theory) if you follow this advice – find a website that provides life insurance quotes from multiple insurance companies.  Also, make sure the website doesn’t ask for your contact information prior to showing you quotes.  More on that later.

Don’t be fooled by the websites offering life insurance quotes that are nothing more than lead generation sites for life insurance agents and brokers.  What happens on these sites is you fill in your information and several choices pop up.  However, most of what’s being displayed are other life insurance websites.  So you’ve just spent this time on this site only to be directed to other sites.  When you click over to these sites, you will be asked to fill in your information again in order to get quotes.  Not only did you just waste your (valuable) time, but now multiple web sites have your personal information.  Aside from the value of your time we’re discussing here, do you really want your information spread over multiple websites?

Another similar type of lead generation website is one in which they gather your information, don’t show you quotes, but rather sell your information to multiple brokers and agents who will call you and try to sell you a policy.  How much of your precious time will be spent speaking to (or avoiding) these phone calls and emails?

I shop on the Internet for the convenience and, contrary to my wife’s opinion, I value what my time is worth.  I do most of my shopping online because it is fast and relatively simple and I can find and purchase what I want in a short period of time.  If I want to buy a new computer, for example, I don’t want to go to a computer website that will recommend me to other sites (Amazon.com is an exception to this because, even though I might be purchasing from a vendor that isn’t Amazon, they process and guarantee the transaction).  I want to go to a site that shows me all the computers within my price range with the features I am looking for.  Once I find one, I can read up on it and make my purchase on the spot.   This way, I save not only on the price but, if you factor the value of my time into it, the savings are even greater.

There are several excellent life insurance websites that will show you quotes from life insurance companies without needing your contact information.  You can then apply for the policy without having to go to one or more additional websites. The price of the policy will be the same no matter who you purchase from but, with this type of website, you will be saving a significant amount of time.

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In this profession, it’s not difficult to get into the daily minutiae involved in selling life insurance policies – from completing a mind-numbing amount of paperwork to working with sometimes-stubborn underwriters, etc.  On some days, one can get so wrapped up in these details that one can lose sight of why we do it.

Speaking to my client’s recently-deceased wife and helping her navigate through the claims process, I remembered (again) why I sell life insurance.  Sure, I earn a good living and I get to speak with a lot of interesting people from all over the country.  However, it is knowing that I am helping my clients to financially protect their families’ futures that makes this a great a great occupation.

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• Policy – The written statement of the agreement between insurer and insured (or policy owner, if other than the insured), including all endorsements and attached papers, which constitutes the entire contract of insurance.  See contract and insurance policy.

• Death Benefit – In life insurance, the face amount, as stated in the policy, to be paid upon proof of death of the insured.

• Beneficiary – The person (or entity) to whom the proceeds of a life insurance policy are payable when the insured dies.  There are various types of beneficiaries (see primary, contingent or secondary and tertiary beneficiaries).

• Term life insurance – life insurance issued for a term of years, normally building up no cash value and expiring without value.  Typical term periods are 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 years.

• Permanent life insurance – A term loosely applied to cash value life insurance.  This type of policy is meant to last a whole life, as opposed to term, which is in force for a specified period of time or term.

• Whole life insurance – A plan of insurance offering protection for the whole of life, proceeds being payable at death.  Premiums may be paid under a continuous premium arrangement or on a limited payment basis for virtually any desired period of years.

• Cash Value - In a life insurance policy, the amount available to the owner when a policy is surrendered to the company.  During the early policy years, the cash value is the reserve less a surrender charge.  in the later policy years, the cash surrender value usually equals or closely approximates the reserve value.

• Underwriting - The process of selecting risks and classifying them according to their degrees of insurability so that the appropriate rates may be assigned.  The process includes rejection of risks.

I pulled these few out of the Glossary, as I thought these would be a good place to start.  Visit the glossary when you get a chance and look up the definitions for any of the words that might have tripped you up previously.

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We always recommend selecting the least expensive quote from an A-Rated (or higher) life insurance company.   All term life insurance policies are quite similar, so the benefits are all going to be basically the same.   Term insurance is very simple – you pay your (level) premiums for a specified period of time (the term) and if you should die during that time period, your beneficiaries will receive the death benefit of the policy.  One rarely compares the features of a term policy, so it always boils down to price and company rating.

I often speak to people who like to choose a company they have heard of.  I can’t fault someone for having that consideration.  If having the name of a company you are familiar with printed on your policy makes you feel  more comfortable, I totally understand.  However, if the premium is significantly higher than the same policy from another company, especially one that has higher financial rankings, I will point that out to my clients.   As we don’t work with any companies with a lower A.M. Best rating of A, you really can’t go wrong with any of the companies we represent.

What do I mean by a highly-rated company?  There are basically five independent ratings agencies that rate companies’ financial strength – AM. Best, Standard and Poors (S&P), Moodys, Fitch and Weiss.  A Comdex score is a percentile assigned to the company, based on how they rate with the other companies.  A Comdex score of 95, for example, means that it ranks better than 95% of the other companies in its category.

On QuoteClix.com, you will find the ratings for all the companies we represent.  When you look at your quotes, the A.M. Best score is shown on the main quotes page.  If you want to look at how the other ratings agencies rate a specific company, just click the logo of the company you are inquiring about.  A company information page, complete with company ratings will pop up.

Some people believe that a company rated higher than others will automatically be priced higher than a lower rated company.  This isn’t necessarily true and you will sometimes find a company with the best ratings having the lowest premium.  When that happens, and it’s a company name your know, it makes the decision a no-brainer.

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I bluntly asked him, “if your wife were to pass away, what would it cost to replace her “services?”  After looking at me with a “I can’t believe you asked that question look”, they started looking at how much it would cost to get a full-time child-care provider, a housekeeper (who cooks), a driver to drive the children to school (when they started) and doctor appointments, etc., etc.  I told them the replacement cost of the average contribution a wife makes at home is worth about $45,000 a year (based on a recent survey done by Penn Mutual Insurance Company).

Was that amount worth protecting for them?  After looking at that number, they decided to purchase a 20 year term life insurance policy with a death benefit of $500,000.  As she was young (27) and healthy, that policy would only cost them about $19 a month.   Where else can you purchase peace of mind for less than $20 a month?

Stay at home moms – if you would like to see life insurance quotes for you, click the Start Your Instant Quote button now.

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For example, a healthy 25 year old, non-smoking  male will pay as low as $360 annually for a 30 year level-term policy from an A-rated company.  He will pay as low as $625 for a 30 year return of premium policy, about 75% higher than a level term.  Why would someone pay this much more for this type of policy?  Simple math will tell you that at the end of the 30 years, if you survive the policy (which is a good thing), you will be out of pocket $10,800 for the term policy.  On the other hand, if this same person had purchased this regular term policy, he would have received $18,750 at the end of the term.

But you say you could purchase the term and invest the difference ($265 annually) and do better than this?  Maybe you can, but you would have to earn 5.08% annually to beat these numbers.  Do you have confidence you can earn that much on your investment, especially in these uncertain financial times.

Now, as you get older, the difference in cost between the two is greater, so you would have to evaluate whether or not it makes financial sense for your situation.  For example, a healthy, non-smoking 40 year old male would pay as low as $621 for a 30 year level term insurance policy, whereas he would pay as low as $1370 for a 30 year return of premium term life insurance policy.  If you purchased term and invested the difference ($749), you would have to earn 3.65% annually to get back the same $41,100 you would have gotten back from the return of premium policy after 30 years.

To get quotes for both term life insurance and return of premium term life insurance, click the Start Your Instant Quote button above

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Many people purchase life insurance to pay for funeral and other final expenses.  With proper planning, life insurance can provide much more for your family.  Here is what life insurance can do for you:

• life insurance can buy time.
  It affords your family and loved ones the time they need to grieve.  Without life insurance, they might need to scramble to come up with the funds to pay for final expenses.

• life insurance provides a fresh start.
  It allows your family to pay off debt (including the mortgage) so they can start with a clean slate.

• Proceeds from a life insurance policy can generate income
  Your family might choose to invest the death benefit in a conservative investment and live off the interest for years to come, leaving the principal intact.

• life insurance can offer flexibility.
  Your surviving spouse can take time off of work, if needed and/or perhaps switch to a new job that offers a more flexible work schedule, leaving more time to care for the family.

• The funds from a life insurance policy can create opportunities.
  They can provide funding to start a business or pay for schooling to train for a new career.

• life insurance can fund the future.
  It offers a way to fund long-range goals like a college education for the children or to fund a retirement plan for a more-comfortable retirement.

• life insurance can leave a legacy.
  It gives parents a chance to leave future generations with the legacy of long-term financial security.

Celebrate life insurance Awareness month by reviewing your life insurance policy to make sure you have enough coverage and, if not, get term life insurance quotes or universal life insurance quotes by clicking Start Your Instant Quote above and supplement your current coverage.  If you don’t currently own a life insurance policy, now is a great time to start.

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More than 80 percent of African Americans believe the main reason to buy life insurance is because you love your family:

• In comparison to other ethic groups, African Americans are more concerned about not putting a burden on others with their funeral expenses and leaving an inheritance for their family.  They are more likely to own life insurance for these reasons than other ethnic groups.

• African Americans have a better understanding than other ethnic groups about how life insurance works, including how it protects the family and why families should own it.

• When buying life insurance, African Americans, compared to other ethnic groups, place more importance on being certain they understand exactly what they are purchasing and less importance on getting a fixed price that cannot increase.

Seventy percent of Hispanics think they need life insurance:

• Hispanics are less likely to feel insurance agents are knowledgeable and consequently are less likely to buy from an insurance agent than other ethnic groups.

• Hispanics are more likely to cite paying for a college education as a reason to own life insurance.

• Hispanics are more likely to prefer to buy life insurance direct from a company via the Internet than any other ethnic group.

These statements are from several of LIMRA’s life insurance consumer studies and are not based on my experience.  While I find statistics like these to be fascinating, I believe that any time you group the experience of any ethnic group, you are liable to make broad generalities.

As people come to our Website and get life insurance quotes anonymously, we have no idea of the ethnic make-up of each visitor.  When our visitors apply for a policy, all of our contact is via telephone or email, so we still don’t learn the ethnicity of our visitors.

LIMRA’s mission is to help their members improve their marketing and distribution effectiveness.  I imagine the life insurance companies can use the data from these surveys to learn how to market to different groups.  However, because of the relative anonymity of the world of online life insurance brokers, this is data that will never be used by us…and I like it like that.

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However, in September of this year, Lamar Odom will be making an assist that will elevate him to an even higher level for me.  He will be the spokesperson for life insurance Awareness Month, sponsored by the Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education (LIFE).   I believe by putting his celebrity to better use than in the TV reality show Kloe & Lamar, Mr. Odom will be promoting the concept of protecting your family with life insurance to a huge sports-watching public.

Lamar has a great story about the value of life insurance to tell – his mother passed away from colon cancer when he was twelve years old.  Because she had life insurance, he was able to continue attending his private Catholic high school, where his mother had enrolled him so he didn’t have to go to the public school in his rough neighborhood.  As a single parent, she knew the value of a good education and, in spite of her modest income, she purchased a life insurance policy to ensure that Lamar would be able to continue his education in the event of her death – which, unfortunately happened much too soon.

When Lamar graduated high school as one of the best basketball players in the country, he probably could have immediately entered the NBA, but to honor his mother (and because he valued his education), he enrolled in college.  Had his mother not purchased her life insurance policy, Lamar might not have been able to attend college.

The Greatest Assist in his Life

Lamar has had some great assists on-court throughout his career from players like Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Derek Fisher, but the greatest assist he has ever received was the one his mother gave him when she purchased her life insurance policy.   That’s why Lamar has agreed to be the spokesperson for life insurance Awareness Month.  ”Too many Americans haven’t done the kind of planning that my mom did,” says Lamar.  ”They don’t have life insurance because they don’t think they’ll  ever need it.  I’m sure my mom didn’t think that she’d die at age 35, but that didn’t stop her from doing the responsible thing.”

When Lamar’s mother died, he had no idea how important his mother’s unselfish act was, but he fully realizes it today.  ”Purchasing life insurance was one of the first things I did when I entered the NBA,” he says.  ”As a husband and father of two beautiful children, I want to make sure the people I love will be provided for.”

If you don’t have life insurance, take an assist from Lamar Odom and score – protect your family’s future with a life insurance policy.  To get a freelife insurance quote, click the Start Your Instant Quote button now.

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One of the many beneficial plans we offer, is Survivorship life insurance, which can be used in a variety of ways. Sometimes these plans are referred to as Joint Survivor life insurance   or Second to Die life insurance. The original purpose of Survivorship life insurance was to set up a fund that can be used to pay off estate expenses after the second insured person in the policy passes away. For example, if a husband and wife e are both insured in the policy, after the death of the second spouse, the Survivorship life insurance policy can be used to pay the taxes on their estate, so their children and other family members are not left with the burden. However, oftentimes parents of special needs children use this plan differently.

Parents of special needs children often purchase regular life insurance policies and/or a Survivorship life insurance policy, to ensure that their child is taken care of after they pass away. The regular life insurance policies protect family in the case of death of one of the breadwinners. And the Survivorship life insurance policy, in this case, ensures the special-needs child will continue to receive the specialized care he/she needs to continue a comfortable life.. Since a lot of special needs children outlive their parents, this type of insurance is one way that the parents can look out for their child’s well-being, when they are no longer able to.

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When we think about passing on, there are a lot of questions that come to mind. Most of the questions we ask involve the well-being of the loved ones we will leave behind. Term life insurance provides peace of mind, when it comes to these questions. If you should pass on during the term  of coverage, you will be leaving your  family a financial safety net. This safety net allows people to live their life to the fullest. Every moment of life is precious. Why worry about the financial state of your family in the event of an untimely death? Use our state of the art term life insurance technology and ease your mind.

Once you have the peace of mind of term life insurance, it can open up more financial freedoms. Treat yourself to a personal purchase, knowing that if something should happen to you, your family will be  financially protected. With term life insurance protecting your loved ones, you can spend more time enjoying each and every day of your life. Our term life insurance coverage is easy to use, and will find the best insurance plan to fit your needs. Don’t wait another second. Find your term life insurance plan today.

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- Term life insurance gives you flexibility that other types of insurance do not like selecting coverage that fits your lifestyle. For example, people who are married without children will not be interested the same coverage as people who are married with children.

- The cost of term life insurance tends to be less expensive than other types of life insurance, because it is only is for a set number of years. The insurer most likely will not have to deal with a claim since most often the policy holder lives out insurance.

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No one likes to think about death, but everyone dies at some point. A life insurance policy is the first step in ensuring your family doesn’t struggle to survive without you. In the unlikely event of an early passing, life insurance protects the financial future of your family. If you have children, expensive college tuition can be covered, with a simple life insurance plan. We are proud to help people receive the peace of mind that comes from a life insurance plan. Knowing that your family is financially secure no matter what happens is something that you simply can’t put a price on.   Getting a life insurance quote is the first step toward achieving that financial security for your family.

We provide an instant life insurance quote anonymously.  We don’t require your name or contact information for the purpose of quoting.  No two life insurance quotes are exactly the same, because everyone has different circumstances. Our life insurance quote engine provides an accurate portrayal of costs from several life insurance companies. We utilize the most advanced life insurance quoting technology available.  We ask only the most relevant questions to determine an accurate and instant life insurance quote. We poll hundreds of providers so that our customers can rest assure they are receiving the absolute best coverage for their money.  If you want to take care of a gigantic responsibility don’t wait another second. Get an instant life insurance quote today.

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On Christmas Eve, George’s Uncle Billy loses $8,000 of the building and loan company’s funds which he was supposed to deposit in the bank.  Mr. Potter finds the money and doesn’t tell George about it.  The bank examiner discovers the shortfall and, because of that, George fears he will be disgraced and go to jail and, worse,  Mr. Potter will take over the building and loan company.

George, knowing how this will ruin him, the town and the family, decides to end his life by jumping off a bridge.  However, Clarence, an Angel in training, is sent to try to save George from committing this terrible act.

Clarence reminds George of the cash value accumulation in his life insurance whole life insurance policy.  George calls the insurance company and speaks to a dedicated employee working on Christmas eve, who arranges for George to take a policy loan of $8,000 and wires the money to him immediately (I know, but it’s a movie).  George brings the money to the bank examiner and gets the account back in order.

Mr. Potter is arrested for stealing the $8,000 from George and he goes to prison to serve a 20 year sentence.  During the next 20 years, Bedford Falls flourishes with the help of George Bailey’s building and loan company, which has acquired most of Mr. Potter’s holdings at bargain-basement prices.  And, for reminding George of the life insurance policy, which benefited the whole town, Clarence gets his wings.

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