Insurance

Insurance - All The Information You Need On Insurance

Life Insurance: Why Theres No Need To Be A Desperate Housewife


Insurance

Life insurance looks set to make a comeback in the UK, after a period of neglect by consumers who were simply occupied with affording a home. The stabilising of the UK house market has made many consumers take a broader view to their personal finances.

LifeSearch (a life insurance broker), in the September issue of Money Observer, highlighted a few common mistakes people make when buying life insurance:

* Believing life insurance is relevant to everyone

Life insurance is only relevant to people who have financial dependents. If you have no financial dependents, it might be more appropriate to consider income protection or critical illness insurance.

* Paying too much for life insurance

According to Money Observer, research for Sainsbury's Bank Life Insurance revealed that many people take life insurance policies from their mortgage providers and as a result could be paying too much.

* Opting to buy joint life insurance policies instead of single life insurance policies

The advice to married couples is to avoid taking out joint life insurance policies which pay out when the first spouse dies over the term of the policy, but not on the second. Single policies could provide additional cover by paying just an extra £3-4 a month.

* Missing out on a trust

The Tax Man can claim up to 40% of your life insurance payout as inheritance tax. According to Money Observer, those with assets totalling £275,000 or more (including a house) are especially prone to tax inspection. Writing your policy in trust is a way to avoid this and as a trust does not have to go through probate, beneficiaries of the policy will receive the payment without delay.

* Only insuring the main earner

Whilst it is important to cover the main breadwinner, by neglecting to additionally insure the housewife or househusband may result in extra child care costs. Family income benefit (FIB) may be an appropriate policy to put in place.

* Opting for a lump sum over income

If your dependents are likely to require an income, then buying a policy that pays out a lump sum is a mistake. Many people invest lump sums for an income, but when they invest it, they have to pay tax. Family income benefit provides a larger payout ? tax free, though the majority of banks and building societies do not offer FIB, so ask an Independent Financial Advisor for recommendations.

* Not proving full medical records or detailing comprehensive medical history

Failure to disclose a complete picture of your health, no matter how trivial, could invalidate a claim later on.

There's no excuse for not conducting your own homework, as there is an abundance of information available online. Sites such as moneynet, provide not only price comparison research on difference life insurance products, they also offer downloadable consumer product guides. Lowermybills.com proffers a similar service stateside.

Resources:

Life insurance products and research

LowerMyBills

About Rachel:

Rachel writes for the personal finance blog Cashzilla.

Cashzilla - personalfinanosaurus







Car Insurance Rates   |   Dental Insurance   |   Health Insurance   |   Home Owner Insurance   |   Life Insurance Quote



| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |











Choosing Buy-to-let Property Insurance
Risk is an area often overlooked by landlords, but failing to protect the main assets of your business, which often have borrowings secured against them could lead to ruin.Landlords often...(related: Insurance)


Insurance Providers Weather The Storm While Consumers Flounder
We have just had the first year's anniversary of the flash flooding which occurred at Boscastle in Cornwall. The floods saw some of the worst damage wrought by sudden rainfall in the UK for many years.The flood was caused by the remains of a hurricane which crossed the Atlantic, collecting vast amounts of water crossing, and was then pushed high above an area inland of the village depositing around 1,500m litres (330m gallons) of water within two hours.At the time insurance companies were estimating the bill for commercial damage to local businesses, would be as high as £15m.There is perhaps some comfort for insurers in that it could have been worse. Hurricane Charley, which hit Florida around the same time, cost over an estimated £6bn.In August this year, just a week after Birmingham was b...(related: Insurance)


Health Savings Account (hsa): Helpful For Older People?
The Health Savings Account (HSA) is an amazing tool that a lot of people have been talking about. It is meant to help you save money on insurance and make your life simpler, maybe even help you be healthier.But do HSAs work just as well for older Americans? The answer depends on your age.Let's start with someone older than 65. Once you turn 65, you are eligible ...(related: Insurance)


7 Sure-fire Ways Of Reducing Your Home Insurance Premium
Home security improvement:All insurance companies will happily offer you a discount for burglar alarms and smoke detectors. Homes with fire and burglar alarms that communicate with a third party monitoring company receive a higher discount on their insurance premiums.When possible, choose a higher deductible:To reduce your premium, it is best advised to increase the deductible to the extent you can afford. Your home insurance premium will fall by as much as 20% if you increase ...(related: Insurance)


The Life Insurance Policy And What You Need To Know Before You Buy
Are you looking to buy a life insurance policy? Well, be careful. Life insurance can be difficult to understand and it's easy to be conned into buying something under false pretenses.Recently a prominent life insurance company together with several of its agents paid a huge fine because it permitted the sale of a life insurance policy disguised as a retirement plan. There was little attention given to what a life insurance policy is truly designed to provide.Life insurance is not an investment for your benefit. It's guaranteed income tax-free cash paid to someone you designate in the event of your death. If...(related: Insurance)


The Life Insurance Policy And Its Best Kept Secret
Do you love someone deeply enough to spend your hard earned dollars on a life insurance premium -- month after month?After all, the benefit from a life insurance policy isn't for you. It's for the ones you love, but after you've gone.Life insurance is money paid to those who rely on you today to give them a secure standard of living, which they can lose in a heartbeat.This is money when they need it the most ... with no income tax or publicity.Buying a life insurance policy can be challenging because it isn't an easy subject matter to begin with.Most people get somewhat confused about how it works and whom they can trust enough to make t...(related: Insurance)


Health Savings Account (hsa): What Happens To It When I Retire?
The Health Savings Account (HSA) is a great tool that is going to helpus all reduce our health insurance costs and avert the currenthealthcare crisis in America. But what happens when a personretires? What use is an HSA then?Your HSA transforms itself at that moment you turn 65, when youofficially become eligible for Medicare. Your Health Savings Account,which will have served you all those years as a nice financial cushionbefore you begin using your insurance policy, flips into something very similar to an Individual Retirement Account (IRA).<...(related: Insurance)






Google




How Much Renters Insurance Do I Need?
When obtaining renter's insurance it is important to put serious consideration into how much insurance you really need to buy. Some things you may want to consider when making this decision include whether or not you can afford to re-purchase everything in your home in the event that disaster strikes. You may also want to ask yourself what you would do if a neighbor slipped and fell on the wet floor in your kitchen and decided to take legal action against you.How much personal property coverage you need to buy naturally is based on how much your personal property is worth. An excellent way to assess ho...(related: Insurance)

Term Life Insurance On Your Business Partner
Life insurance is something we often take out to protect our family and our loved ones, but that's only one example of how life insurance can save us in unhappy circumstances. Businesses also need protection and those with partners realize that if a business...(related: Insurance)

Term Life Insurance - A Safeguard For Small Business Owners
Term life insurance can offer protection for a small business and its owners in surprising ways. If you own a small business, you probably pay property and liability insurance, and are protected against fire, theft, flood and other disasters. But what would happen if you or one of your key employees was suddenly unable to work due to disability - or death? If something happens to you or one of your partners, what happens to your business? Who will pay outstanding business loans and other obligations?That's where term life insurance comes in.As your company grows, there are very...(related: Insurance)

site-map - Copyright © 2006 Insurance | All Rights Reserved. | Insurance