Susan Orman on Life Insurance
The American Cancer Society estimates doctors will diagnose over 1.4 million new cases of cancer in the U.S. in 2007, with more than 559,650 cancer-related deaths. If you are among the majority of cancer patients and survive for at least five years following your diagnosis, you may face another fight: buying life insurance.
Buying life insurance for cancer patients is challenging, but not necessarily impossible. Your chances for securing a policy depend greatly on the type, stage and grade of the cancer, and even on the treatment plan. There is a relationship between the rate you’ll receive and the curability of your cancer. Certain types of skin cancer, for example, are considered very low risk by life insurance companies and a skin cancer history may not even impact premiums.
Applicants with common and treatable forms of breast and prostate cancer may be able to get a “standard” rating under ideal circumstances. But patients with a history of leukemia or colon cancer may fall into a “substandard” or “high substandard” rating at best, or receive declines. Anyone with cancer that has metastasized likely won’t be able to obtain a policy.
Dr. Charles Levy, senior vice president and chief medical director of AIG American General Domestic Life Insurance Cos., says, “We’re better and better able to differentiate the risks of individual cancers.” Life insurers like AIG American General have sophisticated tables to determine premiums, where they can factor in cancer types and treatments. The end result is better premiums because applicants aren’t lumped together as an “average.”
Most insurers will not offer a policy to someone who is still undergoing treatment for cancer. Depending on your type of cancer, the life insurer may also want to add a surcharge, also called a temporary flat extra. For example, AIG American General sometimes charges temporary flat extras for two to five years, depending on the applicant’s cancer and treatment. The good news is that although these extra premiums can be expensive, they will automatically disappear after a set period of time.
Cancer insurance risk specialists
While a dedicated life insurance agent will search cancer insurance companies to find insurers that will sell you a life insurance policy, in some cases you may be better off seeking out a broker who specializes in finding life insurance for people who have a history of cancer.
These brokers will know the specific questions underwriters will want answered when considering your application. Many brokers have developed relationships with several insurers, so they know which companies offer the best-priced life insurance policies for cancer survivors. Some brokers have experts who specialize in gathering your medical records and organizing them.
By directing your application to life insurers that will view your application most favorably, these brokers will help you find the most accurate price quotes and the lowest premiums for life insurance. Always check the financial strength of the insurer before you buy any policy and be sure that the agent or broker you choose is licensed in your state.
Life insurance strategies for cancer survivors
If you are a healthy cancer survivor, life insurance is even more feasible. There are things you can do to ensure you’re getting the best premium offers possible for your situation.
1. Gather all possible medical records before you apply, from the first pathology report to medical records to treatment records. That ensures medical underwriters have the most complete picture of you, your health, and your cancer history. Having all those records before you apply for cancer insurance will reduce delays in your application process, because your life insurer is going to request them and will wait for them. The information you provide can garner you better premiums in the end: The less life insurer underwriters knows about you, the more likely they are to have to assume you are the highest risk and offer you high premiums accordingly. According to Levy, “If it’s fuzzy, we’re more likely to err on the side of conservatism.”
2. Make sure you have complied with your doctor’s treatment plans. For example, says Levy, if your doctor asked to see you back in one year and you haven’t been back in four years, get to your doctor for your check-up before you apply for life insurance. Your life insurer is not going to offer you a policy without before seeing the results of that check-up. Similarly, if you’ve had breast cancer and you’re due for a mammogram in December and you apply for cancer insurance in October, your life insurer will likely wait for the results of your next mammogram.
3. Get prices from several companies. Policy costs can vary a great deal among companies.
4. See if you can get group life insurance through a professional, fraternal, membership, or political organization to which you belong.
5. Consider a “graded” policy (one with limited benefits) if you cannot get full death benefits. In the first few years of a graded policy, the company pays only the premiums and part of the face value if the insured person dies of a condition, such as cancer, that existed before the policy took effect. If the insured person dies after the specified grading-in period, the company will pay the full face amount of the policy.
If your cancer has been successfully treated, and you are otherwise in good health, you can likely obtain a cancer life insurance policy. If you can show that you are healthy and your treatments have gone well, several insurers may compete for your business.
Watch the video related to life insurance
Susan Orman on Life Insurance
Help answer the question about life insurance
What exact is whole life insurance, and how do life insurance companies profit from selling it?Agents are always extremely keen about selling my family whole life insurance instead of term. According to the agents, whole life is preferable to term since it does not expire and as a result the beneficiary is guaranteed some payment upon the death of the insured. However, why would the insurance company profit from such a setup if they are bound to pay back an amount that is at least equal to the total amount paid?
I have tried to do some research on my own, but I still can't seem to fully understand this matter. Any help will be greatly appreciated!
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Posted by American Car Insurance on July 12th, 2008 filed in life insurance | 18 Comments »
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18 Responses to “Susan Orman on Life Insurance”
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July 12th, 2008 at 3:23 am
Come on ABU. You were so proud to have found cheap term insurance. But, you don’t sell it because you can’t get paid well enough being that you aren’t multi-level. So, you have to sell expensive Cash Value policies to make sure your family eats, but you can’t sleep. You won’t sell 20 or 30 years terms either for the same commission reason. Primerca didn’t slash 50 jobs. Try learning to read better. As far as the 5 yrs, depends on the policy and when it was sold. Even with it, BT & ID is better.
July 12th, 2008 at 4:44 am
lol i sell 10 tear all the time….lol….the premiums are cheap !!!!! it is an easy sale.what idiot wouldn’t?
July 12th, 2008 at 7:34 am
Come on Grasshopper you know 10yr term is hardly being sold. It;s 20yr followed by 30yr term. You never did answer my question. U make no sense you say agents are commission hungry but we will sell a 10yr term (low comm.) instead of a 20 or 30yr term. You guys make a lot of sense.
When your term renews do the premiums increase every 5 years? Your company is supposed have the largest reserve, why the layoffs? google Primerica slash 50 jobs
July 12th, 2008 at 3:49 am
Agencies make their money from First Year Commissions (FYC) on new policies, and renewal commissions and service fees on policies which have been on the books beyond the first year.
If an agent works for an established agency, he/she will get paid a percentage of the total FYC. The total FYC could be anywhere between 40%-120%, depending on the insurance companies the agency represents, and what type of policy is being sold. Health policies pay a lot less than life insurance policies.
Of the total FYC, the appointed sub-agent would receive anywhere between 50% and 90%, depending on the sub-agents contract with the agency. Most agencies will pay advance commission on 75% of the sub-agent's FYC.
Example:
Let's say that the sub-agent writes a life insurance policy, and the annualized premium is $1200. ($100.00 per month). Let's assume that the agency's FYC is 100%, and the sub-agent's FTC is 80%. The agency's FYC would be $1200, and it's advance would be $900 (75%). The sub's FYC would be $960, and the advance would be $720 (75%). The balance would be paid as earned on the final 3 last payments of the first policy year premium. If the total ANNUAL premium was paid initially with the application for the same policy, it would be a little less than $1200, around $1162 give or take. ALL FYC would be advanced in this case.
Once the policy is in force for 12 months, renewals and/or service fees will be paid, 2-20%, depending on the carrier, and the sub-agent would get his/her percentage of that. (I had a company that paid $100% FYC and 20% renewals)
Some companies pay bonuses, based on your total production and persistency rate, the percentage of business that stays on the books.
If you work for an insurance company as an employee/captive agent, your commission rate will be somewhat less, but your benefits will make up the difference, such as company-paid retirement, 401K, health and life insurance. In this case, your commissions would be put in a commission pool, and you would draw from that on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. When you initially start selling for one of these companies, you are on a guaranteed salary for a specified period of time, while you build your commission pool. Some of these types of companies will guarantee your salary, (based on production quotas), for up to three years, on a depreciating basis.
After the first year, you start earning renewals/service fees. Let's say that over time, you build up your book of business to $500,000 of life insurance annualized premium, and your renewals are 3%. Your base pay would be $15,000, plus your FYC and bonuses.
Some of the captive companies will offer you an established book of business, with renewals and service fees. It's possible to be offered an agency which is paying $300-$500 or more per week, which would either go into your commission pool, or be paid as part of your initial guaranteed salary. If you are assigned to an existing book of business, you have all those policyholders as potential prospects for new business, along with their family members and other people they know.
Here are some names of companies that have guaranteed starting salaries: (Not in any particular order)
New York Life, Met Life, Monumental Life, American General, American National, Western-Southern Life, Prudential, Liberty Life.
July 12th, 2008 at 10:16 am
“there” So Bond the policy was put in force in 05. Custom Protection iv. You claim that it is an old policy, that I don’t know anything about your company. So are you saying that it is no good? Because I have been saying that about your garbage from the get go. You are the example of why the rest of the industry despise you guys. Tell me again Bond what is the advantage of buying a non guaranteed term insurance policy?
July 12th, 2008 at 4:30 am
There are two types of Insurance; Permanent and Term.
Permanent Polcies remain at the same monthly cost for the rest of your life.
Term policies remain fixed for a set number of years. After the set number of years the policy either terminates or can be rewriten for the same length of time, but you'll now be evaluated at your new age, not the age you are now.
Permanent Policies are similiar to buying a home. The policy builds Cash value and could potential increase your death benefit. You can take a loan out against your own cash value or should you cancel the policy at a later time, you will get the cash value paid out to you at that time.
Term policies are like renting. After the set term (5, 10, 20, 30 years) each party walks away. You don't get any money back, but you'll have paid less over the course of the 10 years.
If you were to get a 20 yr term policy now, at age 50 your policy would end (unless you had already died). You could then get another policy, but they'd rate you as a 50 year old, not a 30 year old. and at each of these 20 year renewals, you'll have to go through medical screening again.
If you were to get Permanent Policy now, you'll have a higher premium now, but at age 50 you'll still be paying the same amount as you are now. At age 70 you'll still be paying the same amount as you are now. At age 90? Same amount.
To figure out how much coverage you'll need, here's a handy tool: L.I.F.E.
L: Liabilities: mortgage, car note, student loans, credit cards
I: Income replacement: 5 to 10 times your annual income (though in your case, each of you have another 30-35 years working life in you, you might want more)
F: Final Expenses: Typically $10-25 k
E: Education: Education for your spouse, should they need to change careers to maintain their standard of living after you pass and/or college tuition for any childre you may leave behind.
So, with a $200k mortgage, $25k car loan, and $15k Student Loan, your "L" is $240k.
If you're making $50k annually, you'll need $500k for "I."
Let's call "F" at $15k
"E"? Well, 2 kids at $20k per year for 4 years each translate to $160k.
This mean you'll need $915,000 worth of Life Insurance.
I have my Life with State Farm. It's also giving me a discount on my car insurance.
July 12th, 2008 at 10:11 pm
That means that you won’t sell it because you will only get paid $90 bucks. You would have to sell lots of them to feed your face and your family. Thus, the expensive UL or WL is sold by you and your NLU buddies. We can market term because most of us are part-time. Full-timers in PFS can market term because they are allowed to hire as many agents as they can and override them. Thus, everyone is helping families with term instead of expensive cash value policies. Hope you can sleep tonight.
July 12th, 2008 at 8:46 pm
buy leads to work for now, and invest time and money into building your own marketing so that you will someday be able to generate your own leads.
July 13th, 2008 at 7:38 am
I’m still waiting for you to tell me what I lied about.
C’mon, man, sell me…tell me…educate me…please. Don’t just say some one-liner and then scurry off.
July 13th, 2008 at 7:40 pm
This policy was put in force April of 05. I replaced it March of 09. The couple was paying a total of $83 for 250k each. The wife was a rider on the policy, why? I could of gotten them the 250k ea. for about $65mo. I got the right amount of coverage $500k and 350k husband and wife respectively. Total $102mo. Banterking says WL agents underinsure, you guys policies are so expensive that you tend to undersinsure also. What is the name of the policy Bond? I named your policy for proof.
July 14th, 2008 at 6:51 am
Agony Builder: I told you that you didn’t know shit about Primerica. Custom Protection IV is an old policy. As far as your Thrivent agent, I guess he is also a liar. I am looking at it right now and I’m right.
July 14th, 2008 at 3:47 am
Basically insurance only works when a large groups of people own that particular insurance. Everyone pays to protect their income, but not everyone is going to use their insurance. So that's how basically insurance companies stay in business, unless something extraordinary has happen in this country where there's lots of people are filing for claims and the insurance company can't pay them all (such as the Hurricane Katrina event).
What is whole life insurance?
1) Its a level term insurance to a specified age (usually to age 95, 98 or 100) plus cash value.
2) It is very expensive when compared to term insurance
3) Cash value grows at a very low rate of return. In the first 10 years, you see a negative return on your money. But long term average is anywhere between 1-4%, depending on the company.
4) If you want to take money out, you have to borrow it and pay loan interest of 5-8%.
5) If you die someday, the insurance company pay the face amount of the policy (minus loans and missed premiums) to the beneficiary, but they keep all the cash value.
6) If you do get to live by the end of policy date (when you around age 100), the insurance company pay you the cash value, but you lose the insurance.
There's only one reason why that agent is trying to sell you whole life insurance: MONEY!
Next thing you'll know, that agent would try to sell you universal life insurance, a product that is more horrible than whole life, but it pays out more commissions.
Go with your instinct and find a different company who would listen to your needs. Try this site
http://free-best-life-insures-comparator-usa.blogspot.com/
Here you can get quotes from different life insurance companies in your area, its the best way to find an affordable life insurance with a reliable company.
July 14th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
Bond is a joke NMFN2009, when I was cornering him about something simple but he would have to admit that at times their is a need for permanent insurance. He told me, “why do you ask questions that you already know the answer too, I am not answering.” He does not even understand closing. He is not active in the business.
July 14th, 2008 at 3:19 pm
You may want to try a website that compares multiple companies at once to get you the best price. I am paying less than ½ after I did.
http://top-usa-health-insurance-comparator.blogspot.com/
Take care,
Tena
July 14th, 2008 at 6:25 pm
You can buy a separate life insurance policy on your own, in addition to requesting life insurance from your employer, if they offer it.
To get your own life insurance policy you can contact a local life insurance agent, or visit a life insurance quote service to request free life insurance quote comparisons online from several insurers. You can learn about term life insurance at http://www.term-life-online.com
Term life insurance offers you temporary life insurance for 1-30 years. It costs much less than permanent life insurance, because it is temporary, and builds no cash value within the policy.
Many young families choose 10, 20, or 30 year level term life insurance because it offers the most coverage at the lowest cost.
Level term life insurance provides coverage and premiums that remain the same each year for up to 30 years.
If you want, you can request life insurance from your employer, but you may have to pay for it, and if you leave your company, or get laid off, the group term life insurance plan ends. You may be able to convert it to a permanent life insurance plan, but it would cost you a lot more. And, if you waited until later to get your own life insurance policy, you may not be able to qualify for coverage if you develop a health condition.
You may want to consider a term life insurance policy for you and your husband. Imagine what it would cost to replace everything you do for your family, and will be doing for your growing family once you have a child.
Bets of luck to you and your husband. And, Congratulations!!!
July 14th, 2008 at 11:32 pm
July 15th, 2008 at 12:28 am
Allstate is by far the best. They are ranked in the top 50 employers book.
July 15th, 2008 at 12:46 pm
You can compare the quotes of various company here:
For Life Insurance :
http://free-best-life-insures-comparator-usa.blogspot.com/
For Health Insurance
http://top-usa-health-insurance-comparator.blogspot.com/
Hope this help