Permanent life insurance

Permanent life insurance

Permanent life insurance is a form of life insurance such as whole life or endowment, where the policy is for the life of the insured, the payout is assured at the end of the policy (assuming the policy is kept current) and the policy accrues cash value.

This is compared with Term life insurance where insurance is purchased for a specified period (typically a year, or for level periods such as 5, 10, 15, 20 even 25 and 30 years) where a death benefit is only paid to the beneficiary if the insured dies during the specified period.

Permanent life insurance originally was offered as a fixed premium fixed return product known as whole life insurance also known as cash surrender life insurance. This offered consumers guaranteed cash value accumulation and a consistent premium. Consumers later wanted more flexibility which was offered in the form of universal life insurance. Universal life insurance allows consumers flexibility in when premiums are to be paid and the amount that they would be. Universal life policies also allowed consumers to permanently withdraw cash from the policy without the interest associated with the loan provisions in whole life policies. Universal life policies retained the fixed investment performance of whole life policies. Variable life insurance follows the mold of whole or universal life, but it shifts the investment risk to the consumer along with the potential for greater returns. Variable universal life insurance combines this with the flexibility in premium structure of universal life to create the most free form option for consumers to manage their own money (at their own risk). Variable universal life insurance policies are considered more favorable to other permanent life insurance alternatives due to the favorable tax treatment of all permanent life insurance policies and their potential for greater returns than other permanent life insurance products.

Payout likelihood

Because Permanent life insurance programs must always pay out, the cost of insurance is considerably higher than term insurance. Term insurance is referred to as pure death benefit with no cash accumulation vehicle tied to it. Because of this, term programs remain 8 to 10 times less expensive than a permanent program for the same coverage. Most people are drawn to term insurance for the low cost and the ability to invest the difference in separate financial products. Doing so has a severe drawback in some cases because all term policies eventually expire and the client would then have to pay a higher premium based on his attained age or he may not be able to qualify for a new policy at that point. In these situations, money earned from investments may not measure up to the coverage the policy would have provided.

See also

* Life insurance
* Whole life insurance
* Universal life insurance
* Variable universal life insurance

External links

* [http://www.inheritancenetwork.org/life-insurance/life-insurance-comparison.php Chart Comparing Different Types of Life Insurance]
* [http://www.iii.org/individuals/life/ Learn About Life Insurance] - Insurance Information Institute Life Insurance Learning Center
* [http://www.life-line.org The Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education]
* [http://www.eh.net/encyclopedia/?article=murphy.life.insurance.us A History of Life Insurance in the United States through World War I]
* [http://www.ins.state.il.us/Consumer/SlaveryReporting.nsf/summaryreport?OpenPage Illinois Department of Financial & Professional Regulation, Division of Insurance, Slavery Era Policies Report August 2004]
* [http://www.naifa.org/about/ethics.cfm Code of Ethics, National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Permanent Life Insurance — An umbrella term for life insurance plans that do not expire (unlike term life insurance) and combine a death benefit with a savings portion. This savings portion can build a cash value against which the policy owner can borrow funds, or in some… …   Investment dictionary

  • Life insurance — The foundation of life insurance is the recognition of the value of a human life and the possibility of indemnification for the loss of that value. F. C. Oviatt, Economic place of insurance and its relation to society[1] Life insurance is a… …   Wikipedia

  • Life insurance tax shelter — A life insurance tax shelter uses investments in life insurance to protect income or assets from tax liabilities. Life insurance proceeds are not taxable in many jurisdictions. Since most other forms of income are taxable (such as capital gains,… …   Wikipedia

  • life insurance — insurance providing for payment of a sum of money to a named beneficiary upon the death of the policyholder or to the policyholder if still living after reaching a specified age. [1800 10] * * * Method by which large groups of individuals… …   Universalium

  • Term life insurance — or term assurance is life insurance which provides coverage at a fixed rate of payments for a limited period of time, the relevant term. After that period expires coverage at the previous rate of premiums is no longer guaranteed and the client… …   Wikipedia

  • Whole life insurance — Whole Life Insurance, or Whole of Life Assurance (in the Commonwealth), is a life insurance policy that remains in force for the insured s whole life and requires (in most cases) premiums to be paid every year into the policy. Contents 1 History… …   Wikipedia

  • Universal life insurance — Universal Life is a type of permanent life insurance based on a cash value. That is, the policy is established with the insurer where premium payments above the cost of insurance are credited to the cash value. The cash value is credited each… …   Wikipedia

  • Child Life Insurance — is a form of permanent life insurance that insures the life of a minor. It is usually purchased to protect a family against the sudden and unexpected costs of a child’s funeral or burial[1] and to secure inexpensive and guaranteed insurance for… …   Wikipedia

  • Universal Life Insurance — A type of flexible permanent life insurance offering the low cost protection of term life insurance as well as a savings element (like whole life insurance) which is invested to provide a cash value buildup. The death benefit, savings element and …   Investment dictionary

  • Term Life Insurance — A policy with a set duration limit on the coverage period. Once the policy is expired, it is up to the policy owner to decide whether to renew the term life insurance policy or to let the coverage end. This type of insurance policy contrasts with …   Investment dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”