Compare Life Insurance

Before you compare life insurance quotes on the Internet it is useful to know about the different types of life insurance policies that exist and which are suitable for comparison on a web site.

Life insurance is designed to protect your dependants from financial hardship should you die. There are two main policy types, term insurance and whole of life insurance.

Term insurance, or protection only insurance, is the cheapest type of life insurance cover and guarantees a payment of a fixed amount should you die within a specified period of time. If you survive the term generally no payment will be made.

Whole of life insurance, sometimes referred to as investment insurance, remains in force until your death at which time a payment is guaranteed, provided you keep up payment of premiums. Your premiums are invested on the financial markets and the amount paid varies according to how well the investment has performed.

Premiums for both types of policy are paid either monthly or annually and the premium can be fixed for the duration of the policy or can be reviewed should your circumstances or requirements change.

Life insurance can also be useful for protecting mortgage or loan repayments. This special type of insurance cover has a fixed term much like term insurance. The term matches the duration of the mortgage or loan and the level of cover reduces accordingly as the loan is repaid. When the loan is finally paid off the policy ends. Should you die before the mortgage or loan is repaid the insurance policy will pay off the outstanding balance.

How to Compare Life Insurance

Because term life insurance is simple and covers you for a fixed term and pays out a fixed amount it is generally best to go for the cheapest premium you can find. Whole of life or other investment type life insurance policies will have terms and conditions attached that might exclude pay out under certain circumstances such as death related to pre-existing medical conditions. Check with an independent financial advisor to make sure you get the right policy at the best price.

For any requirement other than basic term life insurance it is always better to seek advice from a qualified and Financial Services Authority (FSA) approved insurer or independent advisor before you settle on a policy. Only buy from insurers or insurance brokers regulated by the FSA. Such insurers are obliged to provide you with standard format documents that fully explain any insurance policy being offered. Note there are government plans in pace to disband the FSA and replace it with an equivalent authority operated by the Bank of England.

For simple term insurance is usually okay to use a life insurance comparison service to find the cheapest premium. Because the term and premium is fixed and the condition of pay out is your death it becomes a simple case of cheapest is best. But if your requirements or circumstances are more complicated it is better to speak to an impartial expert.

It’s easy to compare life insurance online. Simply run a Google search for “compare life insurance” and choose from any of the well known insurance companies listed. If you are in the UK you can refine the search by selecting the option, “Pages from the UK” in the Google sidebar to the left of the page.

Most insurance comparison sites will require you to fill out a brief online form including your basic personal details and the type and level of cover you require. Some comparison sites will then quickly return insurance quotes from the leading UK insurance companies whereas others might prefer to telephone you to discuss your requirements in more detail.

If given the choice, it is probably more sensible to speak to the company on the telephone as you will be able to ask questions that help in deciding if their quotation is suitable for you. Don’t be afraid to reject any quote that doesn’t meet your requirements precisely, there are many offers available and a little time spent finding the best option might make all the difference in the long term.

When you compare life insurance remember, you don’t need to make an immediate decision. Make notes of the quotes you have discovered and also detail any conversations you have had on the telephone with insurance brokers. Study these notes and call back if you have more questions or anything isn’t clear. There’s no rush.

If you prefer the traditional insurance broker on the high street then they are likely to have access to systems so they can compare life insurance policies on your behalf. This could be particularly useful if you are nervous using computers or technology in general.

Finally, the insurance companies want your business so approach your search in the knowledge you are in charge and the object of the exercise is for you to compare life insurance and end up with a policy that is precisely suited to your needs.

The content of this article is for your information only and is not intended to be financial advice. Please speak to an authorised independent insurance advisor before you purchase an insurance policy.

Tags: comparison, Life Insurance, life insurance comparison, life insurance quotes, term life insurance, whole of life insurance

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 18th, 2010 at 8:44 pm and is filed under Life Insurance. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.