Thanks to Omnium, a software company located in Sydney, Australia, getting life insurance has just become a little easier for those with an iPhone.

Consumers with the Apple device can now get life insurance quotes through their phones by downloading the Omnium application. Instantly, users can receive quotes from 12 different insurers on the go.

“iPhone apps or mobile phone apps in general are beginning to shape the way people consume, so we thought it was necessary to leverage the online solutions we have already developed for the industry into a quick and easy-to-use iPhone app,” Omnium founder David King told Insurance Rate. Read all post…

For those who lose their jobs after June 1, they will no longer qualify for the COBRA health insurance federal subsidy, a new study shows that U.S. life insurance activity was flat in the month of May and Toyota vehicles have been chosen for “Top Safety Pick” by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

COBRA Subsidy Comes to an End

The government has been offering workers who lost their jobs as a result of the recession a COBRA subsidy of 65 percent to help pay for the costs of this extended health insurance benefit from employers. However, after returning from their Memorial Day recession, House Democrats decided not to extend the subsidy to help bring down the cost of the jobs and tax bill that is making it’s way through Congress. Dropp

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Term 10 and Term 20 life insurance are a classification of life insurance product often touted as good starter plan for those buying life insurance for the first time. Ever wonder what the differences between the two plans really are?

• Term 10 Life insurance policies offer level rates for 10 years, but Term 20 policies offer level rates for 20 years.

• Term 10 policies are generally used to fund short-term insurance needs, while term 20 policies can be more attractive for funding longer temporary insurance needs.

Clients often ask which is the best way to go. The answer depends on how long you need the insurance for.

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There are more and more affordable life insurance options with all the companies vying for the business.   On top of that we are seeing people live longer than ever before.    With competition and different product lines that are designed for different lengths and flexibility,  it creates a lot of affordable life insurance options for consumers.   Term life insurance is almost a straight commodity if you have no interest in converting to a permanent plan ever.   Term rates have gone down so much it is pretty staggering.  A couple things to keep in mind is just because a company is saying that a policy could cost X doesn’t mean you could qualify for that rate.   The company who is actually showing up as the second, third, or fourth best quote may actually underwrite more favorably and end up being a better rate.

Other very affordable options are return of premium term,  which will return all premiums paid if you outlive the term.    This will cost more money than regular term, but few people ever die during the term of the policy.  It is especially affordable if you live through the term and get all your money back.   Guaranteed universal life is also considered to be  very good affordable option  and the most affordable for plans that are permanent (guaranteed to 100 or 105).  This type of plan is almost like a permanent term and lasts to 100 or so, but the premium never goes up and little if no cash value is built.

The best time to have life insurance is when you die or when you need access to money for opportunities and purchases.     The reason I say the best time to have life insurance is when you die, is so your family gets a death benefit.   It does you little good other than protect your income years, if you pass away with no insurance.   If you paid for term for 20 0r 30 years and now you die with no coverage, that is quite unfortunate.   Most assume that once you get to a point and you have accumulated enough money, you can self insure with your existing assets.  This is a strategy that the life insurance carriers certainly like as they don’t have to ever pay a death benefit.   All of the premiums paid during those years were pure profit to the company.   Only about two percent of term life policies ever actually pay a death benefit.

The other time it is great to have life insurance is when you need capital for whatever reason.  The reason could be  for investing or buying a new property or a car.  If you have a cash value policy, you can have access to the cash value that you have accumulated and you can borrow against it, to buy whatever you want.   I promise you will be happy when you want to make a down payment on a new home and there is enough money you can access in  your policy.   The other beautiful thing about a cash value policy is that it is permanent and your family will eventually get a tax free death benefit.

Do you know what ART, annual renewable term life insurance is? What are benefits this insurance type offers and is it better than others? As the name implies, ART life insurance means one year policy. In other words, death benefit will be paid to the beneficiary if insurer dies during one year policy, but there is no compensation if the insured dies one day after the expiration of the policy.

In one year policy of common term life insurance, the person who purchases this policy can be considered as getting a critical illness during the term. But if he or she survives after one year, because of the illness he will be considered as uninsurable and unable to renew the policy.

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