Life Insurance for Those Who Are a Little Older
Finding life insurance for older people who are in their sixties and upwards often have a different focus and reasons for buying life insurance than younger folks.
Although many seniors continue to be healthy and active, this is the time of your life when many of you encounter health issues which can make finding life insurance more of a challenge.
The good news is that regardless of your particular financial or health situation there is a life insurance solution available.
In this article, we discuss the health challenges older people may face, and how to find affordable life insurance even with those challenges.
Quick Article Guide
Here’s what we'll cover in this post:
Facts about Life Insurance for Seniors
It is a simple fact that regardless of the type of life insurance policy you need, whether it is a term life insurance solution or a permanent policy such as whole life or universal, life insurance premiums become more expensive as you age.This is especially apparent for anyone who is going to renew a term life insurance policy. You might be a bit floored when your current insurer gives you a quote. You might also be stymied, should they no longer even offer the term policy you are seeking.
Why did this happen?
The reason is simply because most life insurers won’t sell longer term policies after a certain age. This varies from company to company, but it is a simple fact. After a certain age you simply can’t buy a 20-year term anymore, which can be frustrating.
A 20-year term can be purchased up to age 70, but after that you are restricted to a 10 or 15-year term. A few companies offer a 15-year term up to the age of 75, but after you turn 76, you will be restricted to a 10-year term with every company except Transamerica.
One thing to keep in mind is that not all life insurance companies are the same. Your current insurer may not be offering what you need, but another may have different underwriting requirements as it relates to age.
It’s important that you don't give up just because some companies are more lenient than others when it comes to age and how they issue policies to older people.
There is an alternative solution, which we'll get to shortly.
Dealing With Health Issues
Another issue that also can affect your ability to find affordable life insurance for older people could be due to a deterioration in your health.Again, the important thing to keep in mind is that each life insurance company has its own underwriting requirements when it comes to health issues. This could be anything from your weight to your blood pressure or cholesterol levels. So it always pays to shop around, because you might be surprised at what is available.
For the most part, if you are in relatively good health and perhaps have a medical condition which is under control, your rating won’t be too bad and you can easily find an affordable premium to cover your needs.
However, there are some people who simply can’t find any company to offer them a traditional policy because of a serious or life threatening health issue. Even then, they can still get themselves insured with a Guaranteed Acceptance life insurance coverage policy.
And the really good news...you can be automatically approved without having to take a medical exam, or even to complete a medical questionnaire.
The downside is that the coverage amounts are much lower and the rates are relatively more expensive, but they might not be as bad as you think.
The other drawback is that there is usually attached what is called a "two-year waiting period," which means the insurer won’t pay the death benefits if you should die in the first two years. At best, your beneficiary would only receive the premiums which were paid up to the point of your death.
Life Insurance Options for Seniors
If you have an existing term policy, and whether you’re healthy or not, you most likely have the ability to convert the policy to a permanent policy, such as whole life or universal. This could be a good strategy if you need life insurance until you die.Also, if you happen to be in poor health, then this would also be an ideal solution because you can most likely convert without having to take a medical exam.
Just be aware that most term policies contain an expiration date or age where you might no longer be able to access this conversion feature, so make sure you check your policy.
Another solution that you can use is to buy a universal policy which provides coverage to a specific age such as age 95 for example. It has some features of a term policy because it is age specific and the premiums would be cheaper than simply buying a universal policy which covers you until you die.
To learn more about guaranteed universal life insurance with level premiums and a fixed death benefit until the age of 90 or later, see our article, "What is Guaranteed Universal Life Insurance?"
How to Find Affordable Life Insurance
Life insurance is a pretty important topic, and you want to make sure you get a policy that's right for you. That's where we come in.At JRC Insurance Group, we have helped thousands of families and businesses with their life insurance needs, and we can help you too! Our agency is licensed in all 50 states and we’re independently owned and operated.
As a non-partial, no-fee brokerage, our goal is match our clients with the best life insurance options available by shopping and comparing rates from 63 highly-rated insurers. By having access to dozens of companies and their guidelines, we’re able to save our client’s time and money.
Most importantly, our services as completely free, and there is no cost to apply for coverage. Give us a call toll-free today 855-247-9555, or you can request a free quote online to compare rates and options from dozens of insurance companies in less than a minute.
Clifford Pendell
Managing Partner and Co-founder
Cliff is a licensed life insurance agent and one of the owners of JRC Insurance Group. He has helped thousands of families of businesses with their life insurance needs since 2012 and specializes with applicants who are less than perfect health. In his spare time he enjoys spending time with family, traveling, and the great outdoors.
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Questions From Our Visitors
Some of the questions we received from our website visitors:
I am 59 , female in very excellent condition. No sickness. I am living in Queens NY . I am looking for a $100.00 for a 30 years term level Can you please reply me
Ms. Patayya, Thank you for your question and visiting our JRC Life Insurance website. Please try running quotes from our website. If no 30 year term options are offered, it's because you're beyond the age of purchasing one at age 59. There should be a good number of 20 year term life options. Most people your age seeking 30 year term policies choose to purchase "guaranteed universal life insurance". It works much like a term policy, but rather than having coverage and cost fixed for period of time (the "term"), it's fixed to a specific age. If available, a "GUL" policy to age 90 would basically cover the same amount of time, and these policies sometimes price lower than term life insurance. Call us at (855) 247-9555 and a licensed agent for your state will determine your options and email them to you for your review. There's no cost for our assistance. Best Regards, JRC Life Insurance