A wise man once told me that choosing the right life insurance company is the same as choosing a spouse – both need to complement our needs, fulfill our desires and be on side for life. I couldn’t agree more, and if you feel the same way, read on to find out my carefully-compiled tips and recommendations on selecting the right life insurance company.
Tip #1: Perform a routine family assessment
Look at your household. Are you a single man or woman content to live alone for now, or are you eager to live a life of holy matrimony? If you are married and have kids, you may want to take up a life insurance policy that covers even the little ones. A good insurance company will offer a good package so that you and your family are adequately covered.
Tip #2: Know when to avoid the hounds
For most insurance agents, getting life insurance leads is all about finding the best policy for their clients. If the client gets what they want and need, they’ll be happy and recommend the service to others. Admittedly, however, some insurance sales representatives can be insistent and misleading at times as they attempt to sell you their company’s largest policies. The tip is to avoid sales reps that sound too pushy – only YOU know what your needs are and ultimately you will be the person who decides which policy to sign up for.
Another infamous trait to look out for in insurance reps is the urgent eagerness to sign you up during the first meeting. Obviously, he or she did not take the time to analyze your financial standing and needs. What you should do is move on and find a better rep that will take the time to truly understand your desires before choosing the right insurance firm.
Tip #3: Make an appointment with an independent broker
An independent life insurance broker will not be pushed excessively by his or her respective insurance company to make sales, so you may want to seek counsel from this individual. And with wider knowledge about the comprehensive variety of insurance products under his or her belt, you can be sure to be enlightened and armed with more information than you can shake a stick at.
Tip #4: Remember: insurance is for protection, not investment
Perhaps it was due to lack of education or awareness, but some life insurance sales reps could not differentiate between buying insurance for protection and for investment. As a consumer, it’s very important for us to remember this and select a life insurance company that knows this fact too. The financially sound thing to do is to protect you and your loved ones by buying a term life policy, and use the rest of your money to sign up for other investment products.
Tip #5: Choose a life insurance company that answers your queries
Before signing your name on the dotted line, be sure to ask your insurance broker in Bend, OR (if that’s where you reside) everything that’s on your mind. The right thing to do is to research questions to ask your advisor and if the answers are satisfactory, then you’ve got a good insurance company that cares about their policyholders. For starters, you can ask equations like, can your policy be renewed, and if so, when? Will you Get a term life insurance quote here? How long are premiums under guarantee that the fee won’t be increased?
Tip #6: Researching online
Any respectable life insurance company will not hesitate to put up a website to display information pertaining to their insurance products. I like to key in phrases containing names of insurance firms such as Zander insurance reviews or life insurance company testimonials to find out conversation revolving these firms. Netizens can be pretty unforgiving if they feel that they’ve been wronged by certain insurance firms so you can be sure to get the lowdown on any company you want.
Tip #7: Look before you buy
If you want to seek the right life insurance company, ask if they have a 30-day free look rule. You can use this to your advantage by looking at your policy and taking your time to understand the ins and outs. The rule should allow you to cancel your intention to buy that policy and obtain your premium if you are not satisfied.
The conclusion
Paying for a life insurance policy may only cost you as low as $15 a month, but if you don’t choose the right life insurance company, it may cost you a lot more than that. The best thing to do is to empower yourself with knowledge and make an informed decision before settling with an insurance company for life.
