How to buy life insurance

6 steps to help you understand how to buy this important coverage

Read time: 2 minutes

Life insurance is a key financial tool that helps provide a safety net for your loved ones should you pass away unexpectedly. It can be difficult to know where to start. How much do you need? What type of life insurance do you want? Who do you want to buy it from? Here we will help you answer those questions so you can better understand how to buy life insurance.

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Step 1

Assess your needs

Before you decide what type of life insurance to buy, first take a look at your finances and family needs. Consider things like medical bills, credit cards, car payments, mortgage and your family’s standard of living. You’ll also want to consider whether you want a funeral or celebration of life, which can cost an average of $7,800 or more.¹

Step 2

Understand the types of life insurance

There are two primary types of insurance policies to choose from: term life and whole life.

Term life insurance provides protection for a specific amount of time, usually 10 or 20 years. Term life insurance is typically less expensive than whole life insurance and comes with a death benefit without cash value accumulation.

Whole life insurance is coverage you can own for your entire life. Although it costs more than term life insurance, whole life insurance offers permanent protection, and normally has no renewal rate increases.

Step 3

Decide how much coverage you want

Your financial obligations and the future needs of your beneficiaries will determine how much coverage you need. If you’re looking for a higher amount to help cover temporary coverage needs, consider term life insurance. If you anticipate your financial obligations will decrease over time, whole life insurance may be a better option.

Step 4

Choose a reputable company

When you are shopping around for an insurance company, you want to look for things like financial stability, reputation and customer service. Here are some key questions to ask yourself when researching:

How long has the company been in business?
Are they financially stable with strong ratings?
Does the company post their dollars in assets and total amount of claims paid annually?
Does the company receive and retain a high customer satisfaction rating?

Step 5

Talk to an advisor

Talking to someone who knows the details about different insurance policies and can offer credible advice is invaluable. Know that you can contact one of our agents/producers at 1-800-589-09291-800-589-0929 for guidance at any time. There is no obligation.

Step 6

Choose how you want to buy

There are several ways to buy a life insurance policy:

Online
By phone
Through the mail
With an agent/producer

Buying life insurance can be a simple choice with lasting value. Don’t leave your family unprotected — make the decision that can help keep them covered today.

1. “NFDA Statistics,” National Funeral Directors Association, NFDA.org, [October 23, 2023]

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