You have lived for more than half of your life and by this point probably have supported your family to see them stand strong, paid off a mortgage and maybe even retired. Or you may be doing the opposite since age is nothing but a number. Whatever your case is, we will be digging deep to see if getting life insurance after age 65 is any different than under age 65. In short, I have to say that it is and there are a lot of different ways you can go and they will also be based on your particular circumstance.
Do you have a need for a life policy?
You are at an age where most likely you don’t have as many obligations, your children are all grown up and you have a quite an impressive retirement portfolio. So one may wonder what if they really need a life insurance policy at that point? And the answer is not really, unless you need it for estate planning, wealth transfer, or want to use it for charitable giving. In some instances, you may also need to secure life insurance policy if you have purchased a new home or maybe you have someone depending on you for your income still or you are not quite ready to retire yet. These are the type of things that you must think of before you decide whether you need a policy or not. From my experience people who usually buy policies after age 65 are doing it for funeral planning or to leave something behind to their loved ones.
Should you go with a Term or Permanent Option?
Once you have decided that you do need to have a life insurance policy in place, it is time to find out which type of life insurance policy is right for you. There are two types of life insurance policies, one known as term life insurance which is a temporary type of life insurance coverage that ranges from 10 to 30 years of protection and a permanent life insurance plan that is created to protect you until the ripe age of hundred and in some cases age 121. You have probably heard of Whole Life or Universal Life policies which are simply types of permanent life insurance.
So which one of these policies should you go with? Well if it’s for a temporary need, let’s say for a business or to protect a dependent until for a certain duration then a term policy would work best because it is the most affordable. But in most cases I recommend to my clients to buy a permanent policy usually after age 50, the reason is simply that there’s a possibility that you may outlive the term plan. If your purpose for the coverage was to provide a wealth transfer or for estate planning there’s no need to gamble with a Term Policy.
Fully Underwritten versus Final Expense Plans
Most individuals after the age of 65 automatically assume that they need to get a final expense policy. The reason for this is simply because that’s is all that’s advertised to them. Now a final expense policy may be good for a senior that has fair or poor health and doesn’t need a large amount of life insurance. Final expense policy is usually capped at $50,000 and you can secure it by answering 5 to 10 health questions without the need for a medical exam. These policies are ideal for taking care of funeral costs and any other final medical bills but by no means will it be good for someone looking to leave a nice lump sum behind to their loved ones.
That is why when speaking to our clients and discovering that they are in good or great health we always offer them to go with a fully underwritten policy. A fully underwritten policy simply means that the company will request a medical examination and they will check all your medical history and they may even request your doctor records. All right, don’t let this scare you because if you’re in good health there’s nothing to worry about. Also, in some cases when people come to me requesting a small final expense policy and I see that they could qualify for a fully underwritten plan I always give them a quote and they are surprised to find out how much more affordable a fully underwritten plan is. So in a nutshell if you are in poor health and need a small policy go with a final expense whole life and if you are healthy or need a bigger type of policy go with a fully underwritten plan.
No Exam Option
If you’re looking for a policy without a medical exam you may still be able to secure something if you’re not over the age of 65. Companies like Sagicor Life will still offer you a no exam policy at age 65 but that is pretty much the limit where all the companies go. If you are over the age of 65 and want a no exam policy then the only option left is really going to be a final expense whole life policy. As you recall these policies are capped at $50,000 of coverage so if you need more you need to go with a medical exam plan
Best Life Insurance for Seniors over age 65
I’m going to let you in on a little secret, there is actually a plan that will be the best life insurance policy that you can buy if you’re senior over the age of 65. That plan is known as a guaranteed universal life policy AKA no-lapse universal life. This is the most affordable, simple to understand and a fixed rate policy that provides coverage for a lifetime. This is a perfect policy for someone that is looking for security and affordability. Of course like all good things you do have to qualify for it by completing a medical exam and a life insurance application.
With a guaranteed universal life policy you can choose your coverage to go up until age 85, 90, 100 and even age 121. This policy does not accumulate as much cash value as other permanent types of life insurance but you will still get some accumulation after 5 or so years of paying your policy. Your cash value can be used for emergencies or to even pay your life insurance premiums if you are going through a hard time. Overall, from personal experience, this is the best policy to get for someone over age 65.
Work with Us!
If you read the entire article you should have a pretty good idea of whether you need to get a policy, what type is right for you and what it will take to secure one. What we didn’t mention in the article is that one of the most important steps to buying life insurance is working with an independent life insurance agency. Because they will be able to shop around on your behalf with a large number of companies to find you the best deal on the market. Here at InsureChance, we work with over 60 top rated life insurers to get you the best rate and we specialize in high risk cases so if you have had a hard time securing a plan due to an ailement we can help. If you’re ready for the next step feel free to run quotes on our qutoers or simply call us at 888.492.1967!
