Types of Life Insurance in California

There are quite a few different life insurance options available for prospective buyers and California gives consumers plenty of choice. The most popular forms of life insurance--term life and whole life--are available, as well as some of the lesser-known types of policies, such as variable universal life insurance. Each type of policy is different than the others, so it pays to do some homework and find an agent you believe has your best interest in mind.

Whole Life Insurance

Whole life insurance is considered a permanent type of life insurance policy, as it is designed to provide you with coverage for your lifetime. Premiums should remain level with a whole life policy, as you will pay more than the actual cost of your insurance in the beginning stages. These excess payments will eventually build a cash value that you can withdrawal or borrow against.

Universal Life Insurance

A universal policy is similar to a whole life policy, but it gives the policy holder the choice to change premiums and the death benefit. A universal life policy also builds a cash value.

Variable Life Insurance

A variable life policy is heavily influenced by the investment portion of your policy, so much so that your death benefit can increase if your investments do well. Likewise, your death benefit can actually decrease if your investments do poorly.

Varaible Universal Life Insurance

As the name suggests, variable universal life insurance is a combination of variable life and universal life. This type of policy will allow you to change your death benefit, as well as alter how much of your premium payment will go towards the life insurance aspect of the policy and the investment aspect of the policy.

Term Life Insurance

Term life insurance is different from permanent life insurance in that you purchase coverage only for a specified period. These periods can range from one year up to 30 years. Term life insurance policies do not build a cash value, which makes typically makes them less expensive than a permanent policy.

References

Article reviewed by JPC Last updated on: Jan 9, 2010

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