Time for a Checkup?

A life insurance checkup, that is. Longtime FoIB Jeff M has graced us with this helpful guest post:

Any life insurance agent worth his/her salt will tell you one of the keys to their success is staying in touch with clients on a regular basis.  After all, clients’ needs change via a variety of situations…marriage, divorce, and birth of a child to name a few.  But how many agents revisit the term insurance they wrote just a few years ago?  Here is a case in point.  I have a client who purchased $500,000 of 20-year term with Carrier A in 2010 at the ripe-young age of 30.  He had a new mortgage and was getting married in just a few months.  His policy was issued at a preferred non-tobacco rating with a premium of $37/month.

Fast forward to just a few weeks ago.  I called my client to suggest we meet to review his life insurance now that he has a son.  He thought that was a good idea, so we met to review his goals and objectives in the event he passed away.  Without using any of the online needs calculators, we discussed an amount of life insurance that would fit both his budget and take care of his wife and son in the event of a premature death.  That amount…$1,000,000.  I utilized my broker’s online quoting engine and found that Carrier B's 20-year term at a face amount of $1,000,000, preferred non-tobacco, would carry a price tag of…$64.63/month.

Let’s step back for a moment and take in the facts of this case.  My client is 7 years older with a face amount that is twice what he purchased in 2010.  

We completed the paperwork, scheduled the para-med exam, and off to the races we went.  My client’s policy issued yesterday at a super preferred-non tobacco rate with the waiver of premium for…$50.63/month.

Let this sink in for just a moment…twice the coverage, 7 years older, and a cost that is less than 2x what he was paying.

If you're an agent, make your client’s day…see if you can put them in a better position by re-writing what you wrote just a few years ago.

And if you're an insured with a recent life event (a baby or an adoption, a marriage or a mortgage), then do yourself a favor and let your agent know, and perhaps set up a time to review your current coverage, and possible new needs.

Thanks, Jeff!