Monday, November 12, 2007 9:53 PM
My employer provides life insurance, but it’s limited, should I get my own?
It depends on your situation, if you have a need for life insurance (see question above), then you should obtain your own coverage for a couple of reasons:
1. Coverage through an employer can be limited.
2. For individuals who can qualify for preferred rates (in good health), the rates for individual policies over a longer period than a couple of years will almost always be lower. Group policies generally have more liberal underwriting which translates into higher rates as they cover a greater range of individuals.
3. Most people don’t stay with the same employer for the duration of their work life, so having coverage tied into employment is not advisable as group coverage will usually terminate or cost a lot more if employment is terminated.
Tony Steuer, CLU is a specially licensed life insurance analyst and author of Questions and Answers on Life Insurance
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