Young adults have a tremendous amount of worry with their own families, bills, and responsibilities. A big problem we all would like to avoid is the burden of paying for a loved ones funeral plans or burial costs, especially considering its so affordable for burial policies. I get more and more calls these days from clients and friends asking me about burial insurance and the cost of a burial policy. A burial policy is a small permanent life insurance policy for the purpose of covering burial costs or funeral plans. Here is what I teach my friends, family and clients in regards to proper planning for the future.
1. Avoid the Graded Benefit Life Insurance – There are a handful of life insurance companies that consumers should be leary of doing business with that attempt to sell burial policies. Companies like Globe Life, AARP, Monumental Life, and Colonial Penn should be avoided. They all offer quicky type, no questions asked life insurance, that everyone can qualify for. The idea of getting coverage so easily caters to our senses but these companies never explain the drawbacks that accompany the convience. The catch, in this case, is that these type of policies have a two or three year graded period (wait period) in which if a loved one died, the insurance carrier would not pay the death benefit rather they would just refund the premiums paid to date plus a small interest rate. Imagine expecting to receive a death benefit of twenty thousand dollars and if an insured dies in the first two years of the policy date the beneficiary only receives a few hundred dollars in refund of premiums paid, tat wouldnt be much of a funeral plan.
2. Find an Independent Life Insurance Broker – Most consumers don’t realize that an independent broker is not tied to one company or product. A broker is self employed and represents multiple carriers to assist the consumer in shopping to get the best rates on burial policies If you would like to shop rates for you or your loved ones click below for a free no risk no obligation quote.
3. Open Communication with Loved Ones – A few years ago my siblings discussed the future and two (out of three) of us decided to buy burial policies for our parents funeral plans. When that day comes that we lose a parent, the non participating sibling will have to come out of pocket to help pay for the burial costs, funeral expenses etc. Planning for the future is easier than one day having to figure out how to afford six to twenty thousand dollards to bury a loved one. My suggestion is the same, talk to your parents, siblings, and family members about the future. No one likes to talk about death, but its inevitable and the days following the loss of a loved one are hard enough without being burdened with the costs associated.
4. Time is of the Essence– Burial insurance and burial policies (AKA life insurance) are a privledge not a right. To qualify for most life insurance the insured must be younger than 81 while a few life insurance carriers go to age eighty-five. The older the proposed insured the more expensive the cost of insurance. There is a threshold in which the cost exceeds the value. Plus the biggest factor is health, as we age we are getting closer to our demise and eventually we all will become un-insurable so time is of the essence when planning for burial costs. If you have health conditions such as diabetes but still want affordable life insurance for diabetics, let us help find the coverage you deserve.
Planners always get ahead, or something like that, at least that is what my Grandfather always said. The reality is, Grandpa was always right. If you are reading this and you are unsure of the funeral plans or lack of plans your parents have for their burial costs, then today is your chance to make a change. Don’t be stuck footing the bill for your parents final expenses during an already difficult time in everyone’s life.