Life insurance comes with many different options, and you may have heard about second to die life insurance.<\/p>\n
We’ll cover how this type of life insurance works and its primary uses in this article.<\/p>\n
Also known as Survivorship Life Insurance<\/strong> or in some cases, Dual-Life Insurance<\/strong>, Second to Die is where your children (or other named heirs) receive benefits after both you and your spouse pass away. In other words, the heirs receive benefits after the second spouse (the surviving one) dies.<\/p>\n Because life insurance is such an important investment, it\u2019s vital that you make the best purchase for your loved ones.<\/p>\n There are dozens of different types of coverage<\/a>, and second to die coverage is just one of them.<\/p>\n Obviously, the primary purpose of this type of insurance is to ensure that your children have a financially secure future. For example, this is a good way to set up an inheritance for them.<\/p>\n This kind of life insurance is even more helpful if you have any children with special needs, because they may need even greater financial assistance in the future, well into adulthood.<\/p>\n Now, there are a few additional reasons people may choose to go for Second to Die insurance:<\/p>\n Believe it or not, Second to Die insurance policies are usually cheaper than individual insurance policies. This is especially true if you have an estate that is larger than most.<\/p>\n Premium rates are much lower than other kinds of policies because benefits are not paid out until both of the policyholders pass away.<\/p>\n In most cases, there are several options for affordable life insurance protection. If you\u2019re looking for an affordable option for life insurance coverage, second to die can be one option, but just because it\u2019s cheap doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s the best choice.<\/p>\n If your family has a lot of assets but perhaps not that much actual cash in the bank, this kind of policy can prevent your children from having to go into severe debt just to pay off estate taxes<\/a> or having to sell off the assets they inherit.<\/p>\n The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997<\/a> changed estate tax laws in order to provide some relief for those who are rich in assets but poor in cash, but a Second to Die life insurance policy offers even greater protection by providing the cash when estate taxes are due.<\/p>\n Since two people are insured with this policy rather than just one, insurance underwriting tends to adhere to a more lenient set of requirements. This is great because it means that even if you (or your spouse) are in poor health or normally uninsurable for other reasons, you will usually still be able to get a Second to Die policy.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve ever been rejected in the past because of your health, then applying for a second to die plan could give you the coverage that you need. Just because you\u2019ve been declined, doesn\u2019t mean that second to die is your only option.<\/p>\n I don’t recommend second to die policies if you are looking to use life insurance for income protection for your family. If you are the main breadwinner and pass away, the policy won’t pay out until you and the other insured on the policy pass.<\/p>\n This is why for most people 2nd to die life insurance does not make sense, and a regular term life policy will be more suitable.<\/p>\n Second to Die policies can come as either permanent or term insurance. However, since people use them to guarantee there will be an inheritance when they pass, permanent life insurance in the form of universal or whole life is a more popular choice when buying second to die life insurance.<\/p>\n Second to die life insurance is only one kind of life insurance that you can choose from, and for a lot of applicants, they are the best choice. Luckily, there are several other kinds that you can choose from.<\/p>\n The most popular type of coverage is a term life insurance plan<\/a>. These policies are bought with an expiration date attached to them. One significant advantage of these term plans is that you can buy them to match the length of your debts. You won\u2019t have to pay for years of insurance that you don\u2019t need, and because they are not permanent coverage, the premiums are going to be lower than other options for coverage.<\/p>\n Another option for applicants is a no medical exam life insurance plan<\/a>. As you can guess from the name, the plans allow you to get life insurance without being required to take the exam first.<\/p>\n If you have any pre-existing conditions like diabetes<\/a> or cardiovascular complications, then you\u2019re a high-risk applicant, which means that the insurance companies may decline you for life insurance or will charge you much more for your protection.<\/p>\nSurvivorship Life Insurance Pros<\/h2>\n
Lower Costs<\/h3>\n
Estate Protection<\/h3>\n
Lenient Underwriting<\/h3>\n
Survivorship Life Insurance Cons<\/h2>\n
Which Type Of Life Insurance Is Right For You?<\/h2>\n
High-Risk Applicants<\/h2>\n