Maybe it would be a good idea to assess their insurance needs at this stage in their lives. Something that is almost certain to crop up is the worrying matter of inheritance tax. House prices have risen considerably over the past years and the family home that suited their lifestyle some years ago will probably be worth an amount approaching or over the inheritance tax limit. Even if they downsize their property, they may invest in something like a holiday home and the actual capital is still there.

Inheritance tax is charged on taxable estates with a value of more than £300,000 in the 2007/8 tax year. This amount rises annually – 2006/7 was £285,000 for instance.

To work out the value of their estate, they will need to take the value of their home, savings, investments, life insurance policies, any business interests and any other assets which they have accumulated. When the total of this has been reached, any liabilities will need to be deducted. Typically this will be any mortgage outstanding, loans and other debts. The remaining figure, less the amount exempt from Inheritance Tax is the one that Inheritance tax will be calculated from.

Inheritance tax would be charge on the death of the second partner. There is no inheritance tax between spouses.

To put it simply, if their estate – their assets minus their liabilities – is worth around £400,000, then using the 2007/8 allowance of £300,000 there would be £100,000 which would attract a tax of 40%. That’s £60,000 to their beneficiaries and £40,000 to the taxman.

You may think this is a fairly large estate, but do consider what your home could be worth at today’s values.

Now this couple may be quite happy to potentially give £40,000 of their hard earned money away, but we think probably not!

The couple would be advised to take some specialist advice at this stage, but a solution could well be to take out some whole-of-life insurance cover. An amount that would cover the estimated inheritance tax bill would relieve their beneficiaries of any worries when the inevitable time comes. The policy must be written “in trust” and the result will be that the payout will not be counted as part of the estate. By using this important proviso, there should be no delay in the payment of the policy to beneficiaries.

Most policies designed to help with inheritance tax dues are investment linked and offered on a reviewable basis. The plan will be reviewed at five or maybe ten yearly intervals. If the investment part of the plan has not performed as hoped, then the cost of the premium could rise and our couple need to be aware of this.

For an easy way to get some advice on this important subject, an on-line broker will be able to steer our couple towards the right product for them, at the right price.

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Just how important is Life insurance and what will you gain from coverage – well for one it offers peace of mind for those at troubled times where there may have been a bereavement or an accident and it also provides instant cash payouts if a death has occurred.. Insurance proceeds you will find are a reliable source that you can depend upon when times are hard and the going gets tough.

Claim peace of mind by going along to an insurance broker to talk on Life insurance. Insurance companies have well trained staff at hand that can give you good advice and support on what best suits you and your family`s needs and better still your budget. By doing this you will have secured your own and anyone close to you a little sense of security.

Insurance means assurance where you can rest assured that you have done the right thing. After talking to experts in the field of Life insurance you will find that they also can help with all types of insurance policies, like home content and accidental breakage. Payouts can help with hospital treatment and expenses that may incur from dental surgery even pet coverage options.

If you have a young family dependant of you then this is more reason to finalize some financial backing in your time of need should you be unfortunate to lose a partner or family member through a tragic accident or a sudden premature death.

Information on insurance policies can be found online. If you still feel a little apprehensive, don`t be, speak to others who have insurance and is familiar with the whole procedure – this may help you a great deal in understanding the importance of it all. Remember the decision is yours but if you decide to go forward with taking out some security like Life Insurance then you will find that you have made the best decision you are ever to make.

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There are many moments in our life that will affect our financial condition and obligation. Getting married has a new baby, house and property purchase, kids education, just to name a few. With that many factors that depend in our income, it will be a wise decision to make sure that the family will be insured and financially protected when we die.

If he has a family who depends upon his earning capacity, he is a perfect candidate for life insurance. A person should consider the long term as well as the short-term financial obligations to decide whether he needs life insurance. The questions to ask are:

1. Do you have people including family and business partners who are financially dependent upon you over a long period of time?

2. In the event of your death, do your dependents have enough assets and resources including liquid cash to take care of all their needs and to pay off your financial debts?

The second question requires a further assessment of the short-term financial needs of the family of the deceased. These include working out the following factors:

Inheritance procedures can be time consuming and the family will need funds till they get access to the property of the deceased.
The availability of other liquid assets like bank accounts or stocks can reduce dependency on life insurance.

The existence of a large amount of non-liquid assets as against liquid assets makes it necessary to have insurance.
The amount of debts and taxes the person stands to owe after his death.

Businessmen must ensure there is enough cash flow in the business for his inheritors to maintain his business.

Considering the above questions, one would find most people do need life insurance, though one can do without it if one has no dependents or young kids to support. Still, other obligations like a home mortgage or a sole proprietary business or planning for a comfortable retirement for yourself or your spouse are some of the reasons why a life insurance is still a good financial program to pick up.

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One type of life insurance policy is called “Whole Life Insurance”, this type of life insurance is effective provided you continue to make the monthly payments upon the premium. This is a very popular type of life insurance because it allows you to build a cash value on the policy and is on a basis that is tax-deferred. The way this works is that a portion of the premium you are paying is put into an account of savings that the policy invests into. All interest that is earned upon the policy is put into the savings and helps to build the cash value. Once the cash value reaches a higher level, you could be required to pay the premium after age or you could be allowed to borrow against that cash value.

Another attractive benefit of having a whole life insurance policy is that your premium will always remain the same. At no time will the amount change at all, therefore as long as you continue to pay the premium each month, you will remain at the same amount for the entire time. If you choose to take a loan out on the cash value you have earned, the only difference you will have to pay is paying back that loan. One downside to this policy is the fact that you will have no control whatsoever over how the company chooses to invest the dollars you pay on your premium.

Another type of life insurance is the term life insurance policy. This policy is selected for a specified amount of time. If you should happen to pass away during the term of this specified time, then your family would then receive payment in the form of a lump sum as the contract specifies. Typically, the premiums upon this type of policy is far cheaper than other types and it does not allow you to build any type of cash value. With this type of life insurance, your premium can change or increase on a yearly basis and it generally does increase each year. It is the more expensive type of insurance that is available however it will provided your family with complete protection in the event of your death.

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These new policies exploit a loophole in the new Finance Bill and should result in savings of between 5% and 15% for standard taxpayers and around 30% for higher taxpayers.

But there are strings attached! You can’t add extras on to your life policy such as critical illness cover and the insured sum must be a fixed sum. Neither can you have a joint policy. Basically, it has to be a bog standard, level term, single beneficiary, life insurance policy.

Then there are more restrictions, but quite honestly, these are unlikely to pose a problem to anyone unless they’re very wealthy! You can’t have one of these special life policies if the annual contributions you pay into your pension plus the life insurance premiums, exceed £215,000 per year. Furthermore, if the value of your pension fund plus the payout on your life policy exceeds £1,500,000, the current limit set by the Chancellor, then the excess will be taxed at 55%. Conventional life insurance policies are excluded from this calculation.

Tax relief on the premiums is automatically collected by the life insurance company so you pay a premium which is already reduced by standard rate tax relief. If you’re a higher rate taxpayer, you’ll have to claim the extra tax through your self-assessment tax return. However, once you’ve told your taxman about your premiums, they should automatically continue to give you the tax relief through your tax code.

So why are the savings less than the value of the tax relief? Well, the reason is that the life companies have to administer the tax relief and there are certain operational restrictions imposed by the Inland Revenue on the insurance company. This means that the basic cost of these policies is a little more than conventional life insurance – but after the tax relief you should save.

As with all these loopholes, you must be aware that the Chancellor could remove the tax relief. Having said that, it is rare for a future tax change to be applied retrospectively so you are likely to be safe. Your income could also change and move you into a lower tax bracket. This would reduce your savings.

This new type of life policy is now available from most of the big UK insurers and specialist life insurance brokers. However, you won’t be able to get an online quotation – you’ll have to speak on the phone to a Life Insurance Adviser.

And just to confuse matters these policies are known under a range of names: Pension Term Insurance, Life Insurance with Tax Relief, Life Protection with Tax Relief – but they all mean the same thing.

Oh yes, let me confirm one miss-understanding. No, you don’t have to buy a pension at the same time!

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Depending on your physical condition, your location, and the term life insurance company you are making your application to, you may be able to receive the medical exam in the comfort of your own home. The medical exam required of term life insurance applicants is usually not a long process – all in all, expect the exam to last anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes. More good news is that your term life insurance medical exam is usually free.

When you head out for your term life insurance medical exam, you can expect several things – all of which are normal of any general medical exam. The doctor will weigh you and measure your height, take your blood pressure, and will most likely take samples of both your blood and your urine. You will be asked questions about your medical history so you may want to take certain information with you for easier reference. Be prepared to discuss any past or current medical conditions you have, any surgeries you have had, medications and/or medical treatments you are currently taking or have taken in the past, and possibly your family’s medical history. You may also be required to provide contact information of previous and/or current health care professionals by whom you have been treated.

You may be a bit hesitant to provide such personal information to a doctor that you may not even know; however, rest assured that all information is confidential and used only for your term life insurance application. The doctor will send the information directly to the insurance company.

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In contrast, permanent or whole life insurance remains in force until you die. You pay the premium on a monthly basis for a pre-specified term, which can range between 10 to 20 years. A portion of your monthly payment pays the insurance and the life insurance company that provided the insurance invests the remainder. Eventually you don’t pay any premiums but your estate still receives a large payment upon death.

Whole life polices have been criticized because their investment returns are low. Thus you were often advised to buy life insurance protection with a term policy and invest the difference between term and whole life payments in a separate investment vehicle, such as mutual funds, stocks, or bonds. Once you have built up a large pool of assets you don’t need the insurance because the assets will provide security and stability in the event of an unexpected death.

However, there is a new, more flexible product called universal life insurance. While the life insurance company controls the savings in a whole life policy, the savings in a universal life plan are owned and controlled by the policyholder. Insurance companies offer a large variety of investment options for this savings component, including mutual funds. Thus, you have the ability to meet your life insurance needs and increase your return on investment.

The major advantage of a universal life policy is tax-advantaged growth. When you pay the policy premium, a portion of the premium pays for the insurance and a portion is invested. However, when you are ready to withdraw the money from your investment, your cost basis ( the portion not subject to tax) is higher with a universal life policy. The cost base for a universal policy is equal to the sum of all your premiums – the amount of money you have invested plus the money you have used to buy life insurance. This is very useful because increasing your cost base will ensure you pay less tax once you sell your investments within the universal life policy.

Universal life insurance provides a powerful combination of life insurance and tax-advantaged investment opportunities. Investors should realize that universal life insurance premiums work twice as hard as other premiums. They should also know that choosing the right product is an important element in the overall success of this strategy. Finally, the benefits of this strategy are magnified if you are in a higher tax bracket.

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If painless and easy is your goal then it behooves you to shop for the largest face amount of life insurance that you can purchase without a physical exam. The medical insurance bureau is used by almost all life insurance companies to investigate the medical background of all of its applicants. The MIB may have medical information on an applicant that may eventually require a medical examination or a rejection of the application. Do not seek a non-medical insurance policy to hide a pre-existing condition. A future claim may be denied because of misrepresentation on the application.

Try the marketplace and research the non-medical limits. If you are in good health and have no pre-existing condition then a life insurance purchase without an exam is a definite time saver and will make life easy for you and the insurance company. Make sure that you divulge all of your medical history on the application as well as your primary care physician. Annual physical exams and regular medical check ups are viewed as a positive by life insurance underwriters. There you have it. You have enough information to implement a painless and easy strategy for your next term life insurance purchase.

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1. Buy when you are young healthy: Life insurance rates, although they contain fees, and a myriad of expenses, are primarily based upon the statistical chances of a person dying in a given year. Insurance companies use their own experience plus the statistical information collected by the government. The statistics are used to calculate the yearly ‘cost of death’ for each $1,000 of life insurance benefit. As people grow older, the chances of dying increase. At first the increase is slow up until middle age, and then the chance of death increases more rapidly. As the chance of death rise, so do the premiums.

2. Quit smoking: Smokers’ premiums are nearly three times as expensive as non-smokers. Staying away from cigarettes a week or two before your company physical won’t do. Urine tests will detect traces of nicotine (yep, this means chewing tobacco too). Most companies require you to be smoke free for a minimum of one year. Some companies require two years.

3. Lose weight: Companies don’t charge by the pound, but you may be charged more if your weight exceeds a certain level.

4. Buy direct: The internet has made it easy to shop around for life insurance policies directly. By eliminating the middle person, you save on salespersons commissions which are built into the policy premium.

5. Healthy people don’t need ‘guaranteed issue’ policies: People with medical conditions may want to purchase guaranteed issue policies. These policies do not require a medical exam and tend to have higher premiums. The company is taking more of a risk because they don’t know your true medical condition. However, if you are healthy, take the exam. It will prove that you are a good risk and your rates will be lower.

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First, understand there are different types of life insurance. The type that is best for you will depend on a variety of factors including your current age and health condition. The two major types of life insurance policies that you need to concern yourself with are term life insurance and permanent life insurance.

Term life insurance provides coverage for a specified period of time. This type of coverage will usually be less expensive than permanent life insurance. Policy periods are usually divided up into easy periods such as one, ten or twenty years. In the event you die within that time period, the death benefit will be paid to your beneficiaries. On the other hand, if you should reach the end of the time period and you are still alive your protection will end unless you elect to renew the policy. The option of building up cash value is not available with this type of insurance policy.

Individuals who only need temporary life insurance and those who need a large amount of coverage but who can’t afford to spend a lot benefit from this type of policy the most.

Permanent life insurance is designed to provide coverage for the duration of your life, although in some cases, the policy may be limited up until a specific age. When you reach that age, the cash value of the policy will be paid to you. Because you are building a cash value with permanent life insurance you can also withdraw from the policy in order to pay for important expenses such as education or home improvement costs. Another major advantage to permanent life insurance is that it allows you to build up cash value that is tax-deferred. This generally only applies while the policy is in force; however.

There are two divisions of permanent life insurance; whole life and universal life. A whole life policy will pay dividends under certain circumstances and also has the advantage of premiums that do not fluctuate.

With a universal life insurance the premium payments can be changed by the owner of the policy. This type of flexibility can be advantageous when you have a life changing event.

Permanent life insurance works well for individuals who are interested in long term insurance and who like the idea of building up cash value with their policy they can use to meet future needs. It is important to recognize this type of insurance is more expensive than term insurance. It should also be noted that if you take out a loan against your policy, your death benefit will be reduced.

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