Philip Santucci, Life Insurance Broker

Answer: First is look for experience the individual should have at least 5 years in the industry full time. Second is there more listening and questions happening more than giving a solution right away. Last is ask someone you know for a referral of a good life agent not a insurance agent who mainly does home and auto or health. If you can not use trusted sources for researching and vetting a potential partner.

Answer: How long have you been in the life insurance space? Are you captive or independent? What type of life insurance products do you sell? How many clients do you currently help? What is your philosophy on life insurance coverage?

Answer: To keep it simple term lasts for a certain amount of time for example 20 year term for 1 million dollars is $100 a month. None of that changes during the 20 years as long as premiums are paid. It is the greatest value for the dollar. Whole life is permanent so the same million could cost $400 a month but depending on the policy it can be fully paid in a certain time frame and have the ability to purchase additional coverage even if you are not insurable. The solution is different for everyone.

Answer: All insurers have a 2 year clause against suicide death they will not pay anything in the first two years. After that it is discretionary as to whether or not it will be paid. For accidental death there are stan alone policies for it and many carriers have it as an added rider for purchase on a policy.

Answer: Simple a captive agent works with only one carrier and provides only their solutions. An independent agent has many options and product types available to better help clients with coverage and price.

Answer: Final expense is a type of Whole Life coverage policy. It is mainly for those ages 55-85 and has small death benefit available usually no more than $35,000. They are also policies you pay into the rest of your life to cover funeral costs, ambulance and any other expenses that come with passing. They are less expensive the younger you are and just life all other forms of life insurance get more expensive as time goes on and you wait longer. Once you have a policy you rate is guaranteed as long as premiums are paid.

Answer: In this case it is simple to take care of. You just have to make a change to the policy to reflect a new primary beneficiary. It is always good practice to have a contingent beneficiary on your life insurance policy.

Answer: The cash surrender value is a component of a permanent life policy. It is a benefit of the policy that can been fully surrendered for and cancel the policy or in most cases the amount available to take a loan against to use as needed.

Answer: If your life insurance benefit is through your employer most of the time you loose that benefit although some cases you can take it with. If you have your own policy outside of your employer that is always yours and you do not loose that as long as premiums are paid.

Answer: Life insurance is a policy that pays a death benefit to your family when you pass. There are different types of life insurance policies and every person has different needs. There is also living benefits on some policies that could be used for chronic, critical and terminal illnesses.

Answer: Return of premium life is a term life policy that at the end of the term you will receive 80-90% of the premium you paid back. Theses policies do tend to be double the cost of a normal term policy. They are an interesting option for certain clients and needs.

Answer: Life insurance companies are evaluated by multiple independent sources. They are rated for their stability by A, B, C, and more. Your agent should be able to provide with a carrier rating and many carriers also post their ratings on their public websites as well.

Answer: Underwriting is the path to approval with the carrier. The underwriting process looks at many different factors which determine if the carrier will insure you, what your rate class will be and finally where your premium will fall. It is a very important step and it is also important that you share all necessary information with your agent to make sure the process goes smooth.

Answer: The answer is yes it will cover a death if it was international. There might be a slightly longer time to pay out the benefit because of not being in the country.

Answer: Yes you can name multiple beneficiaries on your policy. You should be encouraged to do so especially adding contingent beneficiaries to a policy that is important.

Answer: You should have any current policies and any group coverage. Be ready to discuss incomes, debt, expenses and any other financials that would need to be taken care of. Also be open with investments you want to take that into consideration when planning life insurance.

Answer: You are able to make some changes to your policy after it is issued but you can not change it entirely. Depending on what the change would be is the key as to if it could be done or not. Always talk with your agent first before the final delivery and payment of the policy.

Answer: Absolutely you can have multiple policies from different companies. However keep in mind depending on the income life insurance companies will cap the amount of life insurance a person can have on average 20X the income amount. Going beyond that requires more intensive and financial underwriting.

Answer: Th e most common mistake is not working with an Independent agent who can provide options. With life insurance relying heavy on health, age and other factors having only one carrier option is not a good choice for a client. Also work with someone who has at least 3 years in the industry.

Answer: Whole life is a form of permanent life insurance yes. It is the oldest and most tested permanent type of life insurance policy. With that they are not all the same and some do function different than others. Always best to consult an experienced life advisor.

Answer: Generally life insurance does not go through probate because there are beneficiaries attached to the policies. This may not always be the case however depending on state laws and taxes. Always best to consult a professional in the estate planning arena to find the best advice for your situation.

Answer: Best option is to work with an independent advisor because they work with multiple carriers. This gives you the best opportunity to not only find a policy that will fit your situation but also one that will fit your budget. Also look for someone who has been in the space for at least 5 years.

Answer: This is a rider that is available with some carriers not all. This rider when enacted allows the premiums for the life policy to be paid by the insurance company should the owner/payor of the policy becomes disabled and can not pay the necessary premiums. Depending on the carrier the entirety of the policy could be paid for.

Answer: This depends on the policy that you have because the answer could be yes or no. Majority of policies the answer is not premiums are level. Not always the case again depending on the policy type. At the same time if you do not have coverage currently every year that passes the higher the premiums become.

Answer: Indexed Universal Life is a type of permanent life insurance that has a cash value component to it. It is important to know that life insurance is NOT an investment. It is protection and in some cases an asset class. It can not be compared to investments because they are different entities. A life policy be it an Indexed Universal Life or other are not designed to give market like returns nor take the place of a portfolio. They are a good companion to a current investment strategy or estate plan.

Answer: This depends on your individual needs and personal wants for the policy. Not all companies offer 30 year term policies. There are also tiered prices depending on the death benefit amount which could make a longer term policy more affordable.

Answer: There is no difference it is the same it is called mortgage protection because the main goal of purchasing the policy is to payoff the mortgage. These are just normal term policies although some may have some extra living benefits to them.

Answer: It is possible but there are factors that need to be considered. One is the reason the coverage was denied in the first place. Next age because from age 45 and on there are Guaranteed issue policies that someone can purchase.

Answer: You can go online and get a quotes with a google search. However when you get the quote majority of the time you are given a quote with the best rating possible making the premium look great. But most people would not qualify for that. Best option seek out a local independent life insurance advisor with at least 5 years experience to help you.

Answer: It is an simple acronym for an easy way to determine how much life insurance a person needs. D is for debt, I is for Income, M is for mortgage and E is for education. When you add the needs of those together you will get a rough estimate of the amount of life insurance coverage you need.

Answer: It starts by understanding the need. There are situations where one or the other makes sense. Some you do a blend between between the two. It comes down to the individual situation and also what is affordable. Always best to consult a life insurance advisor to find the right solution and pricing.

Answer: Yes you can buy life insurance on a child. Parents are required to have life insurance on themselves before they can insurance a child. It is worth it because done right it protects the child's insurability incase something happens in the future. There is also a rider that can be added to a policy if available which allows the purchase of more coverage even if not insurable.

Answer: It is possible to get life insurance with a DUI. However multiple DUI occurrences on a record will make it increasingly difficult. Every carrier has a different requirement for this so some carriers will be more forgiving than others.

Answer: Every situation is going to be different from the actual dollar amount needed to health. First it is always best to work with someone with experience at least 3-5 years. Also best to work with someone who is asking questions and not just spitting numbers out there.

Answer: Yes absolutely a stay at home parent should have life insurance. Even though the stay home parent may not be providing income they provide cohesion in the home. Should that person be gone there will be a need to have someone assist in place of them which will cost money to make happen.

Answer: Outliving your life insurance is not a bad thing. However if a need is still there for it the cost will skyrocket after the term is over. In many case once the term is over not as big of a benefit is needed. Which is why when buying a term policy when you are young is good but also having a small permanent policy that is paid for in 15-20 years along with the term is a good idea.

Answer: This is actually a simple thing to do by remembering an acronym. DIME - Debt - Income - Mortgage - Education. How much is the current debt amount + 10X current income + Remainder of the mortgage and finally any child education that is needed. For most people this will get them what they need.

Answer: Yes you can coverage while you are pregnant. The underwriting process is the same but with some added questions. I have placed coverage for expecting mothers in the past with no issues and good results.

Answer: Dividends are a return of premium from what you have paid. The dividends come from Insurance company profits every year should there be any. The dividends also can purchase more insurance benefit is it is a participating Whole Life policy.

Answer: Yes you can reinstate a policy but you do have a time frame. Depending on the carrier you have between 30 and 60 days to reinstate. If it does not happen within that time frame you will have to go through underwriting again and purchase a new policy.

Answer: Yes you can get coverage in these situations. The unfortunate thing will be for those carriers that will underwrite this the cost will be expensive. Not all carriers will approve individuals in this situation either. In these cases you would definitely want to work with a broker and one with experience with tough underwriting.