Jodi MorrisAZ License 1461741First licensed in Arizona in 2001Property, Casualty and LifeServing Phoenix and the East Valley
Your price comes down to your age, your health, the amount, the term and the type of policy. I'll help you get a real number on your own details.
An insurer prices the chance that it pays, so the drivers are about you, the amount and how long the coverage lasts. Some you bring with you; some you get to pick.
Each of these moves a premium up or down. Some come with you, and some you choose.
Behind every premium are mortality, interest and expenses. Mortality is the expected cost of claims: the insurer uses mortality tables to estimate how many people of each age will die each year. Interest is the return the insurer assumes it will earn on the premiums it holds until claims are paid. Expenses are the policy’s share of the cost of running the company, from salaries and agents’ pay to rent and claims handling.
The expense charge can differ from company to company with how efficiently each company runs, which helps explain why different insurers price the same coverage differently.
Before an insurer offers a policy, it reviews your application. This is underwriting. Expect questions about your health and your family’s medical history, your job, tobacco use and pastimes, and sometimes a medical exam or tests. From the answers the insurer places you in a rating class, and the class sets your rate. It can charge more, or decline to offer a policy, if it judges the risk too high.
Insurers use different methods and factors to decide whom they will cover, so a person turned down by a company may be offered coverage by another. Answer every question fully and accurately: the application becomes part of the policy, and a false or incomplete answer can lead to the policy being cancelled or a claim not being paid.
Term covers a set number of years and costs the least for a given amount. Indexed universal life is permanent coverage that builds a cash value, so it costs more. The life insurance page sets them side by side.
More coverage costs more. To work out how much coverage to think about, start with what life insurance does and how to size it.
A level term premium is meant to stay the same through the term, but check the contract: some term policies fix it for the whole term, while others let the insurer raise the rate during it. When the term ends, renewing costs more because the new premium is set by your age at that point, and converting to permanent coverage raises the premium as well.
Universal life, indexed universal life included, lets you choose how much to pay within limits, but the cost of insurance and the policy’s charges keep coming out of its cash value, and the insurer can raise those charges. Pay less than they take and the cash value shrinks; let it run out and the policy can lapse. The yearly statement shows how long the policy may last at your current payment, and keeping it in force may take more than you planned.
Group life through an employer is priced on the risk of the whole group rather than on you alone, so it usually costs less, and the basic amount usually comes without health questions. The amount is often limited, and the coverage usually ends when you leave the job. A policy you buy yourself is priced on your own age and health, and it does not depend on where you work.
For the same amount and type of coverage, premiums can vary widely between insurers, because policies carry different features and because some companies charge more than others for the same coverage. Compare like with like: the same type of policy, amount, term and features, priced for your own age and health.
The premium is not the whole cost. Insurers should be able to give you a policy’s cost indexes: use the surrender cost index if you expect to keep the policy for a set period, and the net payment cost index if you expect to keep it for good. Generally, the lower the index, the better.
Check the company as well as the price. Buy from a company licensed in your state, so the state insurance department can help if there is a problem and the state guaranty association pays claims, within limits set in state law, if the company fails. Look at its financial strength ratings and its complaint record, and do not choose on price alone.
A real price comes from an application or a quote on your own details: your age, your health and the amount and term you want.
That’s the part I can help with. Tell me who the coverage is for and roughly how much you have in mind, and I’ll walk you through what an application asks. Or call me at (480) 228-0591.
Want a real number instead of a guess? Tell me a little about you and I'll take it from there.
It depends on age, health, tobacco use, the term and the type. For the same amount, term costs far less than permanent coverage such as indexed universal life. A real figure comes from an application on your own details.
It depends on your age and health, the amount and the length of the term. A real figure comes from a quote on your own details.
More than term for the same amount, because it is permanent coverage that builds a cash value. The premium is flexible within limits, but it has to keep the cash value ahead of the policy’s charges. The real figure depends on your age, health and the amount.
Not because of a change in your health, on a policy you already hold. A level term premium is based on your age and health when the policy starts. A renewable policy can be renewed even if your health has worsened, and the new premium reflects your age then. Your health counts again when you apply for a new policy or for more coverage.
Often. Insurers can add a charge for paying in instalments, so paying the year’s premium at once may cost less over the year. Ask the insurer what each way of paying costs over a full year before you choose.
Tell me who the coverage is for and I'll take it from there. Or just call me.
Arizona Insurance Producer License No. 1461741 (NPN 1461741)
