Is Your Personal Information Required to Get Life Insurance Quotes?

I have written several posts about the state of life insurance websites today, specifically in regard to the personal data required by many sites and what happens to that data.  If you Google “life insurance quotes, you will come up with page upon page of companies offering “Free Quotes,” “Up to 70% Savings, “Lowest Prices on the Internet,” etc. (Disclaimer – it is the insurance companies that set the prices and that price will be the same no matter what agency you purchase from)

First of all, I have to say that shopping for life insurance on the Internet has become the online equivalent of an outside market in many countries – vendors shouting loudly to anyone who appears to have a few dollars (or the equivalent local currency) that their product is the best, least expensive, etc.  Of course quotes are free – why would anybody pay for quotes, you ask?  Well, you aren’t paying for them with money, but you may very well be paying with your privacy.

Many of the life insurance websites you see online are what we call lead-generation companies.  They collect your personal information and sell that information to life insurance agents/brokers for $15-$40, depending on how many agents purchase the information.  The more agents that buy your information, the less expensive the “lead” is.  In some cases, up to 8 agents/brokers purchase your information.  Is that what you wanted to happen when you were looking for life insurance quotes?  My guess is, probably not.

But wait, it gets worse.  If you are concerned about your privacy, there’s a new scheme I recently heard about that will give you further reason to be concerned.  In the example above, let’s say that 8 brokers purchased your information.  I found out that some of these lead purchasers are now selling your information to other brokers looking for leads, at a slight mark-up.  It has become a profitable business for some who purchase large quantities of leads, because they get a discount for volume purchase.  Maybe they paid $10 for the lead that would normally cost $15.  Now they turn around and sell it 6-8 times for $15 each and walk away with a tidy profit. If you do the math, you will see that your information is now in many more hands than you would like.

My intention is not to make you so scared that you never go to another life insurance website again.  That would be self-defeating, because, as an online life insurance brokerage, we also offer quotes and offer an easy way to apply for a policy.  My intention is to get you to really take a good look at the sites you visit before you attempt to get quotes.

Here is my advice for shopping online for life insurance:

1. Do not enter your personal contact information to get a quote.  It’s not needed and, if it’s a lead-generation site, your information will be sold to others.
2. Check out the website’s privacy policy and legal information.  Most reputable online life insurance agencies proudly publish this information.
3. If there’s no contact information or an “About Us” section, go find another website.
4. Unlike some other industries, don’t trust that the companies listed on the first page of Google are going to be the best companies to work with.  Unfortunately, many of these lead-generation companies have figured out how to trick Google into getting first page rankings.  Google eventually catches them and knocks them off of the first page.  However, these companies often have other websites waiting in the wings and move up the ranks to first-page prominence again.

I have to say that there are some fine companies out there who do a great job selling life insurance through the Internet.  However, most of them also collect your contact information before they will give you a quote.  While they may not sell your information to others, they will use your information to re-market to you through email and phone calls, until they either make the sale or you click the “Remove” button on the email.

I believe there are only a handful of companies that offer quotes without collecting your name, address, email address and phone number.  Since the day we opened for business on the Internet, LifeInsure.com has allowed thousands of visitors to come to our website and get their quotes anonymously.   We only require information when a life insurance application is requested.  And, we have never sold or given that information to another person or company (other than the insurance company the person was applying with).  We are quite proud of that record.

Article source: http://www.lifeinsure.com/blog/life-insurance-quotes-and-your-personal-information

Using Life Insurance Calculators to Determine Death Benefit

Figuring out how much life insurance death benefit you need to get can be quite challenging. Purchasing life insurance is an important decision, and it certainly isn’t one that should be made lightly. Selecting the correct amount of coverage is just as important as choosing the right type of policy. When you want to figure out how much life insurance is enough, a life insurance calculator can be very beneficial.

There are several different types of calculators available online. They’re free and easy to use. You can quickly and easily evaluate your life insurance needs using several different calculations, such as the human life value or multiple of earnings method. To get results, you’ll simply need to enter a few details about your goals, finances, and other relevant factors into the calculator of your choice.

Determine Life Insurance Death Benefit with the Multiple of Income Method

Looking for the simplest method of determining how much life insurance is enough to provide protection for your family without getting into formulas? There are a number of different ways to calculate the proper amount of coverage. While many different variables can impact the amount of coverage you need, the multiple of income method can be a quick way to determine the minimum amount of coverage you might need.  We do recommend though to take the minute or two to use the interest method described in these tips.

Life insurance calculator tip using multiple of income:

This technique for determining life insurance needed simply involves multiplying your annual income by a multiplier, based on your age at the time the policy is purchased.

• 25 years old? Choose life insurance valued at approximately 25 times your annual income.
• 35 years old? You’ll want to get life insurance that covers about 20 times your yearly earnings.
• 45 years old? Based on multiple of income method, it’s recommended that you get life insurance worth approximately 15 times your annual income.
• 55 years old? It’s a good idea to make sure that you’re life insurance policy is for an amount about 10 times your annual earnings plus any estate tax liability that may be due.

Calculating Life Insurance Needs with the Interest Method

When purchasing life insurance, it’s important to make sure that you’re getting enough coverage to provide your family with the protection and peace of mind that they need. The more coverage you get, the higher your premiums will be. However, if you don’t have enough coverage, you aren’t providing sufficient protection for you loved ones. That’s why it’s so important to put serious thought into answering the question, “How much life insurance do I need?”

There are several different approaches to figuring out how much life insurance is enough. The interest method is one of the most commonly used techniques for estimating life insurance needs. Simply think about how much money, on a yearly basis, your family would need to live comfortably. Once you have that number in mind, come up with a realistic interest rate you could expect to earn on invested money.

You can use these two figures – the amount of yearly income needed to live comfortably and a realistic interest rate – to calculate the minimum amount of life insurance you need. Divide the annual income figure by the interest rate, and the number you get represents the amount of life insurance you should get. The resulting figure provides the amount of cash that you’ll need to invest in an interest bearing account to provide your family with the annual income they need. Example:  Let’s say your family would need $100,000 per year and you feel that 5% is a realistic interest rate.  Dividing $100,000 by 5% (.05) would come to $2,000,000 needed to provide $100,000.  You can deduct any cash or liquid assets from the $2,000,000.

Eliminate Guesswork with Life Insurance Calculators

Looking for the best way to evaluate how much life insurance is enough? There are several different ways of estimating insurance coverage. The recommended method for determining coverage may vary significantly from one life insurance professional to another. When you want to be sure that you’re making the right decision about the amount of protection your family needs, it’s a good idea to use an online life insurance calculator.

Using a calculator can take the guesswork out of estimating your basic life insurance needs. Instead of using a single mathematical formula to evaluate insurance needs, life insurance calculators typically take multiple factors into consideration, such as inflation, interest rates, human life value, and other important variables.

Make sure that you are using a calculator provided by reputable sources. Be wary of calculators not provided by insurance professionals. Instead, use options provided by highly rated life insurance companies and online life insurance agencies. Their calculators designed specifically to be tools for helping people make sound decisions about their life insurance needs.

Article source: http://www.lifeinsure.com/blog/life-insurance-how-much-death-benefit-do-you-need

Looking for an online life insurance agency? There are many benefits of purchasing life insurance online, but it’s also important to make sure that you make a wise decision when selecting an online agency to handle your life insurance needs. Following the following three tips for choosing an online agency can help you select the best agency for your needs.

• Instant Quotes – One of the primary benefits of working with an Internet insurance agency is the ability to get information about life insurance online quickly and easily. Verify that your agency has the capacity to provide you with instant quotes, so you won’t have to deal with delays when researching policy options.  Also, if you can get the quotes without entering any personal contact information, that’s a bonus.
• Contact Information – When working with an online agency, it’s essential to be sure that the company you’ve selected is legitimate. Verify that the agency has thorough contact information published on its website, complete with a physical address and telephone number.
• Privacy Policy – When you purchase life insurance online, you’ll have to share personal information about yourself with the agency you select. Make certain that the organization you choose to do business with has a sound privacy policy. Make sure that your personal data will be handled securely, treated with respect, and that it won’t be shared with third parties without your consent. Verify that the agency has a published privacy statement on its website, and make sure that you clearly understand the information stated in it.

Comments are closed.

Article source: http://www.lifeinsure.com/blog/three-tips-for-choosing-an-online-life-insurance-agency