Category: Life Insurance

T.D. McNeil Insurance Services works with people just like you every day in Folsom, CA to claim life insurance benefits. Once the claims are distributed, the funds can be used to pay off a mortgage, pay off tuition expenses for college, or just about any other way the beneficiary sees fit. Keep reading to learn more about life insurance and how to find out if you are a beneficiary.

What Is the Beneficiary of a Life Insurance Policy?

A beneficiary is the individual or organization named in legal documents as the recipient of a person’s financial assets. Regarding life insurance, the payout will go to the beneficiary listed in the policy.

Even if a will says that the life insurance payment should go to a different person, most of the time, the beneficiary named in the policy is the one who gets the money. Policyholders can choose a secondary beneficiary, also called a contingent beneficiary, in case the main beneficiary of the insurance policy can’t or won’t get the money. In the event a primary or secondary beneficiary is unable to receive life insurance benefits, the funds will go to a residuary beneficiary. 

How to Find Out if You’re a Beneficiary?

It is not up to the life insurance company to tell the people who are supposed to get the money from the policy. If you think you might be the policy’s beneficiary, you should contact the probate court where the person who died lived. Life insurance beneficiary data is public information, so you can check the person’s will to see if you’re listed in it. In the event that you are, you’ll then need to contact the executor of the will. 

Give Us A Call

Think you’re the beneficiary of a life insurance policy in Folsom, CA? Contact T.D. McNeil Insurance Services today to learn more about the process of finding out if you are owed any beneficiary funds. 

There are two main types of life insurance: term life and permanent life insurance. While the former lasts for a specific amount of time, the latter lasts your entire lifetime. 

So, what’s the difference between the two, and which one is better? The answer to the second part of the question depends on many different factors, such as whether you prefer the affordability of term life or the cash value/lifelong protection that the permanent life option provides. 

T.D. McNeil Insurance Services in Folsom, CA  provides this guide in navigating the differences between term life and permanent life insurance. Knowing this information can help you make a well-informed decision for your purchase.

Term vs Permanent: What You Need To Know

• Premium cost – Although term life insurance generally costs less than permanent life insurance in the beginning, the cost of term life premiums usually goes up upon each renewal, whereas the coast of permanent life premiums stays the same. 
• Length of coverage – With term life insurance, you have many options when it comes to coverage length, including 1-, 20-, and 30-year terms. And term life usually offers more flexibility than permanent life. Designed for lifelong protection, permanent insurance, which includes universal life and whole life, is a little less flexible than term insurance. 
• Cash value – Unlike term life insurance, permanent life insurance comes with a savings component that’s referred to as cash value. The longer you pay your premiums, the more the cash value increases. You can either borrow against your permanent insurance policy and use the funds as necessary or you can just cash in. Because term insurance lacks a savings component, it doesn’t see cash value growth. 
• Ability to convert – Term insurance policies can be converted to permanent policies. However, permanent policies cannot be converted. 

If you’re interested in purchasing life insurance and protecting your loved ones from financial loss and providing them with a comfortable financial cushion, look no further than T.D. McNeil Insurance Services.

As a family-owned insurance agency, we serve the Folsom, CA area and ensure our services meet our clients’ specific needs. For a free, no-obligation consultation, give us a call at 916-983-2561, email us at info@tdmins.com, or visit our office. 

The experts at T.D. McNeil Insurance Services work to help make the life insurance shopping process simple for their clients. They are there to help Folsom, CA residents select their policy and name a beneficiary. Naming a beneficiary is often the most challenging part of purchasing a life insurance policy many people encounter. Designating a beneficiary requires careful thought and consideration to select the best person to receive your benefits. 

Here are some tips to help you choose a beneficiary for your life insurance policy:

Married without Children

Selecting your spouse as your beneficiary is probably your first choice. Doing so ensures your spouse does not suffer a financial setback in the event of your passing. Having a contingent beneficiary, such as a parent, sibling, or even a charity, might be a good idea if you and your spouse pass away.

Married with Children

Again, selecting your spouse as your beneficiary is the most common choice married couples with children make. However, you may also want to consider naming contingent beneficiaries, such as the designated guardians for your children, if both you and your spouse pass. 

Single without Children

When selecting a beneficiary as a single person, you must consider who would suffer financial hardship when you pass. For example, consider anyone who may have co-signed a loan or mortgage for you. 

Single Parent

Single parents need to select a beneficiary that is also the child’s legal custodian, who is often their other parent, in the event of your passing. If you do not want the funds to go to your child’s legal custodian, you can have the money go into a trust and name the trust as the beneficiary. If your child’s other parent is not alive, you can select the child’s designated guardian as the beneficiary. 

Selecting a beneficiary can be a difficult decision, which is why T.D. McNeil Insurance Services is available to help Folsom, CA residents to get their questions answered.