Employer-Provided Life Insurance Policies: Is Yours Working For You?

For most of us, important decisions affecting our loved ones don’t come easily. Buying a home, sending children to college and retirement all take careful planning. Yet when it comes to life insurance, many people rely on what is offered through their employer, and that may not be enough to help protect their financial plans.

Sure, employer-provided life insurance gives an added layer of financial protection to your loved ones after you’re gone. But have you considered how far that coverage will go? Employer-provided life insurance policies (commonly called “group policies”) cover a wide range of people and may not meet your specific needs. On the other hand, a personal individual life insurance policy offers greater flexibility and may be the right choice to help protect what you’ve worked hard to build over the years.

Consider the following when deciding if an individual policy is right for you:

• An individual life insurance policy is linked to you, not your employer. This makes the policy portable, so no matter where your career path leads, you’re covered. You also won’t be adversely affected if your employer makes changes to their group life insurance plan.

• Employer-provided policies may be more expensive because they don’t take your age and health into consideration.

• Unlike a group policy, individual life insurance gives you the flexibility to choose your level of coverage. That means you can select an amount of coverage based on your needs rather than changing your plans to meet the constraints of a group policy.

• With an individual life insurance policy you can choose how long your coverage will last. This provides another level of customizable coverage not offered through employer-provided group coverage.

• Buying your own policy allows you the freedom to select your insurance carrier. So you have the option of choosing a reputable company that’s right for you.

With a personal life insurance policy, you have the ability to help safeguard the future you’ve planned, for the ones you love.

So if you haven’t thought about getting your own life insurance policy, now may be the time to consider how it can help protect the dreams you share with your family.