You buy life insurance to protect your loved ones. But life can bring many changes. With these changes, you may consider life insurance replacement as your needs change.
Replacing a life insurance policy with a new one may be necessary to ensure your family is adequately covered. In this guide, you’ll learn when replacing life insurance is beneficial and how it works.
Table of Contents
- How Replacing a Life Insurance Policy Works
- Things to Know About Replacing a Policy
- Reasons for Replacing Life Insurance Policies
How long has it been since you first bought life insurance? Explore life insurance rates in 2023.
How Replacing a Life Insurance Policy Works
Replacing a life insurance policy means purchasing a new policy and canceling your existing one. You can purchase a policy from any insurance company you choose and you’re not obligated to keep the same agent or insurer that you used for your first policy.
In fact, it’s possible that the insurer you originally purchased from no longer offers the best pricing for you. As time goes on, your circumstances change. You may be surprised by the factors that can affect life insurance pricing, including:
- Age
- Changes in health
- New job
- New hobbies
When you apply for your new policy, the application will ask ask if you currently have life insurance and if you plan to replace it. You’re not required to replace your policy, and you can own more than one policy.
However, the insurance company needs to make sure that you won’t be over-insured. Everyone has an insurability limit, and life insurers are happy to sell coverage to people, but they don’t want to create any financial incentives for people to die.
Explore the important rules and guidelines that life insurance policyowners need to be aware of.
How to Get the Best Price on a Replacement Policy
It’s in your favor to work with a life insurance broker, like Quotacy, who can shop the market for you and give unbiased advice.
Comparing rates across multiple insurers is the best way to ensure you’re getting the best deal, and you’ll never be pressured to make a purchase.
Things to Know About Replacing a Policy
Before replacing a life insurance policy, there are a few key points to consider.
Learn About Renewal and Conversion Options
If you’ve been diagnosed with a chronic or terminal illness, it’s possible that you are no longer insurable for a new life insurance policy. Simply replacing your policy may not be feasible.
If you’re now uninsurable, renewing or converting your current policy may be the best option.
You May Need a New Medical Exam
If you’re looking to replace your current life insurance policy, you’ll likely need to undergo a new medical exam, just as you did when you first purchased your policy.
Depending on your age and the coverage amount you’re seeking, you may have the option to skip a medical exam. Life insurance companies are working to make the buying process less complicated and that includes eliminating a medical exam when it makes sense.
Your Waiting Periods Start Over
Life insurance policies come with certain clauses and exclusions. Some of these, like the contestability period and the suicide clause, come with waiting periods that reset when you get new coverage.
- Contestability period: Typically two years, during which, if the insured dies, the insurance company has the right to contest the claim based on any misrepresentations made on the application
- Suicide clause: Allows the insurer to deny a claim if the insured’s death is caused by suicide in the first two years.
There May Be Surrender Fees
Surrender fees are charged when the policy is surrendered within a certain period.
The fees are high when you first buy the policy but decrease as years go on until it’s nonexistent, typically after ten years. If you’re replacing a policy while it is still within the surrender period, there may be a fee to transfer the cash value from one policy to another.
Be Aware of Churning
Churning is when an unethical life insurance agent persuades a policyholder to replace a policy for the sake of earning a new commission. Fortunately, there are established procedures that must be followed by life insurers and their contracted agents and brokers to help prevent churning.
This unethical practice does not happen that often, but it’s good to be aware of. If a life insurance agent tries to convince you to replace your current policy when you don’t need to, get a second opinion.
Reasons for Replacing Life Insurance
In general, people replace their life insurance policies to change how much coverage they have, to reduce their premium, or to find a policy better suited to their needs.
Top 10 reasons why people replace their life insurance policies with a new plan:
- Your current term life insurance policy is expiring and the premiums will increase if you renew it.
- You had a baby and now need more coverage.
- You bought a new home and have more debt.
- You are retiring.
- You found a cheaper policy.
- You quit smoking or using tobacco.
- Your health has improved since you purchased your current policy.
- You have remarried.
- You have a term life insurance policy that doesn’t have living benefits.
- You no longer want to continue paying permanent life insurance premiums.
All of these are valid reasons for wanting to replace or switch life insurance policies.
Before officially replacing your current policy, ask yourself some questions.
Questions to ask if you currently have a term life insurance policy:
- Are your current premiums affordable? Will they change?
- Are your premiums higher for the new proposed policy?
- Are there any added benefits with the new proposed policy?
- Will you need a new medical exam?
- What are the new waiting periods for the new proposed policy?
- Is the new insurance company of the same quality and stability as your current insurer?
Questions to ask if you currently have a permanent life insurance policy:
- Are your current premiums affordable? Will they change?
- Are your premiums higher for the new proposed policy?
- What are the acquisition costs for the new proposed policy?
- Are there any added benefits with the new proposed policy?
- Will you need a new medical exam?
- What are the new waiting periods for the new proposed policy?
- Is the new insurance company of the same quality and stability as your current insurer?
- Will you pay surrender charges on your current policy?
- What are the interest rate guarantees in the new proposed policy versus your current policy?
- Are there tax consequences of buying the new policy?
- Do I qualify for a 1035 exchange?
If you aren’t sure of the answers to these questions, talk to your agent and discuss them. If you are no longer in touch with your agent, a Quotacy agent can help you.
Tips to Consider Before Replacing Your Policy
Life insurance is an important asset that may save your loved ones from financial ruin, so don’t make big changes without considering the following:
- Compare your current policy with any new policy you’re considering
- Review your current policy’s benefits carefully, you may have options
- Changes in health and age will impact your new eligibility
When you buy your new life insurance policy and you’re ready to officially cancel your old policy, you can just let it terminate on its own if it’s a term life insurance policy.
If your old policy is a permanent life insurance policy, canceling it has more moving parts so be sure to work with your life insurance agent on the best methods of surrendering it.
Compare Quotes & Apply for a Replacement Policy Today
Buying a new life insurance policy through Quotacy is beneficial because we’ll shop your case to multiple top-rated insurance companies to make sure you get the best price possible. The insurance company you originally purchased from may not offer the best price now. Your life has changed and a different insurance company may be a better fit.
To get an idea of what a new life insurance policy may cost you, run free term life insurance quotes instantly here at Quotacy. Our quoting tool allows you to see real quotes instantly and no need to give away any contact information.
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