What Is Life Insurance?

Life insurance is the one form of insurance policy that has nothing to do with protecting you, but financially protecting your beneficiaries if you die. There are several different kinds of life insurance, but the most common are term insurance and permanent insurance.

Term insurance provides only protection and flexible premiums for a specific period of time, during which, if you die, your beneficiaries will be awarded a benefit. People usually opt for term life insurance until they reach a point where they consider it "safe" to withdraw, such as when their home is paid off or their children graduate from college. Permanent life insurance provides lifelong protection to beneficiaries, and is priced for you to keep over a long period of time. This type of insurance acquires cash value, and the premiums are usually fixed.