Life Insurance Buying Checklist

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Define the need

• List debts that would burden your family: mortgage, auto loans, credit cards, private student loans and any co-signed debt.
• Estimate how many years of income your household would need to replace and what a surviving spouse or partner would earn.
• Add future costs such as childcare, college and final expenses, and subtract savings, existing coverage and employer group life insurance.
• Decide how long the need lasts: until the mortgage is paid, until children are independent, or for life.

Choose the product

• Decide between term for temporary needs and permanent coverage for lifelong needs such as estate liquidity or a special-needs dependent.
• Check whether the term policy is convertible to permanent coverage and until what age or date.
• Review which riders you actually want, such as accelerated death benefit, waiver of premium or child term, and what each costs.

Compare quotes

• Get at least three quotes with the same coverage amount, term length, health class and tobacco status.
• Ask whether each premium is guaranteed level for the entire term, and whether the quoted health class is estimated or final.
• Check each insurer's financial strength rating from at least one independent rating agency and your state's complaint data.

Apply accurately

• Gather medical history, medication list, doctor names, dates of diagnoses and family history before filling out the application.
• Answer every question truthfully and completely, including tobacco or nicotine use, hazardous activities and prior declined applications.
• Do not cancel any existing coverage until the new policy is approved, issued and in force.

After approval

• Review the issued policy during the free-look period and confirm that the coverage amount, rate class and beneficiaries match what you applied for.
• Name primary and contingent beneficiaries with full legal names and keep their contact details current.
• Set up automatic payments, store the policy where your family can find it and tell your beneficiaries it exists.