Final Expense Insurance / Burial Insurance / Whole Life Insurance
Final expense insurance or burial insurance is a type of whole life insurance put in place specifically to cover the cost of one’s final arrangements.
These costs include such things as a traditional burial or a cremation, funeral service, casket, plot, headstone and other such related costs. Start with a free phone consultation to see what plans are available to you:
What exactly is final expense insurance?
Final expense insurance, also known as burial insurance is a type of whole life insurance. It’s purpose is to cover the costs of one’s final arrangements.
Unlike term life insurance which terminates on a given date, whole life insurance never expires as long as the premiums are paid.
Most final expense policies pay out to the beneficiary within 48-72 hours upon providing the insurance company with the official death certificate of the insured.
This allows the insured’s beneficiary and family to have adequate financial means to take care of the necessary costs associated with a loved one passing away.
Other types of life insurance often have longer waiting periods before the death benefit payment is made. Final expense insurance is specifically designed to take care of things for the beneficiary on short notice.
- Phone Quote
- Phone Application
- Phone Signature
Types of Final Expense Insurance
Generally, there are four types of final expense insurance:
- Immediate Coverage
- Graded Coverage
- Return Of Premium Coverage
- Guaranteed Issue Coverage
Different insurance carriers often have different names for these four levels of burial insurance. For example, graded final expense insurance is often called “modified” final expense coverage.
Here’s what the four different types of final expense coverage mean:
Immediate Final Expense Coverage
Immediate final expense coverage is for clients who are generally in good health and their coverage begins immediately when the policy is approved.
Graded Final Expense Coverage
Graded coverage is for clients who do have some health concerns that pose more risk to the insurance carrier. To account for this risk, the insurance carriers will offer what’s called a “graded” plan or coverage.
This means, for example, that if the insured passes away during the first year of coverage, the death benefit would be 30%. And if they pass during the second year of coverage, the death benefit would be 70%. And in the third year and beyond, the beneficiary would receive the full 100% of the death benefit.
Return Of Premium Final Expense Coverage
Return of premium final expense policies, also known as ROP plans, are for people who have some more serious health concerns. The face amounts are generally less than immediate coverage or graded final expense plans.
And for a period of time, (usually two years), the insurance carrier would only pay out the premiums paid in plus some interest to the beneficiary if the insured dies within that time frame. Waiting periods and interest rates vary between insurance carriers.
Guaranteed Issue Final Expense Coverage
Guaranteed issue final expense plans are for people who have immediate, very serious health issues and cannot qualify for any other plans.
Similar to return of premium plans, they have a waiting period before the insurance kicks in. However, the main benefit of guaranteed issue final expense plans is that you don’t need to qualify medically for them, so underwriting is simple and guaranteed. (Guaranteed issue.)
The waiting period varies between carriers and plans, but it’s usually two years. During this time, the insured pays the premiums but has no death benefit if they pass away from health issues.
If they die from an accident during the waiting period, then the insurance company does pay out the regular full face amount of the policy.
Final Expense Insurance Quote
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Jeffrey Smith, Oregon Life Insurance Agent