Premier 2
Georgia exemplifies the saying our hero, the late Marcus Mosiah Garvey :
"The height of great men reached and kept was not attained by sudden flight, but they while their companion slept was toiling upward through the night.”
Insurance Tips
- Review Your Insurance Needs
Choose the kind of policy that has benefits that most closely fit your needs. Consider the number of people who are dependent upon you financially and how much life insurance you need to buy. Will you have substantial debts and taxes owed after your death?
- Know Your Options
There are two basic types of life insurance: term insurance and cash-value insurance. You may wish to combine cash-value life insurance with term insurance for the period of your greatest need for life insurance to replace income. Make sure the price is right.
- Read Your Policy Carefully before Signing
Never buy a policy you don’t understand - if you are given illustrations or booklets, save these materials with your policy. Make sure you understand the guarantees in your policy and the surrender penalties if you choose to drop the policy at any time. Ask your agent or company about anything that is not clear to you.
- Regularly Review Your Policy; Update Accordingly
Review your life insurance program with your agent or company annually to keep up with changes in your income and your needs. This includes a review of your net worth to reconsider the prospects your survivors may face when you pass away.
- Consider Replacement Cost
It may be costly to replace your insurance if you change your mind during the early years of the policy. Don’t drop one policy and buy another without a thorough study of the new policy and the one you currently have.
- Make sure that you fully understand any policy you’re considering and that you’re comfortable with the company, agent, and product. Have your agent explain life insurance terms, benefits, and costs.
- Look for a company that is reputable and financially strong.
- Always answer questions on your life insurance application truthfully.
- Be sure your application has been filled out accurately. Promptly notify your agent or company of errors or missing information.
- When you buy a policy, make your cheque payable to the insurance company, not the agent. Be sure to get a receipt. Contact the company or agent if you don’t get your policy within 60 days.
- Contact your original company, agent, or financial advisor before canceling your current policy to buy a new one. If your health has declined, you may no longer be insurable at affordable rates. If you replace one cash value policy with another, the cash value of the new policy may be relatively small for several years.
- Review your policy periodically or when a major event occurs in your life, such as a birth, divorce, remarriage, or retirement to be sure your coverage is adequate and your beneficiaries are correctly named.
- Policies differs widely in coverage and cost, ask you Guardian Life insurance advisors to show you different plans so you can compare them.
- Make sure your insurance portfolio covers a wide range of benefits such as protection dollar upon death, lump sum payment if you were to become critically ill and disability and savings benefit.
- Read and understand the policy. Make sure it provides the kind of coverage that’s right for you. You don’t want unpleasant surprises when you’re sick, in the hospital or upon your death.
- Check to see that the policy states when claims will be honoured and what is excluded from coverage.
- Make sure there is a “free look” clause. Most companies give you at least 10 days to look over your policy after you receive it. If you decide it is not for you, you can return it and have your premium refunded.
- Always remember to read your application, particularly if the insurance representative completed the application for you, to ensure that all information is correct. The company can decline the policy if information was not disclosed on the application.
- All health plans have a provision titled “Exclusions and Limitations.” Such provisions should be reviewed very carefully before you accept the policy. If a benefit or service is limited or excluded, you will not be covered even though treatment may be considered medically necessary.
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Agent of the Month
- March 2012
Georgia Williams