Over the years the most common reason I’ve seen for life insurance lapsing is that 1. The life insurance agent didn’t ask or didn’t care what your budget was or 2. You didn’t know or didn’t care what your budget was.
I know it seems kind of silly that you wouldn’t know what your own budget was but honestly, with rare exceptions, Americans make a mockery of their own budget with the use of credit cards and my wife’s favorite, the “look at all the money I saved sleight of hand”. But first let’s consider that nice young person on the phone or sitting across the desk from you. He or she is paid by commission and there’s two ways they fail when staring down a potential sale, 1. By not selling enough or 2. By coming in second. That’s a delicate dance because the best commission or compensation for agents comes with the high dollar products such as UL, GUL or IUL.
The UL products also have the distinction, unlike term insurance, of having ongoing renewal commissions. With term life insurance agents get a commission in the first year and any future money from that client would just have to come from their need for more life insurance, and if the agent does their job of customer service, being there when that need comes up. Unfortunately most agents opt for the large money with renewals which in most cases leaves a trashed budget for the customer
Or they come in second because someone like me who thrives on doing the right thing, and believes customer service is the right thing to do, not just another sales opportunity, comes along. I am a firm believer that permanent life insurance products were never made to fix temporary life insurance problems and that term life insurance is the answer to almost every common life insurance need. I believe that when a customer is served within their budget, the policy will still be in force when it’s needed.
Bottom line. What can a customer do to make sure they stay on track with their goals. 1, Define your life insurance needs and how long they will last.(I have 3 kids and the last will graduate college in 15 years) or (my retirement will be fully funded and my house paid off in 20 years). Set a budget not just for life insurance, but for everything. If you’re spending more on frivolous things than important, consider the wisdom and make changes if you need to. If you have questions or need to get quotes and talk budget, call or email me directly. My name is Ed Hinerman. Let’s talk.
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