Maggie is a former lead insurance editor at Reviews.com. She's written more than 70 insurance articles covering homeowners, auto, life, motorcycle, travel, and more.
More from Maggie Overholt
How to Buy Life Insurance
Life insurance can be a difficult item on the financial to-do list. “Buying something for when you die is not appealing, but you still need to take the time to research it,” says Zhaneta Gechev, a 15-year life insurance agent and owner of OneStopLifeInsurance.com. “The biggest mistake I see when people shop for life insurance ...
Insurance Companies Can See Your Social Media. Time to Scrub Your Profiles?
Insurance is not an industry known for tech innovation or startup unicorns. Most of the companies that safeguard our homes, cars, and financial legacies are giants that have been profitably plugging along for generations—some since as early as the 18th century. “Change in the insurance industry has, in the past at least, occurred at the ...
Do I Need Life Insurance?
It’s easy to understand why parents need life insurance. If a family’s main wage earner were to pass away, their surviving spouse and/or children would likely need financial support to help cover things like living expenses, mortgage payments, and college education. Almost everyone agrees on that fact. According to LIMRA and Life Happens’ 2018 life ...
Why No-Exam Life Insurance Isn't Exactly a Free Pass
“No-exam life insurance” has a nice ring to it. It evokes a low-hassle application process and quick turnaround time for your coverage to kick in. No-exam might also sound appealing if you have a pre-existing health condition and worry that a physical exam would disqualify you from getting insured. “Half of all consumers say they ...
4 Things You Can Do With Your Cash Value Life Insurance
If you have a permanent life insurance policy, or you’re considering one, you might be wondering about the “cash value” attached to it. Cash value sounds appealing, sure, but how valuable is it? Can you tap into that money whenever you want? Or are there strings attached? Here, we’ll answer your questions about what it ...
What to Know About Life Insurance Riders
What is a Life Insurance Rider? Your life insurance can be customized through add-ons called “policy riders.” These optional clauses expand what the life insurance policy will cover — so instead of simply paying a death benefit if the insured person passes away, the policy might also offer financial aid if they take on new ...
Living or 'Accelerated' Benefit Life Insurance Riders
What are Living Benefit Life Insurance Riders? Some life insurance riders let you access a portion of the policy’s value during life under special circumstances. These “living benefits” or “accelerated benefits” typically kick in if the insured person develops serious health complications that put would them and their family under financial strain. Because of the ...
Life Insurance Riders that Affect Death Benefit Payments
Do Life Insurance Riders Affect the Death Benefit Payment? Life insurance pays a predetermined amount (known as a “death benefit”) when the insured person passes away. Generally, the death benefit on a life insurance policy is set when it’s purchased and never changes. However there are a few optional clauses, or “riders,” that alter the ...
Term Life Insurance Riders
What are Term Life Insurance Riders? Term riders are optional clauses that can be built into your term life insurance policy for an extra cost. These add-ons make your insurance more flexible, with options to buy additional coverage or switch to permanent coverage at select times throughout the policy. Why would you need that? Because ...
What Is Whole Life Insurance?
What Is Permanent Life Insurance? The first thing to know about whole life insurance: It’s actually a type of permanent life insurance. As a broad category, permanent life insurance is the alternative to term life insurance. It has no expiration date, meaning that a death benefit payout is guaranteed (whereas term life policies only pay ...
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