How to buy life insurance?

 

How to buy life insurance?

Life insurance is sold by insurance companies, banks, mutuals, on the Internet… There are hundreds of different products.

At the opening of a contract, you make a first payment of money and the insurer gives you legal documents, such as the general conditions, the Key Information Document (DIC) or the information notice, as well as than the subscription form. In general, the contracts leave the freedom to invest whenever you wish, but you must respect a minimum sum which varies from a few tens to several thousand euros.

Life insurance: some advice…

 

·         There are still some contracts requiring the insured to make regular payments, usually monthly. These products are not recommended, as they almost always come with penalties in the event of an interruption in the payment of contributions. It is preferable to choose a “free payment” contract, which you can fund as you wish . Including by regular payments directly debited from your bank account, if you wish to save each month. You can change or stop these direct debits whenever you want, without any consequences.

 

·         Some life insurance policies combine both protection in the event of death and a guarantee in the event of life. They are generally penalizing. It is better to take out two separate products: one for savings, the other for death insurance to protect your loved ones if your assets are not sufficient in the event of premature death. In any case, you can hold as many contracts as you wish : holding life insurance is not limited in number or amount.

 

Designate the beneficiaries of your life insurance

When opening a contract, the intermediary invites you to designate the beneficiary in the event of survival (you in general) and to indicate the beneficiaries who would receive the capital if you were to die prematurely.

The designation of these beneficiaries in the event of death is free : you will indicate the person or persons of your choice, without any limitation. This designation may be changed as often as necessary. Similarly, you can stipulate a non-egalitarian distribution between the beneficiaries if you wish.

 

It is preferable to designate several rows of beneficiaries in the event of death . Thus, if the first on the list is deceased, the sums will go to the beneficiaries indicated in the second row, and so on. All the contracts offer a standard beneficiary clause adapted to the majority of subscribers, which provides that the capital is paid in the event of death "to the spouse, failing that to children born or unborn, living or represented, failing that to the heirs".

 

If these arrangements do not suit you, change them to reflect your priorities.