Life insurance: Ownership and investment considerations.

Term insurance Term insurance is what comes to mind when most people contemplate an insurance policy. In this situation, the insured pays a premium to the insurance company on a monthly or yearly basis. These premiums entitle the insured to be paid a benefit in the event of death. The typical policy is applied over a defined period of time. In most instances, the term of the policy is between 10 and 20 years. If that time elapses and the insured is alive there is no residual value remaining in the policy. As a result, >90% of term policies never pay any benefits (no wonder insurance companies are so profitable!).