Doesn’t life insurance last…for life? How and why do life insurance policies end?
First, let’s summarize life insurance in general. With any type of life insurance (term life insurance and whole life insurance are two common types of life insurance), a policyholder will pay a periodic premium towards their policy to provide a death benefit for their beneficiaries if they were to pass away. If the insured were to die while holding an active policy, their beneficiaries would receive the death benefit of the policy.
Life insurance policies can end for a number of reasons – the insured could decide to cancel the policy or a policy could lapse due to non-payment of premiums.In the simplest terms, maturity in life insurance refers to a permanent life insurance reaching its maturity date.
Even though types of permanent life insurance are designed to last for the lifetime of the insured (as long as premiums are paid), for legal reasons, a maturity date is also set. We’ll go more into this further in the article. So what happens when my life insurance matures?
Life insurance maturity date
One of the differences between term life insurance and permanent life insurance is the existence of a maturity date.
Term life insurance: This type of life insurance does not actually have a maturity date. Instead, term life insurance has an expiration date. A term life policyholder chooses the term length when signing up for a policy, usually anywhere between five and 30 years. A term life insurance policy will reach its expiration date when it reaches the end of the term, unless the insured is able to renew their policy for another term.
Permanent life insurance: This type of life insurance is designed to last for your entire life (as long as you continue to pay your premiums). However, even these types of life insurance policies have a maturity date, usually when the policyholder is between 100 and 121 years old.
What happens when a policy matures?
What happens when a life insurance policy matures (or if a policy matures at all) also depends on the type of life insurance you’ve selected.
Term life insurance: There is no maturity date on term life insurance because this type of policy does not mature. If the insured is still living at the end of the term of the policy, it could expire or the policyholder may be able to renew or purchase another policy to provide some future financial protection if they were to pass away during the next term.
Permanent life insurance: If a permanent life insurance policyholder lives to the maturity date as stated in the policy contract, the policy value would be paid to the insured (the owner of the policy).
Summary
The expiration or maturity date on life insurance varies based on the type of policy you’ve selected. The expiration date on term life insurance is at the end of the term length you selected. If you have a form of permanent life insurance, then it can last up until you turn 121.
Then, there’s your other option
Term life insurance, like the policies offered by Bestow, can be a way to provide a measure of financial protection if you were to pass away within the term length that you chose. With premiums starting at $11 per month, a death benefit could go towards the mortgage, college tuition, or any of life’s big expenses, allowing you to continue to help provide for your family, if you were to pass away within the policy term. The quote is free and the application takes only minutes.
