Many of us will be celebrating the end of a decade and the beginning of a New Year with friends and family tonight! So to be sure we all enjoy the parties and champagne toasts without disaster, here are a few helpful tips to ring in the New Year safely:

• Don’t drink and drive – DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE! If you’re drinking, leave your keys with a designated driver. Otherwise, call a cab! If you are driving (because you haven’t had anything to drink), be aware of your surroundings and pay attention to other drivers on the road. If you think a friend or family member has had too much to drink, don’t let them drive. They will thank you later.
• Avoid fire hazards – If you’re burning candles, be sure to keep them away from flammable items. And never leave them burning in an empty room. Also, make sure your smoke detectors are working properly; this is especially important if you’re hosting a party.
• Travel in groups – Wherever you are traveling this New Year’s Eve, make sure to travel in groups, especially if you’re attending a party in a large city or crowded area. This will help prevent possible foul play and ensure that you don’t get lost, having to welcome in 2010 alone.

Here’s to a safe and happy New Year from all of us at AccuQuote!

As you’re thinking about your New Year’s resolutions for 2010, remember that reviewing your family’s overall financial plan is one of the most important steps you can take in the New Year. A term life insurance policy is an easy and affordable way to protect your family no matter how big your budget is. If you have an existing policy, it’s important to re-evaluate your term life needs yearly. For questions about term life insurance, contact a licensed agent at AccuQuote for a free term life insurance quote.

By Bankrate.com

Admit it, life insurance isn’t the most interesting topic in the world. But the fact is: Death will eventually happen to all of us. So if you want to leave your family adequately protected when you die, then it’s important to avoid these common permanent and term life insurance mistakes.

Following are the most common life insurance mistakes:

• Avoiding “the talk” – (No, not the one about the birds and the bees.) Life insurance isn’t a fun subject to talk about. Why? Because the only way to benefit it from it is to die. But the fact is, it’s important to discuss your family’s life insurance needs so your loved ones are financially prepared if you were to die today.

• It’s a rule of thumb, so that’s how much I have – Financial experts recommend having 10 to 15 times your annual salary in life insurance coverage. However, unlike the popular Snuggie, life insurance isn’t a one-size-fits-all product. Sure it’d be easier that way, but think about it like this. A single person with no dependents won’t need as much coverage as someone who is married with three young children. You can use a life insurance needs calculator to determine how much your life is worth.

• Not shopping around – You wouldn’t buy a car without shopping the market for a better price, would you? It’s the same with life insurance. Before making a long-term financial commitment, be sure you’ve received the best value for your coverage. It’s easy to do this by shopping at a multi-carrier life insurance brokerage firm, like AccuQuote, that compares hundreds of policies among top-rated life insurance companies. This is a better option than buying a policy from a local agent who represents only one or two companies at higher prices.
• Buying it and forgetting it about it – It’s important to review your life insurance needs regularly or when a major life event occurs. For example, the birth of a new child means you’ll probably need to increase your coverage, whereas a divorce or paying off your mortgage may allow you to decrease how much you have. The New Year is a perfect opportunity to review your existing coverage.
• Cancelling an old policy before a new one is in force – “In force” means that if you died today, your beneficiaries would receive the proceeds of your life insurance policy. If you need to switch your existing policy to a new one, which is common since term life insurance rates are near record lows, first be sure that a new policy is in force. Otherwise, you risk leaving your family unprotected.

For more information about permanent and term life insurance and “what not to do,” contact one of AccuQuote’s passionate life insurance agents. And be sure to get a free term life insurance quote in the New Year!

There are many things to consider when shopping for a term life insurance policy. Not only do you need to determine how much coverage will be enough to protect your family (10 to 15 times your annual salary is recommended), but you also need to determine an appropriate term length. Term life insurance protects you for a specified amount of time, typically 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30 years. Financial experts suggest choosing a term length that will protect your children through their college years, or to about age 25.

If you’re younger, it’s best to select a longer term length, especially if you have young children, recently got married or just purchased a home. If you’re older or if you’re in retirement, you probably don’t need a 30-year term, just enough to support your spouse’s retirement and your burial costs. The point is to have enough to protect your loved ones throughout their income-earning years.

If you have questions about how much term life coverage is enough, contact a licensed life insurance agent at AccuQuote. They will talk to you about your family’s overall financial plan and help you determine an appropriate term length. You can receive free term life insurance quotes online today!

Please have a happy, healthy and safe holiday season! We encourage you to spend this time with friends and family, eat cookies and enjoy what the holidays are all about!

Best Wishes,

Byron Udell and everyone at AccuQuote

Employer-provided group life insurance may be an easy and inexpensive way to get protection for your loved ones, but if you lose your job…you may lose your life insurance benefits. And unless you have an individual term life insurance policy in addition to your group coverage, you risk leaving your family without any proceeds at all.

However, group life insurance does offer some benefits. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of employer-provided group life insurance coverage:

Pros

• People with severe health conditions can get coverage – The idea behind group coverage is to spread the risk of claims over a large group of people. Everybody under the policy pays the same premiums, even those who are severely ill because no medical exam is required.
• Age doesn’t matter – The price of an individual term life insurance policy increases as you age, but no matter how old you are as an employee, you can get group life insurance coverage at the same price as everyone else, even those who are several years younger than you.
• It’s inexpensive, convenient and sometimes free – Most group life insurance policies are affordable and easy to sign-up for because the extra legwork isn’t required. And some employers even offer a free low death benefit amount policy.

Cons

• Choice of plan and carrier is made by the employer – Your options are very limited when it comes to group life insurance coverage, so it’s important to make sure you’re fully aware of your life insurance needs before making the decision to opt for group life insurance.
• Costly if you’re young and healthy – Although group life insurance is usually affordable, you’ll probably pay more than you would with a cheap term life insurance policy if you’re young and healthy. Why? Because with group life insurance, the mortality risk is spread over a large group of people, without considering your own and health and lifestyle factors.
• Coverage ends when you leave your job – Nothing is certain. In the unfortunate event that you lose your job due to bad economic times or have to leave due to a serious illness or disability, you’ll most likely have a very hard time finding new life insurance coverage. Therefore, if you’re young, relatively healthy and are looking for coverage for a guaranteed amount of time, an individual term life insurance policy is probably a better option.

But the most important thing to remember is that having some life insurance protection is better than having no coverage at all.

For a free term life insurance quote, contact a licensed life insurance agent at AccuQuote. In a matter of minutes they can help you find the cheapest term life insurance that fits in your family’s financial plan.

December 23, 2009

Non-traditional beneficiaries

Description:

Did you know that you can leave the proceeds of your life insurance policy to an organization you support? In this podcast, Byron Udell, the nation’s foremost life insurance and annuity industry expert, explains non-traditional beneficiary designations.

Size: 3.68 MB

Length: 4:01

Click Here to Download

Subscribe in ITunes

Determining how much life insurance you need can be tricky, but by calculating your most critical financial expenses you can pretty much be sure how much will be enough to protect your family.

Many financial experts recommend having 10 to 20 times your annual salary in coverage. But life insurance isn’t a one size fits all product. What you really need to consider is how much money your family will need at the time of your death. Their need for this money is based on two things:

1. How much money will be needed to meet immediate financial obligations? – This is the sum of final expenses and other lump-sum obligations. For example, uncovered medical costs, funeral expenses, estate-settlements costs, outstanding debts, mortgage payments and college tuition.
2. How much future income is needed to allow your family to continue living a comfortable lifestyle? – This category requires calculating your current day to day living expenses and future needs. For example, groceries, utility bills, childcare, etc.

AccuQuote’s life insurance needs calculator provides a rough estimate of your life insurance needs by calculating your answers to the following questions:

• Annual income before tax
• Percentage of income needed by dependents
• Age
• Number of years benefits are needed
• Annual estimated inflation rate
• Annual estimated interest rate

To find out how much permanent or term life insurance coverage will be enough to protect your family, use AccuQuote’s life insurance needs calculator. Once you calculate your needs, AccuQuote can give you a free term life insurance quote and help you find the best term life insurance coverage you need to protect your family.

The unemployment rate in the United States has reached a 26-year high. And despite the fortunate news that unemployment has dropped from 10.2 percent to 10 percent in November, the need for individually underwritten term life insurance has never been greater.

Why? Because relying on all types of insurance benefits through your employer may unfortunately be over. Traditionally, group insurance coverage has been a convenient and affordable means of protection. However, group insurance plans rarely, if ever, offer portability rights. This means if you lose your job…you lose your insurance benefits too. And if your loved ones depend on you financially, losing your life insurance could put them in financial danger.

The good news is that individually underwritten term life insurance is an affordable alternative to group life insurance. In fact, it’s so affordable that a healthy 40-year old man can obtain a 10-year level term life insurance policy worth $500,000 for less than $21 a month. And a healthy woman can obtain the same type and amount of coverage for less than $18 a month! And the even better news? Individual term life coverage is a safe option because if you lose your job…you won’t lose your coverage…and you family will remain protected.

For more information on how individual term life insurance can play a huge role in your family’s financial plan, contact an experienced life insurance agent at AccuQuote. Since AccuQuote is a multi-carrier brokerage firm, we offer options from dozens of top-rated life insurance companies. This means we can help you find the right type, right amount and right length of coverage…all for a competitive price. Get a free term life insurance quote today!

For many of us winter has arrived…and it’s here to stay until next spring. The question is are you ready? Have you taken steps to winterize your home so you can live more comfortably and save money this season?

If you haven’t…here are five tips from About.com to help you prepare for the winter and minimize maintenance costs:

1. Furnace inspection

• Call a professional to inspect and clean your furnace
• Change furnace filters monthly
• Consider upgrading to a programmable thermostat
• If your home is heated by a hot-water radiator, bleed the valves by opening them slightly and when water appears, close them
• Remove all flammable material near your furnace

2. Prepare the fireplace

• Cap the top of the chimney to keep out rodents and birds
• Call a professional to clean your chimney
• Store firewood or chop wood in a dry place away from your home’s exterior
• Be sure the fireplace damper opens and closes properly
• Check the mortar between the bricks

3. Check your home’s exterior, doors and windows

• Check for cracks and exposed entry points…seal them
• Use weatherstripping around doors and caulk windows
• Replace cracked glass
• Cover basement windows with shields
• Replace summer screens with storm windows…if necessary

4. Inspect roof, gutters and downspouts

• Add extra insulation to the attic to prevent heat from escaping
• Check flashing to ensure water cannot enter your home
• Replace worn roof shingles or tiles
• Clean out the gutters
• Install leaf guards on the gutters to direct water away from your home

5. Prevent plumbing freezes

• Locate your water main in case you need to shut it off
• Drain all garden hoses
• Insulate exposed plumbing pipes
• Drain air conditioner pipes and shut off the water valve
• IF you go on vacation, leave the heat on, set to at least 55 degrees

For more money saving tips keep reading AccuQuote’s blog, become a fan of AccuQuote on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. And don’t forget to check here first to learn about the benefits of term life insurance. By shopping online for free term life insurance quotes, you may be able to save up to 70% on your term life coverage!