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Three people discussing life insurance options.
Three people discussing life insurance options.

Understanding the basics of life insurance

Life insurance is unknown territory for a lot of people, so starting with the basics is key. Use this information to drive clarity and results in your sales conversations.

Common uses for life insurance

Life insurance can provide financial support for a customer’s loved ones in so many ways. Consider these valuable applications:
Income replacement
  • Continue to pay the mortgage
  • Settle outstanding debts
  • Maintain a family's current lifestyle
Children’s future needs
  • Maintain payments for day care, private school or college tuition
  • Cover future wedding expenses
  • Carry on child support obligations
Business preservation
  • Keep a business in the family
  • Replace income for family members who depend on the business
  • Enable a partner to buyout the business

Is it time for them to consider life insurance?

Use this quiz to find out. If a customer answers “no” to any of the questions, the time may be right to discuss their options. 

Choosing between term or permanent coverage

Life insurance not only caters to different goals, but also different coverage lengths. Here’s a quick comparison between term and permanent solutions to match up with customers’ timing needs: 
A family enjoying peace of mind from term life insurance.
Term life insurance
  • Coverage for a select period of time
  • Offers a death benefit with no cash value
  • Often one of the most affordable types of life insurance
  • Appeals to families whose debt and future income needs are larger than their savings
Two people discussing permanent life insurance options.
Permanent life insurance
  • Coverage for a lifetime
  • Offers death benefit protection plus additional features like cash value accumulation potential
  • Provides flexibility through features like policy loans or withdrawals* and return or premium options

Having trouble deciding?

Customers can take this quiz to find out if permanent protection is their best match.

Be on the lookout for these life insurance triggers

If a customer mentions any of these life events, it could be a clue that they need new or updated life insurance coverage.
New job
They may not be able to take their previous employer-sponsored life insurance with them. 
Home purchase
Taking on a mortgage means they need to evaluate whether they have enough coverage to offset this new debt.
Marriage or divorce
From reviewing coverage amounts to changing beneficiaries, marriage or divorce is a critical time to reevaluate life insurance needs. 
Baby
More kids likely means more coverage. They'll want to plan for the child's future financial needs. 
Starting a business
There are a lot of expenses and succession needs that come with taking on a small business. Life insurance can help ensure things keep running smoothly. 
Icon Shield
Retirement
In their golden years, life insurance becomes less about insuring their income and more about protecting assets and legacy planning. 

No matter their protection needs, we have you covered.

Explore our product categories to learn more about different types of life insurance and find a solution that best matches customers’ unique goals. 
Illustration of a man looking at a calendar
Term life
Simple, affordable protection for a specific period of time
illustration of a birthday cake
Universal life
Flexible, customizable protection for a lifetime

Other related topics

Couple laughing with their kids while knowing their family is protected by life insurance.
Why life insurance protects what matters to customers
A financial professional conducting a life insurance needs check up with a client.
Life policy review to keep up with customers' changing needs
Financial professional using Protective resources to support her conversation with customers.
Resources to support your customer conversations

We’re here for you

We’re ready to help you deliver the protection and security customers deserve. Reach out to us anytime for questions and support, and we’ll get in touch with you as soon as possible.

*Withdrawals and unpaid loans will reduce the cash value and death benefit of the policy.

Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the applicable variable universal life insurance policy and its underlying investment options before investing. This and other information is contained in the prospectuses for the applicable variable universal life insurance policy and its underlying investment options. Investors should read the prospectuses carefully before investing. Prospectuses may be obtained by contacting Protective at 800-265-1545.

An indexed universal life insurance policy is not an investment in an index, is not a security or stock market investment, and does not participate in any stock or equity investments. Subject to caps and floors.

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