Who offers cheaper and better term life insurance than Primerica?
August 2, 2010 by
Filed under term life insurance
We just had a Primerica representative come in our house and try to tell us why we need life insurance.
I do agree my wife and I would like a term life insurance plan, but am not sure if I want to go with Primerica. They are not the cheapest and I read some good and bad things about them.
Can anyone recommend some alternative companies?
How is Transamerica? They seem to pop up in the top 10 insurance company list a lot.
Depending on what country you are in (US/Canada), rates seem to vary btw standalone life insurance companies like Primerica and insurance arms of banks. What i did with the Primerica guy that came to our house was to ask for Preferred rate which was as low as i could find elsewhere. Also pls make sure that he/she gives you quotes for several amts eg 150K, 200K, 250K etc. to see what u can afford.
Rule of thumb: always cover your mortgage balance and your children’s future uni education – that way they always have a roof over their heads and can get thru uni if anything happens. Hope this helps
One of the Primerica’s problem is their “one size fits all” attitude – their offer is very narrow. So yes, their policy MAY suit you, however there’s a great chance that you can find something better around, something with better conditions for you.
The second problem is hidden in Primerica’s MLM structure. If you buy policy from their repreentative, there is commission for him, for the upper level, and another upper level and so on. So on policy feeds maybe 2-5 agents with commissions. So naturally it has to reflect in higher prices. Standard insurers have 1-2 level structure
I have a summary of primerica’s disadvantages on my site, wit very long discussion where you can find answers on virtually any question about primerica rates…http://lsminsurance.ca/canadian/term-life/primerica
if you want cheaper option – google it. web is full of instant online quotes like http://lsminsurance.ca/calculators/canada/term-life.php
First of all, Primerica offers one type of insurance and they’re trained to “teach” you why that’s the only type you need. They mislead you into believing their product is all that’s needed. Why? Because that’s all they sell.
To answer your original question, most ANY company will offer “better” insurance. The #1 reason I say this is because Primerica’s term insurance can’t be converted to a permanent policy. After your Primerica presentation, this may seem like not such a big deal, but it is HUGE.
Next…the price! It’s outlandishly expensive. The person that sat with you is NOT a financial planner and is most likely not even licensed to talk about investments. You’ll get no professional advice from them. They’re there solely to get you to buy their products and join them in a business venture.
STAY AWAY!!
Primerica may not be the cheapest term insurance, they are definitely not the most expensive. According to the IMSA and the Better Business Bureau, Primerica has excellent quality service. Check out this list of companies who are members of the Insurance Marketplace Standards Association (IMSA)http://www.imsaethics.org/Content/IMSAQualifiedCompanies_34.aspx While there are well over 1000 life insurance companies in America, only a small handful have strong financial ratings and excellence in customer service to qualify for membership of the IMSA.
Primerica is also member of the Better Business Bureau with accredited business standards since 1980 and has a rating of A+. Transamerica is also a member of the BBB with rating of B+, but fail to meet the accredited business standards.
Does cheaper really mean better? You may find companies that are cheaper, but how is their service? How do they handle their death claims? Primerica takes about 7-10 days to pay their death claims. In the year 2008, Primerica paid an average of $2.9 million in death claims every day. How to they handle refunds or exchanges? How is their customer service? How do they protect your privacy information?
For the best results check with an independent broker that represents a large number of companies.
Each companies premiums for an individual will be different. Have had couples that I have put into different policies from companies because the rates for example the husband were the best from one company but another company had better rates for the wife (about a $35 difference per month).
Shop around and do your due diligence is the best way to get the best rates many of the sites on the Internet only quote from a few companies so a local agent is your best bet.
Andrew S. CEO
Florida Affordable Insurance, Inc.