About Group Life Insurance

Many people rely on the group life insurance that they receive via their employer, but this is not always the best of ideas. Although it may be free, you do not usually get the level of coverage that you need. For the most part, free group life insurance policies usually equal about one year's salary. There are some companies that offer more, but this is the general standard.

When you were hired the human resources department probably made a big deal out of the group life insurance that they offer for free. While it is a nice benefit to have, it is not nearly as beneficial as they make it out to be.

The main issue with group life insurance is that you do not have any control over what happens. There is nothing to stop your employer from getting rid of your group life insurance altogether. Additionally, if you are laid off or fired for any reason you do not get to hold onto your benefits.

Also, a group life insurance policy never gives you as much coverage as you need. Experts recommend that your life insurance policy cover you for at least five times as much as your annual salary. It is very rare to find an employer that offers this much under a group life insurance policy.

The question at this point is what you should do if you want to buy more coverage. There are really two options that you can look into. You can either buy another policy on your own, or you can decide to purchase the additional coverage through your employer.

The good thing about buying into a group life insurance plan is that you will be offered a premium based on your age, and no other factors. For this reason, if you have some health problems this may be the way to go. Of course, if you are young and perfectly healthy it does not make a lot of sense.

On the other hand, buying a policy on your own allows you to shop around until you find something that suits your needs. You can shop with both price and coverage level in mind.

It is wise to look into coverage in addition to your group life insurance policy. Although this is a nice add on from your employer, in most cases it is not enough to rely on.