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Life Insurance and Retirement

  FAMILY FINANCIAL PROTECTION 

In general, the primary reason for a retiree to own life insurance is to pay for burial and funeral expenses.

Typically there is no employment income to protect (such as a young worker with dependents), unless the retiree still is employed and a spouse (or another dependent family member) relies on that income.

A benefit amount of $10,000 to $20,000 is usually sufficient to pay for funeral and burial expenses.

Life Insurance for Retirees with Large Debts

For married retirees with large debts, owning life insurance can make sense by providing security for the surviving spouse.

For instance, assume a married couple in their late 60s has a mortgage balance of $100,000 with another 15 years of payments. Owning enough life insurance to pay off the mortgage may ensure the surviving spouse can stay in the home until he or she passes away.

Life Insurance If You Have a Traditional Pension Plan

One other situation in which owning life insurance may make sense is for a married retiree with a traditional pension plan. In some cases, the pension plan may offer a payout benefit based only on the life of a participant. When that participant dies, their surviving spouse would not receive any continued income from the pension plan. If the participant has life insurance however, then a surviving spouse would have those funds available for living expenses after the participant dies.

Understanding Annuities

A better solution to this pension situation is for a participant to choose a joint life annuity option, if it is offered by the pension plan. Though the benefit payout amount is reduced, it will cover the lives of both a husband and wife, regardless of who may die first.

In general, those individuals in their 60s and beyond would be better served by spending their resources on immediate annuities rather than life insurance.

(In contrast to a deferred annuity, a retirement-saving vehicle, an immediate annuity is a retirement-payout vehicle.)

Remember that life insurance protects you from an untimely death. Annuities protect you from running out of money in retirement, which is often a major concern for most retirees. You might think of immediate annuities as way to provide income for life should you live longer than expected.

To make sure you have a steady, consistent stream of income, choose an immediate fixed annuity rather than an immediate variable annuity. Income from an immediate variable annuity may increase or decrease over time. Retirees looking for a source of stable and secure income will typically be better served by immediate fixed annuities.  

Immediate annuities basically have two types of payment options: one version is for lifetime payments, and the other is for a set period of years, such as five, 10 or 20 years. With the lifetime payout option, payments will continue as long as you live (or as long as you and your beneficiary live). When you die, the payments cease, and generally there is no “refund” to your heirs should you die earlier than expected.

With the set period of years option, payments will last for that exact period of time. If the immediate annuity owner dies before the time period is up, payments will go to an heir for the remainder of the time period. If the annuity owner lives longer than the set time period, payments stop at the end of the predetermined time period.

Retirees can have the best of both worlds with their immediate annuities. Some will buy an immediate annuity with a lifetime payout and another immediate annuity with a set period of years. This approach protects your resources whether you live longer or die sooner than expected.

Three Annuity Security Tips

Some basic tips for annuity owners concerned about the safety of their money:

• Check your insurer’s rating. “Moody’s rating” or “Standard and Poor’s rating.” A rating of A or better is a good sign.

• Know your state's guaranty fund limit. $100,000 is a typical amount ; if your annuity is worth more than your state’s limit, you may be at risk of losing some of your investment if your insurer falls into financial trouble.

• Buy annuities in smaller amounts from different insurers. If you own more than your state guaranty fund limit, consider spreading out your annuity purchases among different insurers. If you need to split an existing annuity because it’s above the limit, be sure to check for early withdrawal penalties, such as surrender charges.

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