"Bad Credit Cards" - A place to get help and put your complaints

Mostly my posts are about the sites or blogs which provide helpful information relating to finance and money topics. I try to review the site/blogs on a very neutral tone alongwith the description of the service they provide, so it is easy for you to estimate what you can get from the service.

There are many issues related to credit cards for example if you are not satisfied with your credite card company or their services, where to file complaint? or where to go for a solution of a dispute relating credit cards or companies?
There is place for these kind of questions and that is Bad credit cards.org which is a non-profit site.

MIssion: "Bad credit cards.org allows you to post or voice your complaint about your credit card company and to help by supplying you with the resources available to try and resolve those issues. There are several agencies that have some governing powers to regulate credit card companies and resolve disputes or investigate misconduct. Some report to various committees of the U.S. government bodies such as Congress, the House of Representatives and the Senate. You elect these officials and you have the power to make your complaints heard."

Bad credit cards.org not only provides you with the links and information about credit card frauds, scams --- but it helps you to put your credit card complaints on the internet. It provides an opportunity for peoples to vent their frustrations, while exercising their first amendment rights.

* Post your complaint: This page offers online submission of your complaints.

* Read Complaints: It is for responses to complaints and rebuttals from the credit card companies and collectors.

* Scams: This is the page where you can read scam reports.

* Contact: It offers links to all major sites where you can go for disputes, complaints, and to know your rights.

There are many useful topics which are discussed at the site, so bookmark these important pages.

- Avoiding Credit and Charge Card Fraud

Choosing and using Credit Cards
- Credit and Your Consumer Rights
- Fair Debt Collection Rights
- Erase Bad Credit
- How to Dispute Credit Report errors

Read more...

Get Rich Slowly"- helping you to be rich

YES, your goal should be "Getting Rich" and to your way of learning, you would discover that proper plannig, budgeting and having knowledge of personal finance, investing and saving money is gradually taking you towards finacial freedom and debt free life. This is the base of wealth and then getting rich is easy for you.

Get Rich Slowly is a personal blog about
personal finance, debt elimination, saving money, and practical investing.
You can find occasional reviews of books, magazines, and software, latest personal finance tools and articles from the web, news on related topics like simplicity, frugality, and personal development. (Blogger believes that "In order to improve financially, you have to improve in other areas of your life".)

How this blog was created?

The blog was started in 2005, to share the knowledge, which was learned from self help financial books. Within days it became success as it was based on personal experiences. There are a lot of useful and informative posts.

* You can participate in the personal finance forum or read the posts of other members.

Few popular article links:
-
How to get out of debt

- 66 Ways to Save Money

- What’s the Reason for Saving and Investing?
- Which high-yield savings account is best?

Read more...

Get financial freedom by saving money!

Everybody knows that money saving is an essential tool which can save you from debts and future loans. Saving money can help you get financial freedom and to get your goals you need to grow this habit from the very start or from today.

The key to building wealth is through saving and investing.
Yet, in 2005 the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis revealed that Americans had a negative savings rate for the first time since the Great Depression. The savings deficit grew even bigger through the third quarter of 2006.
MSN money cetral provides 6 worthless excuses for not saving money, which are:

No. 1: I don't make enough
No. 2: I'll get around to it later
No. 3: I deserve a little luxury in my life
No. 4: Someone else will take care of it
No. 5: I'm saving through my 401(k)
No. 6: This item or service will pay for itself

To read in details: 6 (worthless) excuses for not saving money

Only way to save money for a safe and debt free future is to stop making exuces and get ready for making our mind to save money.

Some statistics on saving:

• The Commerce Department reports that Americans are saving at the lowest rate since the Great Depression.

• Personal savings stood at a national level of negative $6.2 million in January.

• About 40% of Americans say they are saving nothing for retirement. One reason: Over the past year, inflation rose 4.3% while salaries rose only 3.4%.

• One in four Americans told the Employee Benefit Research Institute that they have no savings at all.

Savings Strategies:

* Put away before you pay
Make a “mandatory” monthly payment into a savings or investment account. Treat it like any other bill you must pay. Set a figure you can afford and consider it an obligation to you and your family. “If you can, have your employer directly deposit $200 to $300 a month from your paycheck into a brokerage account or mutual fund,” says Aaron Patzer, CEO of Mint.com, an online personal savings and budgeting service. “If $200 a month in a Standard & Poor’s measured fund performs as it has over the past 20 years, you’ll have around $170,000 in savings in two decades.”

* Invest in a piggy bank
“Spend only paper currency,” advises Ric Edelman, who hosts a personal-finance show on ABC Radio. “By saving all the change you receive every day, you’ll probably accumulate $20 to $50 each month, without even trying.”

* Erase credit-card debt
Many families spend more than $1000 a year on credit-card interest. You can avoid that pain by wiping out your credit-card debt with every payment. “The average American carries $8500 in credit-card debt,” says Patzer. “At a minimum payment of $100 a month, it’ll take seven years—and $4257 in finance charges—before you’re in the clear. At those rates, it’s not worth it to let credit-card debt pile up.”

* If you can’t pay it off...
“Make the minimum payment only on the cards with the lowest interest rates,” says Edelman. “Then take any leftover money and make the largest possible monthly payment for the one card that charges you the highest interest. This is the fastest way to get rid of your more-expensive debt.” You also can consider transferring your balance to a lower-interest card. “Many credit cards offer 4.99% on balance transfers,” says Patzer. “Shop around for the best deal.”

* Avoid impulse buys
Eliminate purchases that might cause financial duress. If you want to buy something extravagant that will stretch your budget, first take seven days to think it over. “Or better yet,” Edelman says, “don’t carry your credit cards at all. This eliminates unnecessary impulse buys. You can always come back next week if you really want the item.”

* Start a “house money” fund
Take any tax refund, overtime pay, gift money, bonus or rebate money you receive and immediately commit it to a high-yield savings account or an IRA that you won’t or can’t touch. “Avoid the temptation to spend these dollars,” says Patzer. “This is ‘found money’ that can work for you. You never had it in your hands, so you won’t miss it when you invest it.”

(By Mike Hammer, Published: May 11, 2008)
For source link and comments about the post: "Parade.com

Download a FREE 12 page PDF e-book: Saving money

Download this report: Why Don’t People Save?

Read more...

Learm more about assessing your debt

Learning about your finances and management of your finance related matters is the first step towards achievement of financial freedom. More you learn about debt, warnign signs, paying off conditions etc, you become mentally prepared to manange your finances for a planned future which is obviously debt free.

Master card site has a learning page where you can get useful information about
- Assessing Your Debt,
- Warning Signs,
- Ways to Save,
- Paying Off Your Debt,
- Debt Know-How.

Having a complete picture of your financial situation will help you create a personal plan to pay off your debt and get your finances back on a positive track.

"Assess Your Debt" section contains tools to help you measure your total and monthly debt; calculate your debt-to-income ratio; understand your monthly income and expenses, including debt payments; develop a reasonable debt reduction budget; and see how paying more than the minimum can help reduce your debt more quickly. Remember to print out each step along the way so you can easily track your progress.
- How To Reduce Debt

Making budget and managing it a skill, which you are learn easily. Just search for tips and suggestions from the experts. "Master card" offers a FREE report at this topic which is very useful in this regard.

Download free report:
Learn About Managing Your Budget(PDF 127k)

Read more...

Money saving with "Certificates of Deposites"

Saving money for future needs is a wise decision, but how and where to save our money is an important question. Because first we have to learn about the available ways of money saving.

Common money saving options may be "saving accounts, "money market accounts", "money market funds" or "Certificates of Deposit (CDs)". Investing in a certificate of deposit is less risky than other types of investments, CDs tend to earn a lower interest rate but are safer and usually FDIC insured through most financial institutions, such as banks and brokerage firms.


"A CD is a special type of deposit account with a bank or thrift institution that typically offers a higher rate of interest than a regular savings account. Unlike other investments, CDs feature federal deposit insurance up to $100,000."

* In exchange for receiving higher interest, however, you tie up your money for a set length of time, generally one month to five years. If you withdraw your money early, you pay a penalty. Therefore, you sacrifice quick access in favor of earning more interest.

The most common place to buy a CD is at the bank or credit union, but you can also get them at brokerage firms. Brokers buy their CDs through a bank and then resell them to you. They might negotiate a higher rate of interest for a CD by promising to bring a certain number of deposits to a particular banking institution. However, there may also be a higher fee.

How CDs work?

When you purchase a CD, you invest a fixed sum of money for fixed period of time – six months, one year, five years, or more – and, in exchange, the issuing bank pays you interest, typically at regular intervals. When you cash in or redeem your CD, you receive the money you originally invested plus any accrued interest. But if you redeem your CD before it matures, you may have to pay an "early withdrawal" penalty or forfeit a portion of the interest you earned.

Although most investors have traditionally purchased CDs through local banks, many brokerage firms now offer CDs. These brokerage firms – known as "deposit brokers" – can sometimes negotiate a higher rate of interest for a CD by promising to bring a certain amount of deposits to the institution. The deposit broker can then offer these "brokered CDs" to their customers.

At one time, most CDs paid a fixed interest rate until they reached maturity. But, like many other products in today’s markets, CDs have become more complicated. Investors may now choose among variable rate CDs, long-term CDs, and CDs with special redemption features in the event the owner dies.

Some long-term, high-yield CDs have "call" features, meaning that the issuing bank may choose to terminate – or call – the CD after only one year or some other fixed period of time. Only the issuing bank may call a CD, not the investor. For example, a bank might decide to call its high-yield CDs if interest rates fall. But if you’ve invested in a long-term CD and interest rates subsequently rise, you’ll be locked in at the lower rate.

Before you consider purchasing a CD from your bank or brokerage firm, make sure you fully understand all of its terms. Carefully read the disclosure statements, including any fine print. And don’t be dazzled by high yields. Ask questions – and demand answers – before you invest.
These tips can help you assess what features make sense for you. These tips are provided by "The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)" which is an independent agency created by the Congress that maintains the stability and public confidence in the nation’s financial system by insuring deposits, examining and supervising financial institutions, and managing receiverships.

"Certificates of Deposit - Tips for Savers"

Find Out When the CD Matures – As simple as this sounds, many investors fail to confirm the maturity dates for their CDs and are later shocked to learn that they’ve tied up their money for five, ten, or even twenty years. Before you purchase a CD, ask to see the maturity date in writing.

For Brokered CDs, Identify the Issuer – Because federal deposit insurance is limited to a total aggregate amount of $100,000 for each depositor in each bank or thrift institution, it is very important that you know which bank or thrift issued your CD. In other words, find out where the deposit broker plans to deposit your money. Also be sure to ask what record-keeping procedures the deposit broker has in place to assure your CD will have federal deposit insurance.

For more information about federal deposit insurance, read the FDIC's publication Your Insured Depositsor call the FDIC's Central Call Center at (877) 275-3342 or (877) ASK-FDIC. For the hearing impaired call 1-800-925-4618 or 1-703-562-2289 (7:00 am to 7:00 pm Eastern time)

Investigate Any Call Features – Callable CDs give the issuing bank the right to terminate the CD after a set period of time, but they do not give you that same right. If the bank calls or redeems your CD, you should receive the full amount of your original deposit plus any unpaid accrued interest.

Understand the Difference Between Call Features and Maturity – Don’t assume that a "federally insured one-year non-callable" CD matures in one year. If you have any doubt, ask the sales representative at your bank or brokerage firm to explain the CD’s call features and to confirm when it matures.

Confirm the Interest Rate You’ll Receive and How You’ll Be Paid – You should receive a disclosure document that tells you the interest rate on your CD and whether the rate is fixed or variable. Be sure to ask how often the bank pays interest – for example, monthly or semi-annually. And confirm how you’ll be paid – for example, by check or by an electronic transfer of funds.

Ask Whether the Interest Rate Ever Changes – If you’re considering investing in a variable-rate CD, make sure you understand when and how the rate can change. Some variable-rate CDs feature a "multi-step" or "bonus rate" structure in which interest rates increase or decrease over time according to a pre-set schedule. Other variable-rate CDs pay interest rates that track the performance of a specified market index, such as the S &P 500 or the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

Research Any Penalties for Early Withdrawal – Be sure to find out how much you’ll have to pay if you cash in your CD before maturity.

Ask Whether Your Broker Can Sell Your CD – Some brokered CDs are issued in the name of the "custodian" or deposit brokers. In some cases, the deposit broker may advertise that the CD does not have a prepayment penalty for early withdrawal. In those cases, the deposit broker will instead try to resell the CD for you if you want to redeem it before maturity. If interest rates have fallen since you purchased your CD and demand is high, you may be able to sell the CD for a profit. But if interest rates have risen, there may be less demand for your lower-yielding CD. That means you may have to sell the CD at a discount and lose some of your original deposit .

Find Out About Any Additional Features – For example, some CDs offer a death benefit that allows a CD owner’s heirs to redeem the CD without penalty when the owner dies.

The bottom-line question you should always ask yourself is: Does this investment make sense for me? A high-yield, long-term CD with a maturity date of 15 to 20 years may make sense for many younger investors who want to diversify their financial holdings. But it might not make sense for elderly investors.

If you have a complaint about a CD you purchased through a bank, try to resolve your complaint directly with an officer of the bank before involving an outside agency. Financial institutions value their customers and most will be helpful. If you are unable to resolve the matter with the financial institution, use the guidelines provided at the page to determine where to direct your complaint.

Page link: fdic-deposit certificates

Read more...

"The National Association of Insurance Commissioners" - helping consumers in buying insurance

Deciding to buy health, life or other insurance is not an easy task. First of all we need to know the insurance catagories, types, and next step is to choose the insurance company. But where to look for reliable and responsive companies with cost effective policies according to our needs?

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC)is a must visit site before buying an insurance policy.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) is the organization of insurance regulators from the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the five U.S. territories.

The mission of the NAIC is to assist state insurance regulators, individually and collectively, in serving the public interest and achieving the following fundamental insurance regulatory goals in a responsive, efficient and cost effective manner.

- Finding an insurance company can be a challenge. To assist you in your task, the Consumer Information Source (CIS) presents information about insurance companies you can use BEFORE purchasing insurance.

Here you can access key information about insurance companies, including closed complaints, licensing information and financial data.

In addition to company-specific information, the NAIC produces reports combining data submitted by state insurance departments. These reports (at right) provide information about common closed complaints by reason and type of insurance, as well as how the complaints were resolved.

For details: Protect yourself!

- Filling out an individual health insurance application can be confusing and difficult. Insurance companies scrutinize these applications, closely reviewing the information you provide. That's why it's critically important that you educate yourself about individual health insurance and your rights as a consumer.

To help make the application process easier, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) suggests that you keep the information in mind when securing an individual health care policy for yourself and your family.

For details: Health Insurance

- Insure U-Get Smart About Insurance is from The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) and provides consumer insurance information for those considering or buying insurance. Select a life stage course, study the material, then take the Insure U Quiz!

Download the FREE pdf version guides from the link:

- Consumer's Guide to Auto Insurance [PDF]
- Consumer's Guide to Home Insurance [PDF]
- Life Insurance Buyer's Guide [PDF]
- A Shopper's Guide to Cancer Insurance [PDF]

Read more...

Money saving tips and articles at "Saving Secrets"

I love the site and blogs, which offer tips, advice or suggestions to save money. Mannaging our budget, planning for our finances are keys to financial freedom. And no doubt that saving money is a part of these steps.

Saving Secrets provides money saving articles with effective tips and strategies to help you immediately save money.

I was really impressed by their article which is about "Shopping moods", because this is my personal experience that your mood and stress level plays an important role while you shop. I realize it that in some mood swings, you spend more money on useless products or the groceries which you don't need for weeks.

"Watch Out - Shopping Moods"

Have you ever stopped to think about how your "mood" affects the way you shop, not to mention the amount you spend?

Think about it.

If you want to save a lot of money, avoid shopping whenever you are in one of these moods:

UPSET - DEPRESSED - ANGRY
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It's very dangerous for your pocketbook to shop when you're either depressed, upset or angry. Why?

Many people find that shopping takes their mind away from their problems. In fact, it probably does. But how much does it cost you?

Not only does shopping not solve your problems, but you will also spend money that you did not originally intend to spend.

When you're not feeling "well", instead of shopping, do something where you do not have to spend money. Go to a park. Check out the local library. Go on a nice jog or bike ride.

Remember that if you HAVE to get out of the house, plan an activity where you do not have to spend money. You'll feel much better about this decision after you have cooled down (or cheered up). :-)

Envy Shopping
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sounds terrible doesn't it, but you'd be surprised to learn how many of us purchase quite a number of items out of envy.

Does a friend have a "cool" $600 leather jacket that you want? Have a cousin who drives a flashy sports car?

Who cares!!

That doesn't mean you have to spend all your hard earned money to compete with them. Buy what you want, when you want, and not because someone else has it.

Sale Shopper
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unless you actually need or want to shop for certain products, don't go to store "sales".

Even though sales provide you with some lower prices, most of the time, shoppers end up spending more money than they intended to.

This is the purpose of sales. A store lowers their prices, announces and advertises a big sale, then hoards of people arrive. People come to the sale, and generally spend much more money on merchandise they really don't need.

Be a smart shopper. If you find something at a sale that you really need, go ahead and buy it. When you start piling your cart full of stuff you really don't need, remember this article!

Plan a Shopping Budget
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you plan a monthly shopping budget, you'll find that you will become more "picky" about what you buy. Why you ask?

You don't want to spend your budget on useless items, right? Having a shopping budget will force yourself to answer the most important question: Do I really need this?

If you know the answer to this question, then you will know whether to buy or not. Moral of the story: Plan yourself a shopping budget, don't spend it when you're upset, and ask yourself the question: Do I really need this? ;-)

This will help minimize the unnecessary purchase that we all make from time to time.
Source link: Watch Out - Shopping Moods

FREE offer from the site:

FREE download 75 page PDF e-bookKey To Saving Money Ebook at this link

For more articles on saving money: Saving Secrets

Read more...

How to improve your financial situation?

Your money and finance management are your "toys", which if used and mananged properly can give you joy and happiness or a stress of debt. There are advices and tips from experts which can guide us to manage our personal finances. The first step towards financial freedom is to know how to improve our financial situation. Here are some tips which can be useful in managing your finances.

10 STEPS TO IMPROVE YOUR FINANCIAL SITUATION

To help improve your financial personal financial situation and inevitably save more money:
1. Pay Yourself Weekly
This may seem a bit odd, but this is an excellent way to start building a substantial savings. On a weekly basis, pay yourself $25-$50 and immediately put it in a safe place. You can even open a special savings account where this weekly "payday" can by placed to help minimize or eliminate impulsive spending. Think about it this way, if you paid yourself $25 a week, in two years you'll have accumulated $2600 (not including interest)!!! That's almost $3000 from just putting $25 aside every week! Take advantage of this money-saving opportunity. Simple, yet very effective.

2. Don't Shop
For those of you that love to shop, you may find that this is one tip that could save you hundreds, maybe even thousands every year. Start using the "Need or Want" strategy. Before you spend a single dollar on anything, ask yourself, "Do I really NEED this item, or do I just WANT it??" You may find that many of the items we purchase, we do so just because it "caught our eye" or it was "an impulse buy" or "my friend bought the same thing". All these excuses just add up to wasteful spending. You can probably get by without another sweater, or a new pair of jeans, so just buy what you absolutely need, and pass on those items that aren't necessities.

3. Use Your Bank's Own ATMs
Some banks will charge you money for using other ATM machines. Even though you will be able to withdraw money using your ATM/debit card from literally any machine, banks will charge you $2 (generally) for using a machine other than theirs, in addition to a standard $1.50 charge the machine charges for its use. In other words, if you use the ATM at your local 7-11 to take out $20, you'll most likely end up paying $3.50 in additional charges! If you do that 5 times a month, you'll lose $17.50 for that month, or $210 per year! What a waste! Try and stick with your own bank's ATMs whenever possible.

4. Track Your Spending
Take the time to track your spending habits for one week. Take note of every single dollar you spend, even those sodas and candy bars purchased here and there. This will give you a "birds-eye" view of exactly where your money is being spent, thus allowing you to refine your spending habits to essentially save more money.

5. Lower Credit Card Balances
Another very important tip that many often overlook. Pay off those pesky credit cards as soon as possible because you are losing up to 19% of the total. What a waste of your hard earned money! Keep chopping away at the balances until you get to an amount that is reasonable $100-$500 dollars.

6. Use Your Debit Card Instead of Credit Cards
Get in the habit of using your debit card instead of your credit cards. For the most part, debit cards are accepted anywhere a credit card is accepted, however as you know, with a debit card the amount is taken directly from your checking account whereas credit card usage is billed at a later date (along with a hefty interest rate).

7. Changing Jobs? Roll-Over that 401(k)
When people change jobs/careers they will be faced with a decision to either "rollover" their 401k (retirement plan) or to withdraw it. It will be ever so tempting to withdraw the money since it will be a substantial amount, but don't! You will be charged fines and penalties for an early withdrawal that will cut YOUR total by 40%-60%! That's like giving half of your earned retirement savings away to a stranger. Why would you do that? Even though you may want the money now, resist the temptation and roll it over. It will be well worth it in the long run.

8. Avoid Getting Too Many Credit Cards
Why have eight credit cards? That's just going to provide you with more opportunities to go further into debt. It's fine to keep 1-3 cards to build credit, establish yourself, and for emergencies, but credit cards are double-edged swords. They can help or hurt you depending on your self-control.

9. Check Your Credit Score/Report
It's important to know where you currently stand as a consumer and since your credit report is the most important historical list of your financial past and present, it's a very good idea to check it from time to time. There are a number of places where you can get your credit report, however the most detailed compares information from the top three national credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. Once you get your report, look through it carefully to see if all the information is accurate. If there are any discrepancies, get those solved as quickly as possible to improve your credit rating - a score of up to 800. Often times, consumers are unaware of unsettled accounts, or accounts that are still open/active when they should be closed. Pay close attention to this when inspecting your report.

10. Finally: Review - Revise - Retry
Once you start implementing these tips and become more familiar with the money saving opportunities you have, take the time to REVIEW your progress. Check and see where it may be possible to REVISE some of your techniques or where you can implement new ones. Once you have revised your plan, RETRY to see if your results improve. The more frequent you review, revise, and retry your saving ideas, the more "in tune" you'll be with your finances and spending habits, and learn what works and what doesn't for you.
Source link
These tips are from Saving Secrets which offers money saving articles to provide you with effective tips and strategies to save money.

Download a 75 page PDF e-book FREE from the link: download

Read more...

"Happy Rock" - A personal finance blog

“The Happy Rock” is a personal finance and personal development blog from a software engineer, from South Jersey, Delran. Henry Miller believes that freedom is created by efficiently managing one’s faith, finances, and productivity. This blog is an exposure of his journey to create freedom in his life.

“The Happy Rock” is dedicated to creating positive change that propels us towards success. What you will find is one man’s journey to create freedom in his life so that he can better serve others. Freedom that is created by efficiently managing one’s faith, finances, and productivity.

There are a lot of posts about finance, debt elimination, credit cards, personal finance and much more.

Blog link: The Happy Rock

Few posts of note:
* Do We Earn The Right Not To Budget?

* What does getting out of debt “buy” you?

* The title of the site mentions gaining freedom through personal finance, so it is about time that I share some of our journey. The family’s finances are now on auto pilot, but that is only after 4 years of blood, sweat, and tears. The idea is to not only share the overview of the last 4 years, but also highlight the key concepts that we encountered while paying off over $70,000 in debt.
More at this page: My Get Out Of Debt Success Story - $70,000 In Four Years

Read more...

Importance of life insurance in financially protecting families

There is a significant role of insurance in protecting the family- financially, but still we need to know more about the insurance, amount of coverage, plicies and many other related issues. To learn about insurance, government or non-profit organizations are a good place to get useful information, tips, suggestions and advice about insurance.

State Insurance Regulators Offer Tips for Consumers:

According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC):

"While many adults with dependent children living at home know they need life insurance to protect their families, not all have it, and few young singles even take the time to evaluate their options," says Alessandro A. Iuppa, NAIC president and superintendent of the Maine Bureau of Insurance. "To help educate consumers about if and when to purchase, increase or reduce life insurance at different stages in their lives, we've created Insure U."

Consumer research conducted by the NAIC earlier this year indicates the following:

Only 35 percent of young singles have life insurance. Furthermore, few young singles (28 percent) express high levels of confidence in knowing the difference between the two basic types of life insurance, term and permanent, and a similar number (27 percent) are highly confident that buying life insurance when they are young will guarantee their coverage later in life.

Among young families, nearly two-thirds (64 percent) believe it's "very important" for both spouses to have life insurance. Yet fewer than half (48 percent) say they actually have purchased life insurance for either spouse.
Across all life stages, a significant number of consumers (around 40 percent) fail to review their life insurance policies on an annual basis.

What All Consumers Should Know About Life Insurance

According to the NAIC, there are three life insurance basics that all consumers should consider:

1. Start by considering how many people are financially dependent on you, what their major expenses are likely to be and whether you're likely to leave them with substantial debts or taxes to pay on your estate. Life insurance can help on all of those fronts.

2. Evaluate the two main types of life insurance: term and permanent. As its name implies, term life insurance pays a death benefit if you pass away within a specified time period (typically a term of one to 20 years). In contrast, permanent life insurance (which comes in many varieties such as whole life, universal life and variable life) includes both a death benefit and the ability to build up cash value over your entire lifetime.

In general, term life insurance is much less expensive than permanent life. In fact, term life premiums have decreased markedly during the past decade due to the fact that Americans are living longer on average. Consumers who purchased their policies more than a few years ago should check out current rates. Also, consumers should ask whether the policy they are considering charges a surrender or cancellation fee if they decide to drop the policy or switch to another one.

3. Understand the major factors that can affect life insurance premiums. Some are uncontrollable, like the age at which one purchases a policy or a serious pre-existing medical condition, like cancer or heart disease. Other factors are much more dependent on an individual's behavior, like poor health habits (e.g., smoking and excessive drinking), driving record (e.g., accidents and Driving While Intoxicated citations), engaging in dangerous hobbies (e.g., sky diving, car racing or rock climbing) and even where one lives, since mortality rates in a geographic region may be used by life insurance companies to help establish premiums.

Life Insurance Tips for Each Life Stage
The NAIC's consumer Web site, Insure U, provides focused tips to consumers based on their likely needs in different life stages. For example:
Young singles who want to be sure that they can get life insurance later in their lives when they may develop health problems should consider purchasing term life insurance that is guaranteed to be renewable. They may also want to consider a term policy with a conversion option, which enables them to switch, for a set fee, to a cash-value policy at a time when they have more money. Those serving in the military should consider Serviceman's Group Life Insurance, low-cost term life insurance available to all those in active duty.

Young families should consider purchasing life insurance for both spouses, even for a non-working spouse, to help pay for childcare and other domestic services. At this life stage, term insurance may be the most cost effective when their salaries are still relatively low and they're paying off a mortgage. Some parents purchase small life insurance policies for their newborns to guarantee that they'll have some insurance if they develop health problems.
Established families should consider the probable costs of their children's college education when determining how much life insurance they may need.

Empty nesters/seniors should evaluate whether they can reduce their life insurance coverage based on such factors as whether their spouse is alive, their home is paid off, their children and/or grandchildren are financially independent or if they anticipate high estate taxes that would be a burden on their heirs. Some older individuals with significant financial assets may choose to keep their life insurance in force because they view insurance as an estate planning tool that enables them to leave their loved ones money that is exempt from income and estate taxes.

"All consumers should remember to review their life insurance policy every year before paying their premiums and update it to reflect any major changes in their lives – like marriage, the birth of a child, divorce or the death of a spouse," says Catherine J. Weatherford, NAIC executive vice president and CEO. "Before signing up for any kind of insurance, consumers should check with their state insurance department to make sure the company offering the policy is legitimate, solvent and authorized to do business in their state."

Read more...