Life Insurance

Life insurance, to many, is a necessary evil. Many policyholders swear by it to protect their families from loss of income and hefty debt obligations in the event of their untimely death. With several types of life insurance on the market, generally speaking, two varieties still remain the most popular: term and whole life, or "cash value" life insurance.

Types

Cash value life insurance are policies in which premiums are used to pay for the cost of insurance, while a portion is placed into attached investment vehicles that grow over time. Some popular cash value life insurance products include variable life, whole life, universal life and paid-up insurance. Despite minor differences, these insurance plans are essentially the same. All cash value life insurance policies contain a death benefit and a cash account that's added to when a client makes a premium payment.

Term life insurance is significantly different than its cash value counterpart. Term life insurance does not contain a cash value account. Premiums are used solely to pay for the cost of coverage. These premiums maintain the level of coverage for a specific "term." At the end of a policy's term, a new policy must be purchased.
Benefits

Both cash value life and term life insurance have their benefits. The most significant benefit of cash value life insurance is its ability to offer coverage for the entire life of the policyholder. Many people take advantage of buying this type of insurance when they are young when they need it most. Cash value accounts may also be borrowed against or drawn from during the life of the policy. Policyholders are also not required to pay taxes on any interest or earnings attached to cash value accounts.

Individuals and corporations also benefit from term life insurance. The biggest advantage of term life is the often very cheap premiums, especially when a person is young and healthy. It is possible, in many situations, to purchase significantly large face value amounts for monthly costs of $20 to $30. Term life is good for covering financial obligations that will eventually end, such as mortgages, automobile loans and education costs.

Insurance Companies

List of Insurane Companies in US

Access General Insurance
AccuQuote
Aetna
Aflac
Alleghany Corporation
Allied Insurance
Allstate
American Automobile Association
American Family Insurance
American Income Life Insurance Company
American International Group (AIG)
American Pet Insurance Company
American National Insurance Company
Americo Financial Life and Annuity Insurance Company
Ameritas
Amica Mutual Insurance
Aon Corporation
Assurant
Assurity
Auto-Owners Insurance
AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company
Bankers Life and Casualty Company
Berkshire Hathaway
California Casualty
Capital Insurance Group
Cincinnati Insurance Company
CNA Financial
Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company
Commerce Insurance Group
Conseco
Country Financial
Chartis
Chubb Corp.
Elephant.com
Encompass Insurance Company
Erie Insurance Group
Equitable Life & Casualty insurance Company
Esurance
Evergreen USA RRG
FCCI Insurance Group
Farmers Insurance Group
Federated Mutual Insurance Company
GAINSCO
GEICO
General Re
Genworth Financial
GMAC Insurance
Gracy Title Company
Guardian Life Insurance Company of America
GuideOne Insurance
Hanover Insurance
The Hartford
HCC Insurance Holdings
HCF Insurance
Hereford Insurance Company
Horace Mann Insurance Company
Infinity Property & Casualty Corporation
Insurance Company of the West (ICW Group)
International Fidelity Insurance Company
Illinois Mutual
Insurance-Dr.com
Jackson National Life
John Hancock Insurance
Kemper Insurance
K&K Insurance
Knights of Columbus
La Playa Insurance
lgap Insurance
Liberty Mutual
Lincoln National Corporation
Markel Corporation
MassMutual Financial Group
Merchants Insurance Group
Mercury Insurance Group
MetLife
Mutual of Omaha
Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company
New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Company
New York Life Insurance Company
Northwestern Mutual
Ohio National
Omega
OneBeacon
Oxford Health Plans
Pacific Life
PEMCO
Penn Mutual
Preferred Mutual Insurance Company
Primerica
Principal Financial Group
Progressive
Protective Life
Prudential Financial
The Regence Group
Reliance Insurance Company
Response Insurance
RLI Corp.
Safe Auto Insurance Company
Safeco
Safeway Insurance Group
Sentry Insurance
Selective Insurance
Seven Corners Inc
Shelter Insurance
Southern Aid and Insurance Company
Standard Insurance Company
State Farm Insurance
Symetra
Tri-State Consumer Insurance Company
TIAA-CREF
The Travelers Companies
Tower Hill Preferred
Tower Hill Prime
Tower Hill Signature
Trupanion
Uniguard - Headquarter in greater Seattle area
United Automobile Insurance Company
Unitrin Direct Auto Insurance
Unum
Vantislife Insurance Company
USAA
Wawanesa Insurance USA (CA and OR)
West Coast Life
Western Mutual Insurance Group
Western & Southern Financial Group
Westfield Insurance
Western Reserve Life Insurance Company
White Mountains Insurance Group
Zacharias Insurance

About Insurance

Insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the insurance; the insured, or policyholder, is the person or entity buying the insurance policy. The amount to be charged for a certain amount of insurance coverage is called the premium. Risk management, the practice of appraising and controlling risk, has evolved as a discrete field of study and practice.

The transaction involves the insured assuming a guaranteed and known relatively small loss in the form of payment to the insurer in exchange for the insurer's promise to compensate (indemnify) the insured in the case of a financial (personal) loss. The insured receives a contract, called the insurance policy, which details the conditions and circumstances under which the insured will be financially compensated.