OneInsure Blog
Post By Joan
5 Most Useful Term Insurance Riders
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Term Insurance Riders, Life Insurance
Thinking about how to boost your term plan coverage to support your loved ones? Well, this is where riders can be of help to you. Term insurance riders add that extra bit of security to your policy, and all you have to do in return is pay a little higher premium. Riders strengthen a term plan by providing additional benefits, besides what you get in the core offering with a term plan – death benefits.
There are several riders you can add to your term insurance cover. In this article, we will look at the 5 most important term insurance riders that you really should consider including in your plan.
Accidental Death Rider
With accidents claiming so many lives across the globe, it only makes sense to avail the accidental death rider. This rider pays an additional benefit over and beyond the policy's death benefit to your beneficiaries in the event you meet an untimely death in an accident. The death of the primary earning member can have a huge impact on the family's finances, and for such individuals, the accidental death benefit rider is definitely a must. In an event of the demise of the life insured, the family gets almost twice the sum assured.
Critical Illness Rider
A critical illness can wash out a person's savings in an unprecedented way. Since this can happen without any warning, it's advisable to include a critical illness rider to your life insurance cover. A critical illness rider pays out a lump sum benefit to the life insured when s/he is diagnosed with a serious health condition. You can use the pay-out to meet the hospital bills and keep your household running. Carefully go through the type of illnesses covered under this rider since they tend to vary from one insurance company to another. Cancer, stroke, and heart attack are usually covered.
Accelerated Death Benefit Rider
Watching a loved one suffer from a terminal illness does not just drain you emotionally, but your finances take a beating as well. The medical bills that total up for availing treatment at any of the country's top hospitals are enough to wipe off the family’s savings. To prevent this from happening, it is wise to get an accelerated death benefit rider. With this, cash advances are paid out (against the death benefit) in the event the life insured is diagnosed with a critical illness. The portion of the death benefit that is paid out can be used to offset the costs related to treating a terminal condition or chronic illness.
Waiver of Premium
The waiver of premium rider helps keep your policy active even when you're unable to make future premium payments because of loss of income due to a disability or critical illness. In simpler words, your premiums get waived if you experience disability. It must be noted that there is a waiting period with this rider. Future premiums will be waived off only if the life insured contracts a critical illness or suffers from disability after a certain period following the commencement of the policy.
Disability Income Rider
With the disability income rider, you stand to receive a regular income from the insurance company should you become completely disabled and cannot work. Insurance companies generally pay out a monthly income at the rate of 1% of the full value of the policy. Check the policy documents to see the amount of income payable and whether it is paid for a certain timeframe or for the whole duration of the disability.
Before adding riders to your policy, it helps if you take some time out to study them in detail – their benefits, inclusions, exclusions, and other features. Compare the costs of various riders offered by different life insurance companies in the market and shortlist those that are pocket-friendly. Finally, it must be noted that although the aforementioned riders are beneficial in providing additional coverage to your term plan, you must read through your policy brochure before opting for them. See what your plan already covers and wherever you think the protection is inadequate, choose a rider to fulfill that need.
