All Life Insurance Tips

Gerber life insurance company?

is this even worth doing has anyone ever done this...i need feed back and ideas i have a one year old little boy and i want him to have something to fall back on when he gets older, weather its college or whatever The insurance says they can cash it out for the premium. So should i sign up or just get him a savings account?

Public Comments

1. I do not recommend buying life insurance from anything other than a "mutual" type of company. Gerber Life is a "Stock" company, and doesn't fall into a category I personally like. I personally like Equitable Life insurance co, NewYork Life, and Northwestern Mutual Life. I was an agent, manager, and managing general agent for several years. Those have been the most stable, not the cheapest. Mutual policies draw dividend and cash value and provide for a better return on investment. Here are some hard rules to follow when choosing: 1. Life insurance will never be a strong enough vessel to replace a good savings and invesment portfolio. Never expect a life insurance product to perform like or be able to replace an investment. 2. You can never save enough money fast enough for an investment product to be able to replace the need for life insurance. 3. Do not ever buy the "double indemnity, common carrier, accidental coverage" junk. because it is a premium getter, and only pays in the event of an accident. FTC and I both agree this is a bad purchase. The only rider worth getting is the "disability premium waiver" and the "Premium Payor disabilty waiver" riders. Thats because they protect the longevity of the insturment. 4. Whole life insurance is much cheaper now than it used to be. There are several "modified" and "fixed payment" plans available that are competative to term rates. in a mutual can be used to reduce or d with premium payments over time.
2. Gerber Life is a legitimate life insurance company and they sell real life insurance products. They are highly rated and have been doing this for many years. You shouldn't be concerned there. A few comments as to whether this is the best thing for you. Life insurance is meant to relieve the financial strain from an unexpected death and is not really meant to be a long term investment tool. If you want your son to have money for college then I would recommend a tax deferred college savings plan like a Coverdell ESA or a 529 plan. If you want to save for a car or "whatever" then savings accounts, cds, IRAs, etc are the way to go. I always recommend that parents get life insurance on themselves first so that their children and spouse are taken care of financially if something happens. The toll from the death of a child is usually emotional and not financial except for burial expenses. After you have you coverage in place many companies offer inexpensive child riders that you can attach to your policy to provide coverage for your children. In most instances you can provide life insurance coverage for all of your children for a couple of bucks per month extra on top of your premium.