5 Mistakes That Can Ruin Your Life (Insurance) 5 個可能毀掉你生活的錯誤（保險）
There are many good reasons to consider buying a life insurance policy, such as a recent marriage, a new baby, or taking on a large debt (like a house) loved ones would have trouble paying off if something happened to you. Or, perhaps you have witnessed first-hand the impact death has on surviving family members' finances. If you're in the market for life insurance or have recently bought a policy, make sure you don't put your family's finances in jeopardy by making these mistakes.
考慮購買人壽保險的理由有很多，比如最近結婚，生了一個孩子，或者背負了大筆債務（例如房子），如果你發生什麼意外，您的親人可能無法負擔和償還。或者，也許您目睹了死亡對倖存家庭成員財務的影響。如果您計劃購買人壽保險或已經購買了一份保單，請確保不要因為以下這些錯誤而危及您家庭的財務狀況。 Mistake #1 — Waiting to Buy Insurance
錯誤 #1 — 等待購買保險 When purchasing life insurance, it's important to consider the amount of coverage you need as well as the cost. Life insurance premiums are based on a number of factors, including your age and overall health.
購買人壽保險時，重要的是要考慮您需要的保險金額和保費。人壽保險保費取決於多種因素，包括您的年齡和整體健康狀況。
Buying a life insurance policy sooner, rather than later, can work in your favor if you're hoping to secure a policy at the lowest possible cost. Life insurance rates generally increase as people age or their health deteriorates. And, in some cases, illnesses or health problems may make you ineligible for coverage. The longer you put off the buying decision the more the insurance will probably cost—if you can buy it at all.
如果您希望盡可能低的保費獲得保單，那麼儘早購買人壽保險是對您最有利的。人壽保險的保費通常會隨著人們年齡的增長或健康狀況的惡化而增加。而且，在某些情況下，疾病或健康問題可能會使您沒有資格獲得保險。您推遲決定購買的時間越長，保險的保費可能就越高——如果您可以購買的話。
Mistake #2 — Buying the Cheapest Policy
錯誤 #2 — 購買最便宜的保單
While it is important to shop for a policy that's affordably priced, it's important to consider what you're getting in return, in terms of coverage. Life insurance policies can be a bit complicated, so it's a good idea to learn about their features and benefits.
雖然購買價格合理的保單很重要，但更重要的是要考慮在承保範圍方面您得到的回報。人壽保險單可能有點複雜，因此先了解它們的特點和益處是個好方法。
For example, term life insurance tends to be cheaper than permanent life insurance. But there's a caveat: term life insurance only covers you for a set time period while permanent life insurance can cover you until death, as long as your premiums are paid.
例如，定期人壽保險往往比永久人壽保險便宜。必須注意的是，定期人壽保險只為您提供一段時間的保障，只要您按時支付保費，而永久人壽保險可以提供保障直至死亡。
If you believe you'll only need life insurance for a set period, say 20 or 30 years, then a term life policy can be an affordable option. On the other hand, if you're interested in lifetime coverage or you want to own a life insurance policy that builds cash value as an investment vehicle, then it could be worth it to pay more in premiums for permanent coverage.
如果您認為您只需要一段固定期限的人壽保險，比如 20 年或 30 年，那麼定期人壽保險可能是一個合理的選擇。另一方面，如果您對終生保險感興趣，或者您想擁有將現金價值作為投資工具的人壽保險單，那麼購買永久保險支付較多的保費是值得的。
If you buy a term life insurance policy then later decide you want lifetime coverage, you may be able to convert your existing policy to permanent life insurance.
如果您已經購買了定期人壽保險，又決定想要終身保單，您可以將現有的定期保單轉換為永久人壽保險。
Mistake #3 — Allowing Premiums to Lapse
錯誤 #3 — 允許保費失效
When purchasing life insurance, you're expected to pay a premium in return for coverage. Again, these premiums can be based on your insurance risk class, which correlates to your age, health, and other factors. If you're considering buying a universal life policy with secondary guarantees—low-premium guaranteed death benefits for life or for a specified period of time—a late payment can impact the policy benefits.
購買人壽保險時，您需要支付保費以獲得保險。保費是基於您的保險風險等級而判斷的，這與您的年齡、健康狀況和其他因素相關。如果您正在考慮購買具有二級保證的萬能人壽保單——終身或特定時期的低保費保證死亡撫卹金——延遲繳付保費可能會影響保單利益。
Universal life is a special type of permanent policy that has been marketed as having long-term guaranteed protection at the lowest possible rate—it is very different from term insurance. While many of these types of policies have a cash surrender value, universal life with secondary guarantees focuses on maximizing the amount of insurance available per dollar of premium.
萬能壽險是一種特殊類型的永久保單，它以盡可能低的費率提供長期保證的保護——與定期保險大不相同。雖然許多此類保單具有現金退保價值，但具有二級保證的萬能壽險側重於最大限度地提高每塊錢保費的保險金額。
Some of these policies can be sensitive to the timing of premium payments. For example, if you happen to miss a monthly payment—or are more than a month late sending in your check—your guaranteed policy may no longer be guaranteed. A policy purchased with guaranteed coverage to age 100 might only provide protection to age 92 if one payment is late or missed, which could be problematic if you live longer.
其中一些政策可能對保費支付的時間很敏感。例如，如果您錯過了一次月付款 - 或延遲發送支票超過一個月 - 您的保證政策可能不再得到保證。如果一次付款延遲或錯過，您所購買的保證保險至100 歲的保單可能只提供到92歲保障，如果年紀更長，問題則會更大。
Mistake #4 — Forgetting Insurance Is an Investment
錯誤#4——忘記保險是一種投資
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) considers a variable life insurance policy an investment, so it is important for you to treat it as one too.
金融業監管局 (FINRA) 將變額人壽保險單視為一項投資，因此您也必須將其視為一項投資。
A variable life insurance policy is a permanent type of policy that provides life insurance protection with cash value. Part of the premium goes toward life insurance, and part goes into a cash-value account that is invested in various investments similar to mutual funds that you choose. Like mutual funds, the value of these accounts fluctuates and is based on the performance of the underlying investments. People often look to these policy values in the future as a source of funds to supplement their retirement income.
變額人壽保險單是一種永久類型的保單，提供具有現金價值的人壽保險保障。一部分保費用於人壽保險，一部分用於您選擇的共同基金的各種投資的現金價值賬戶。與共同基金一樣，這些賬戶的價值會根據相關投資的表現而波動。人們通常將這些保單的價值視為未來的資金來源，以作為他們退休收入的補充。
You must fund a variable life policy sufficiently to maximize its cash value growth. This means continuing to make adequate premium payments, especially during times of poor investment returns. Paying less than originally planned can have a big impact on the cash value available to you in the future. It's also important to monitor your policy's performance and periodically rebalance your accounts to your desired allocation, just as you would with any investment account. This will help ensure you're not taking on more risk than you had planned when you set up your account.
您必須為變額人壽保單提供足夠的資金，以最大限度地提高其現金價值增長。這也意味著要繼續支付足夠的保費，尤其是在投資回報不佳的時候。如果支付低於原計劃的保費，可能會對您未來可用的現金價值產生重大影響。監控您的保單的表現並定期重新平衡您的賬戶以達到您想要的分配很重要，就像您對任何投資賬戶所做的一樣。這將有助於確保您承擔的風險不會超出您原訂的計劃。
Mistake #5 — Borrowing From Your Policy
錯誤 #5 — 從保單中藉錢
Permanent life insurance policies that accumulate cash value could be a source of funds when you need to borrow money. The cash value of a permanent policy can generally be used for any reason you see fit, including tax-free withdrawals and loans, if done properly.
當您需要藉錢時，可以累積現金價值的永久人壽保險單可能是一個資金來源。如果操作得當，永久保單的現金價值通常可以用於您認為合適的任何原因，包括無需繳稅的提款和貸款。
This is a great benefit, but it must be carefully managed. If you take too much money out of your policy and your policy lapses or runs out of money, all the gains you've taken out will become taxable. Not to mention, you may significantly reduce the death benefit that's available to your beneficiaries when you pass away.
這是一個非常有益的好處，但必須謹慎管理。如果您從保單中取出過多的錢，並且您的保單失效或用完錢，您取出的所有收益都將被徵稅。更不用說，當您去世時，您的受益人可以獲得的死亡撫卹金可能會大大減少。
If you have taken too much money out and your policy is about to lapse, you may be able to maintain the policy by making additional premium payments, assuming you can afford them. When accessing your life insurance policy's cash value, be sure to monitor it closely and consult your tax advisor to avoid any unwanted tax liability.
如果您取出了太多的錢並且您的保單即將失效，如果您有能力負擔的話，您可以通過支付額外的保費來繼續維持保單。在查看您的人壽保險單的現金價值時，請務必密切監控並諮詢您的稅務顧問，以避免任何不必要的納稅責任。
Source 文章來源: https://www.investopedia.com/